IMF programme won’t hurt Ghanaians – Mahama

President John Mahama has said a partnership with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will not hurt Ghanaians in any way.

Ghana is currently in talks with the Bretton Woods Institution for a programme aimed at rescuing the ailing economy of the West African country.

The discussions, which started in Accra and are continuing in Washington, came about following a continuous fall in the value of the local currency–Cedi–against the Dollar and other major currencies of international trade.

Critics of the government’s move for an IMF programme fear the West African country could be saddled with severe conditionalities, which would render the programme counterproductive, as far as the welfare of Ghanaians is concerned.

However, President Mahama on Friday assured the country that nothing of that sort will happen. “Nothing will be done to bring unnecessary hardship to our people in this process and I’m confident that we shall overcome these economic challenges very soon”, he told a durbar of chiefs and people of the Akropong-Akuapem traditional area when he spoke as the Guest of honour at the Odwira festival, which coincided with the 40 anniversary celebration of the enthronement of the paramount chief, Oseadeeyo Addo Dankwa III.

“As President, I remain determined on fixing the short term bottlenecks so that we can proceed to the bright and medium, long term prospects on a more sustainable and solid bases," Mahama said.

“I’m hoping that the three-year programme we are entering with the IMF will restore our fortunes quickly and generate more economic opportunities for our people. It is in furthering this commitment that we are furthering this partnership so that collectively we can maintain the discipline required to turn short-term reforms into medium term transformation”, he added.