Professor Lord Mensah, a senior lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS), said the Ministry of Finance (MoF) press release on the impact of President Akufo-Addo’s endorsement of the LGBTQ+ Bill was unnecessary.
Professor Mensah, who spoke on Morning Star with Francis Abban on Tuesday, explained that foreign support for the 2024 budget is not so meager that Ghanaians should panic over the lack of money coming in.
“Go into the 2024 budget and look at the subsidies that we are targeting, which is only about 3.3% of GDP. So this is a microcosm of what we are doing in this country. We might be able to get by without them, so I don’t see why we should be concerned,” Professor Lord Mensah said.
According to him, the current International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout for Ghana has nothing to do with the LGBTQ+ bill.
“Again, LGBTQ was never addressed in the IMF program. So if the president moves forward with approving the bill and we manage very well and do what the IMF expects, , we should be able to get a release. The condition behind the World Bank was that they would support us if we could meet the IMF’s goals and continue the program, so the World Bank also We will support them,” the senior lecturer said.
He added, “So this has nothing to do with the bill. The release the department brought out is just a panic statement being put into a system that doesn’t need to be. Let the president do his job and put pen to paper on the bill.” You should put it in and we’ll see what happens.”
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The Treasury says if the anti-gay bill is passed, Ghana could lose US$3.8 billion in World Bank loans over the next five to six years and derail International Monetary Fund (IMF) plans.
In a statement, the ministry listed a number of challenges that Ghana may grapple with as a result of the LGBTQ+ passage by Parliament.
“An anticipated USD 300 million loan from the First Ghana Resilient Reconstruction and Development Policy Operation (Budget Support), currently awaiting parliamentary approval, may not be disbursed by the World Bank even if approved by parliament. .
“Ongoing negotiations on the Second Ghana Resilient Reconstruction and Development Policy Management (Budget Support) totaling $300 million may be suspended. $250 million ongoing to support the Ghana Financial Stability Fund. Negotiations for USD 10,000 will be suspended.
“The disbursement of undisbursed funds totaling USD 2.1 billion on ongoing projects will be suspended. The preparation of pipeline projects and the declaration of validity of two projects worth a total of USD 900 million may be suspended. World Bank portfolio details are attached in Appendices 1 and 2.
“Ghana could lose a total of USD 3.8 billion in World Bank loans over the next five to six years. In 2024, Ghana stands to lose USD 600 million from budget support and USD 250 million from the Financial Stability Fund. This will have a negative impact on Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves and exchange rate stability, as these inflows are expected to strengthen Ghana’s foreign exchange reserves.