By Alex Ababio
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo was hopeful that Ghana would finalize an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by the end of March, as a result of the collaboration from the Paris Club and China in offering debt relief.
The President stated that officials of the Ministry of Finance had a meeting with a delegation from the China EXIM Bank, and the IMF’s board would ratify the final agreement by the end of the month.
President Akufo-Addo believed that the successful agreement would set the stage for a robust economic recovery.
He spoke confidently that they achieved the staff level agreement in December last year and are fulfilling its terms, including the challenging but successful domestic debt exchange program.
President Akufo-Addo expresses solidarity with Nigeria
Speaking at a Presidential retreat at the Peduase Lodge, President Akufo-Addo expressed his hopes that Nigeria’s challenges after the general election would be peacefully resolved, adhering to the due process, to allow the people’s will to prevail.
He conveyed the nation’s solidarity with the “brotherly people of our great neighbor” and wished them the best of luck and God’s blessings.
A few opposition parties in Nigeria, such as the People’s Democratic Party, the Labour Party, and the African Democratic Congress, have called for fresh elections, citing the announcement of the current electoral body’s results as “heavily doctored and manipulated” and demanded a new chairman for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), alleging the current one’s inefficiency.
President Akufo-Addo acknowledges support for Ghanaian students in Ukraine and stranded Ghanaians in detention centers
At the Presidential retreat, President Akufo-Addo recognized the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on Ghanaian students studying in Ukraine and thanked neighboring countries like Poland, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic for hosting them during the conflict.
He revealed that about 460 Ghanaian students were affected, with 253 evacuated from Ukraine and repatriated through the collaboration with the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The government also assisted in integrating and placing 100 students in public universities.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration provided consular assistance to Ghanaians stranded in detention centers and evacuated about 431 Ghanaians, including African migrants, from a medical center.
The government, with the IOM, continued to repatriate voluntary migrants from Libya, with 754 Ghanaians brought home on five chartered flights last year, and the exercise is expected to continue this year.
