Ghana’s public debt stock is expected to hit 81.5% of GDP by the end of this year. This means the country’s debt will go above GHC300 billion before the end of 2021.
This was contained in the International Monetary Fund, IMF April 2021 Fiscal Monitor report.
Per the IMF data on low-income developing countries, Ghana’s debt to GDP ratio will surge to 83.2% in 2022, and then further to 84.8%, 86.0% and 86.6% in 2023, 2024 and 2025.
It will however drop slightly to 85.5% in 2026.
This can possibly push the economy into a highly debt distress category, as majority of revenue will be used to service debt, leaving only small fiscal space.
In Sub Saharan Africa, Zambia and Congo Republic are the only two countries that will record unsustainable debt levels, worse than Ghana.
On the average, debt of oil producing countries is estimated 35.2% of GDP in 2021, whilst Sub Saharan Africa debt to GDP will be 47.2% of GDP.
Analysts and market watchers are worried about Ghana’s rising debt as there is a higher risk of default, going forward.
