Ghana’s Gross International Reserves (GIR) has recorded a significant increase, surging by US$670 million by the end of June 2024.
According to the Central Bank of Ghana’s Monetary Policy Report for July 2024, the country’s gross reserves now stand at US$6.87 billion, equivalent to 3.1 months of import cover. This represents an improvement from the December 2023 figure of US$5.92 billion.
The report also indicated that GIR, excluding encumbered and petroleum assets, rose to US$4.52 billion at the end of June 2024. This compares favourably to the US$3.68 billion recorded in December 2023.
In May 2024, Ghana’s Finance Minister, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, confirmed earlier signs of improvement, announcing that the country’s Gross International Reserves had reached US$6.2 billion, covering 2.7 months of import cover by the end of February 2024.
Dr Amin noted, “This marks an improvement from $5.9 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2022.”
The Finance Minister further projected that the reserves would continue to grow, aiming to reach a level that would provide 4.4 months of import cover in the medium term.
The anticipated growth, according to Dr. Amin, is expected to be driven by “external inflows from institutions such as the IMF, World Bank, and other development partners.”
Dr. Amin also highlighted key initiatives contributing to this upward trend, including the government’s Oil for Gold programme, the Bank of Ghana’s Gold for Reserve programme, and the Cocoa syndicated funds.
Despite ongoing pressures on the exchange rate, the Minister underscored that the cedi has shown stability, stating that depreciation against the US dollar had reduced from 54% in November 2022 to 27.8% by the end of December 2023.