Joe Jackson, the CEO of Dalex Finance, has offered a critical assessment of the Akufo-Addo administration’s management of the nation’s debt situation, illuminating the country’s discussions with holders of Eurobonds.
His comments, made during a contentious KeyPoints conversation with Alfred Ocansey, focused on the facts of Ghana’s economic predicament and how decisions made by the government affect both residents and bondholders.
Jackson clarified that Ghana’s government was unable to pay its debts, thus it unilaterally stopped making Eurobond payments.
We first unilaterally stopped making any payments. We were unable to pay, which is why we ceased payments. We raised our hands in desperation and declared that we were unable to make the payment. On March 1, he stated, “And we went to the IMF for a bailout.”
He maintained that even though government representatives tried to present it in a different way, this amounted to a default.
Jackson claims that during talks with holders of Eurobonds in 2022 and 2024, investors grudgingly acknowledged Ghana’s incapacity to make payments.
He pointed out that holders of Eurobonds agreed to a 37% haircut on the $13.1 billion debt in May 2024, which amounted to a concession of $4.7 billion.
Jackson, however, rejected the idea that bondholders voluntarily made these compromises out of kindness.
It’s not as though the bondholders approached us and begged us to give them money because they loved us so much. He said, “A gun was held to their heads.”
Jackson called the government’s domestic financing strategy the biggest forced transfer of wealth from private individuals to the government and chastised it for it.
“It was the largest transfer of funds from the private sector to the government sector we have ever seen in this country, or perhaps all of Africa, if you ask your citizens to donate their money.”
He stated unequivocally that such extreme actions simply serve to highlight Ghana’s financial difficulties.
“Are you not broke if you claim that the $55 billion in deficit financing was necessary to keep us alive? You have no money.
Jackson’s comments emphasize how serious Ghana’s economic problems are and how important prudent money management is. According to his analysis, although government talks have brought about some short-term respite, the crisis’s underlying roots have not been addressed.
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