By Francis Ntow, GNA Special Correspondent, Bangkok
Bangkok, Oct. 12, GNA – Ghana is seeking investment and financing deals to advance its New Economy agenda at the 2026 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group (WBG) in Bangkok, Thailand.
The delegation, led by Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson and supported by Bank of Ghana Governor Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama, is engaging international investors, financial institutions and development partners on the sidelines of the meetings.
The meetings, taking place from October 12 to 18 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre, bring together representatives of the IMF’s 191 member countries and the WBG’s 189 members to deliberate global challenges involving debt, energy security, climate change among others.
The rapid expansion of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the economic impact of the US-Iran war are also on the agenda.
For Ghana, the gathering offers an opportunity to mobilise investment ahead of the 2027 Budget, in which Dr Forson is expected to outline the Government’s New Economy agenda, its blueprint for the next phase of economic development.
The agenda seeks to translate recent economic stabilisation into sustained transformation through value addition, industrialisation and improved global competitiveness, while creating jobs.
Following the September IMF staff-level engagement in Ghana and the country’s exit from the US$3 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF) programme, the Bangkok meetings are expected to advance discussions on benchmarks and reforms under the new Policy Coordination Instrument (PCI).
Dr Forson is expected to engage IMF leadership, senior World Bank officials, finance ministers, representatives of international financial institutions and other development partners.
He mentioned the shift towards the New Economy during the presentation of the 2026 Mid-Year Fiscal Policy Review.
The 2027 Budget is expected to provide further details on how the Government intends to translate its development ambitions into policies and action.
“Stabilisation was never the destination. It was the price of entry,” he stated.
“Ghana has paid that price. What comes next is the work that changes lives at scale – the work of transformation.”
At the 132nd Monetary Policy Committee press briefing in Accra last month, Dr Asiama said Ghana would use the meetings to engage investors and development partners and secure beneficial agreements for the country.
Responding to a question from the Ghana News Agency, he described the gathering as an important platform for bilateral engagements, allowing Ghana to present its economic programme directly to investors and development partners.
“The annual meetings is where we get to meet our counterparts from the other side and to discuss Ghana’s economic programme… it is really an important meeting that all countries and officials do attend,” he said.
Dr Asiama said the Ministry of Finance team would intensify investor outreach in Thailand to reassure markets and attract investment into key sectors of the economy.
He expressed optimism that the engagements would yield positive results for Ghana.
Globally, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva has warned of opposing forces shaping the economic outlook, with energy supply disruptions weighing on growth while AI-related investment supports demand.
In her address ahead of the meetings, she said the IMF’s World Economic Outlook projected global growth at three per cent, with conflict-affected economies and vulnerable energy-importing countries facing significant pressures.
She cited the continuing Russia-Ukraine war and the conflict in the Gulf as sources of uncertainty for the global economy.
“Putting all of it together, my message to the world’s economic policymakers next week will be this: we cannot keep delaying necessary policy action – you have the tools, now have the wisdom to use them,” she said.
World Bank Group President Ajay Banga has said the global economy had remained resilient, supported by substantial AI investment and adjustments in oil supply.
However, developing countries faced sharp increases in diesel and fertiliser costs, alongside risks associated with the El Niño weather phenomenon.
He said the Bank was in active discussions with between 30 and 40 countries on possible crisis assistance to help them manage energy shocks, rising prices and the effects of the conflict in the Middle East.
Mr Banga also said the Bank was advancing 14 to 15 debt-for-development swaps and guarantee projects designed to convert high-cost legacy debt into lower-cost financing linked to health, education and water programmes.
Previous efforts has involved countries including Angola, Côte d’Ivoire and Argentina.
Thailand is hosting the meetings for the second time, having previously hosted them in 1991.
The return highlights the region’s growing role in discussions on global economic and financial stability.
The Annual Meetings bring together central bank governors, finance and development ministers, private sector executives, civil society representatives, academics and the media for a common agenda.
They discuss the global economy, financial stability, poverty reduction, inclusive growth, employment, climate change, among others pertinent global issues. .
Key activities include the plenary session, meetings of the Development Committee and the International Monetary and Financial Committee.
There will be regional briefings, press conferences and specialised forums.
GNA
Edited by Beatrice Asamani Savage
Reporter: Francis Ntow
Email: [email protected]