By Francis Ntow, GNA Special Correspondent, Bangkok
Bangkok, Oct. 15, GNA – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged Ghana and other African economies to strengthen their fiscal positions and build financial buffers to withstand global shocks.
It has also called for stronger cyber resilience to guard against artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled attacks that could threaten financial stability and deepen economic vulnerabilities.
Ms Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF Managing Director, made the call during the presentation of the Fund’s October 2026 Global Policy Agenda in Bangkok.
She urged governments to cushion vulnerable populations against rising fuel and food prices and address the effects of declining development assistance.
She said global growth was projected at 3.1 per cent in 2026, weighed down by the negative energy supply shock triggered by the war in the Middle East.
However, rising demand for AI was providing a positive boost to the global economy.
Ms Georgieva noted that economies such as Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea and Singapore were performing better despite the conflict.
Their integration into AI supply chains had helped them benefit from the technology boom.
Energy-exporting countries were also faring relatively better.
However, she noted that low-income countries and fragile and conflict-affected states, particularly, in Africa, faced the greatest challenges
Energy-importing countries and those unable to benefit from advances in technology were especially vulnerable, she added.
African economies are grappling with higher fuel and food costs, declining development assistance and weaker investor appetite for riskier markets.
“Higher benchmark yields are spilling over to emerging markets and low-income countries, putting upward pressure on the cost of servicing debt,” she said. “And that is a problem that is multiplied when countries are particularly vulnerable for other reasons.”
The IMF chief urged policymakers to act quickly to strengthen their fiscal positions before economic pressures deepened.
“Now is the time to enhance revenues, to rationalise spending and improve public financial management,” she emphasised.
For Africa, she said, the response should include active labour market policies and measures to improve the business environment.
Governments should also strengthen competition and invest more in digital and energy infrastructure, she advised.
These measures would help the private sector create opportunities and jobs.
On AI, Ms Georgieva acknowledged its potential to boost productivity and prosperity but warned against the growing threat of AI-enabled cyber-attacks.
She said such attacks could pose serious risks to financial stability, requiring authorities to strengthen their cyber defences and address excessive concentration linked to the technology cycle.
“AI-enabled cyber-attacks are already in reality… Authorities should strengthen cyber resilience and address excessive concentration linked to the technology cycle,” she said.
Ms Georgieva also urged the international community to support low-income countries in strengthening their economic fundamentals and building resilience to external shocks.
“We have to support low-income countries to strengthen their fundamentals so they can withstand shocks and create better opportunities to invest their own money, as well as to attract money from others,” she said.
GNA
Edited by Beatrice Asamani Savage
15 October 2026
Reporter: Francis Ntow
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