Ghana agreed private sector deals worth up to £215 million ($289 million) during an investment event in London, capping President John Dramani Mahama’s trip in which he sought to present the West African country as investor-friendly after emerging from its worst economic crisis in decades.
Mahama, meanwhile, said African debt was “mispriced,” and there needed to be faster restructuring tools, while his finance minister said the gold and cocoa producer was targeting an investment-grade credit rating within three years.
Ghana last month exited its $3 billion bailout program from the International Monetary Fund, a pact it entered under Mahama’s predecessor. The country sought IMF support in 2022 after debt-servicing costs soared following years of overspending and supply chain shocks drove up inflation and weakened the cedi currency. Inflation has, however, eased for 15 consecutive months, before an uptick in April. Fitch upgraded the country’s sovereign rating last month but its rating with global agencies remains at junk status.
