Earlier today, July 1, the Ministry of Information issued a press statement indicating that President Nana Akufo Addo has authorized the Finance Ministry to go for an IMF bailout.
This resolve by the government has sparked a lot of uproar from Ghanaians and netizens, who have taken to mockery after how the government was adamant about going for an IMF program; praised and touted itself as innovative in reaping internal revenue through the controversial E-levy.
Some Ghanaians consider the government’s resolve rather fascinating because of how the opposition NDC was accused of economic mismanagement during their tenure, which led to their going to the IMF, and how they organized a kenkey party after coming out of the IMF program in 2019.
Returning to the IMF has become necessary because the E-levy proposed as an alternative during the 2022 budget statement is not meeting the revenue target after many Ghanaians and experts said otherwise. The E- levy has generated only 60 million cedis out of the expected 600 million cedis, as Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko tweeted.
The government’s return to the IMF is to help the government recover from the harsh economic conditions caused by the covid-19 pandemic and the Russia- Ukraine crisis.
