Ghana and the African Development Bank (AfDB) have signed the Indicative Operations Programmes, outlining the projects to be implemented between 2024 and 2025.
These projects include support for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), agriculture, and skills development, including digitalisation, with a total grant of US$103 million.
Additionally, a five-year country strategy document for 2024-2029 was signed, defining the sectors and projects that will receive support from the Bank.
The signing ceremony took place on the sidelines of the ongoing 2024 Annual General Meeting of the AfDB in Nairobi, Kenya.
Ghana’s Minister for Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam, commended the AfDB for its continuous commitment to the growth and development of African countries.
Dr. Adam emphasized the importance of effective monitoring and supervision of projects to ensure value for money for the people of Ghana. He expressed concern over the slow disbursement of project funds by agencies, describing the situation as unacceptable and in need of change.
“so I am committing to set up a monthly review on all project loans and funds that are to be disbursed and the reports will inform us on challenges we face in the execution of these projects. We will then engage the relevant MDAs to see how we can solve the challenges in other for disbursement to quicken up” he said.
“this time around, we will be focused, selective and will be mobilising resources from other partners for identified projects, and for the next five years, we will benefit from the African Development Fund resources” the AfDB Country representative indicated.
AfDB Country Manager, Eyerusalem Fasika, who signed on behalf of the Bank, noted that the AfDB has been supporting Ghana through grants under the African Development Fund.
She explained that the Bank conducted extensive consultations with various stakeholders, including CSOs, MDAs, NDPC, private sector representatives, and other institutions, to gather expert opinions for the Country Strategy Document.
Ms. Fasika assured the government of the Bank’s commitment to building on the achievements of the previous Country Strategy Document once the current one is approved by the AfDB Board of Directors. She highlighted that the approval would lead to the release of funds in the third quarter of this year.
“so we will again work with the Ghana Investment and Infrastructure Fund and the Public Investment and Assets Division of the Ministry of Finance to come out with potential public sector partnership projects that can be presented at African Investment Forums” she noted.
Present at the signing ceremony were Dr. Alex Ampaabeng, Deputy Minister for Finance; Ghana’s Ambassador to Kenya, H.E Damptey Bediak Asare; 2nd Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Mrs. Elsie Addo Awadzi; and officials from the Ministry of Finance, Bank of Ghana, and the Ghana Investment and Infrastructure Fund.