Ghana will have to get approval from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) before it can go ahead to issue its planned Eurobond this year.
The Minister of Finance, Seth Terkper in March, 2015 revealed that government intends to issue a $1 billion 10-year Eurobond in 2015.
This according to the minister will be used to settle government debts that will mature in 2017. Government had earlier asserted that the bond will be issued this month, June, 2015. However two domestic bonds issued by government this year have been undersubscribed raising concerns over whether government should still go ahead to issue the Eurobond.
A deputy finance minister Mona Quartey said ‘the decision is not firmed, it is a plan pending the market situation and government is not proposing to put it on hold the issuing of the bond because we have detailed a number of options and we are in discussion with the IMF on which option is best to execute’.
According to Citi Business News, government through the Ministry of Finance is however about to submit its medium term debt strategy to the IMF in which they have detailed options available to Ghana in the issuance of the bond.
Mona Quartey says government at the end of the month will know the best option available after talks with the IMF.
“We are now going to submit our medium term debt strategy formally for scrutiny by the IMF. We have actually submitted one already to them but there will be a formal submission. So it is only at the end of June into early July that we will know what we will do but we are proposing that we issue the bond but as I said it is only after the end of the month that we will know what we will do.”
Credit: citifmonline