Ghana has secured 16 of the 25 bilateral debt restructuring agreements with official creditors. The agreements involve members of Ghana’s Official Creditor Committee (OCC) and mark further progress in implementing the debt treatment arrangements reached under the restructuring programme.
The development brings Ghana closer to resolving the external debt crisis that forced the government to suspend payments on selected external obligations in December 2022.
Negotiations with a small group of non-bonded commercial creditors remain as the country moves closer to completing its external debt restructuring. The latest assessment by the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable (GSDR) indicates that the remaining non-bonded commercial creditors account for less than 5 per cent of the debt covered by the restructuring exercise.
The report, released on the sidelines of the Annual IMF–World Bank Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, said discussions with the outstanding commercial creditors were ongoing.
The 16 agreements signed so far involve $3 billion of debt and mark a significant step towards restoring debt sustainability and securing financial support from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Ghana subsequently established the OCC on May 12, 2023, to coordinate negotiations with bilateral creditors under the G20 Common Framework.
Financing assurances from official creditors helped pave the way for approval of Ghana’s $3 billion IMF programme, which came with an initial disbursement of $600 million.
The GSDR report said progress had also been recorded in other countries undergoing debt restructuring, including Ethiopia, Zambia, Sri Lanka and Suriname. Since April 2026, 22 new bilateral agreements have been signed across the restructuring cases covered by the report.
It noted that, apart from Ethiopia—where a bond exchange remained outstanding—unresolved creditor negotiations in the other cases largely involved residual commercial creditors.
According to Ken Ofori-Atta, Ghana's Finance Minister, the conclusion of the 16 bilateral debt deals is a significant milestone in the country's efforts to restore debt sustainability. He stated that the government is committed to completing the debt restructuring process and securing a stable financial future for the country.
The implications of the debt deals are significant, as they will help to reduce Ghana's debt burden and improve its credit rating. This, in turn, will make it easier for the country to access international capital markets and secure funding for development projects. The government has announced plans to use the $3 billion IMF programme to support key sectors, including infrastructure and agriculture.