Ghana’s fiscal challenges were brought into sharp focus as the Roads and Highways Minister-designate, Governs Kwame Agbodza, disclosed alarming debt figures during his vetting by Parliament’s Appointments Committee.
Mr. Agbodza revealed that the outgoing administration is leaving behind GH₵113 billion in financial commitments, which include GH₵ 20 billion in unpaid certificates.
He described this as a critical strain on the country’s fiscal health, with immediate implications for the incoming government.
Adding to the gravity of the situation, he noted that GH₵665 million in accrued interest on these debts has further inflated the financial burden.
Mr. Agbodza attributed this steep interest to the contractual terms underlying the obligations, suggesting inefficiencies in contract management as a key contributing factor.
“At the transition committee as of today, the NPP government is leaving a minimum of GH₵113 billion commitments. What we should be worried about, though, is that in that same document, they are saying that certificates unpaid as of today from the Government of Ghana amount to about 20 billion.
“..And more worrying is that the interest on this GH₵113 billion is GH₵665 million due to the nature of the contracts,” he stated, calling for urgent reforms to address the unpaid certificates and escalating interest rates.
He warned that failure to act decisively could exacerbate Ghana’s fiscal instability.
