The World Bank’s Managing Director and Chief Knowledge Officer, Paschal Donohoe, has publicly praised Ghana’s economic recovery and credited Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson‘s leadership in stabilising the country’s finances following one of its worst economic crises in recent memory. The commendation came during a meeting between the two in Accra, where the World Bank’s top knowledge official expressed confidence that Ghana had turned a decisive corner.
Donohoe praised the government’s stewardship of the economy, noting what he described as a “remarkable improvement in Ghana’s national finances.” He also expressed appreciation for the administration’s strong policy focus on young people and job creation. “I can see and appreciate your focus on youth development,” he said, adding that the World Bank strongly supports Ghana’s emphasis on employment as the next phase of economic transformation. He further described Ghana as an “anchor of stability for the region,” expressing confidence in the country’s economic leadership. “The economy is in very safe hands,” Donohoe added, assuring that the World Bank “is ever ready to support” Ghana as it continues its reform and development agenda.
The praise from the World Bank reflects a remarkable turnaround for a country that entered a severe macroeconomic and debt crisis just a few years ago. Ghana faced inflation peaking above 50 per cent, a rapidly depreciating cedi, and a total loss of access to international capital markets when it sought support from the International Monetary Fund in 2023 under a $3 billion Extended Credit Facility arrangement. The country has since clawed back significant ground across nearly every measurable economic indicator.
The IMF’s Executive Board completed the fifth review of the programme in December 2025, unlocking an immediate disbursement of approximately $385 million and bringing Ghana’s total disbursements under the arrangement to about $2.8 billion. The Fund noted that growth through the first three quarters of 2025 exceeded expectations, driven by strong services activity and agricultural output, and that the fiscal and external positions had improved alongside good progress on debt restructuring.
Ghana’s international reserves accumulation exceeded programme targets, and the cedi appreciated markedly in the first half of 2025. The Bank of Ghana cut its policy rate by a cumulative 650 basis points to 21.5 per cent as inflation fell toward its target band, with the positive momentum projected to continue into 2026 with growth forecast at 4.8 per cent. Public debt fell to approximately 45 per cent of GDP by late 2025, and national reserves reached a record $12 billion, equivalent to over four months of import cover.
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Finance Minister Forson acknowledged the progress while flagging the unfinished work ahead. He noted that the past year had been focused on resetting the economy and placing it firmly on a path of sustainability. He emphasised that while significant progress has been made, unemployment remains a major challenge, particularly given Africa’s rapidly growing youthful population. He explained that the government is putting in place major policies and programmes aimed at creating sustainable jobs, recognising that public sector employment alone cannot absorb the continent’s expanding workforce.
Dr Forson is currently in Washington leading Ghana’s delegation to the April 2026 IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings, which run from April 13 to 19. Over the course of the week, the delegation is expected to participate in bilateral discussions with senior IMF and World Bank management, investor briefings, ministerial meetings and the sovereign debt roundtable. Dr Forson is expected to use the meetings to deepen strategic partnerships with multilateral institutions, attract new investment into key sectors and advocate for a fairer global financial architecture that reflects the needs of emerging and developing economies.
President John Dramani Mahama declared in his 2026 New Year address that the current IMF programme will be the nation’s final external rescue, framing the exit as a “national reset.” He stated that Ghana’s economy is “breathing again, stronger, steadier, and full of promise,” and that the administration chose a “harder but higher road” of reform to ensure fiscal discipline becomes a permanent feature of governance. The World Bank’s endorsement, coming as Ghana prepares to wind down IMF oversight, strengthens the credibility of that narrative, though analysts caution that durably breaking the cycle of fiscal instability will require sustained institutional reforms well beyond the current programme.
