January 2023
12Jan

Ghana says debt exchange talks with local pension funds continuing

Ghana's finance ministry on Wednesday said negotiations on the terms of a domestic debt exchange agreement with local pension funds were continuing and that they would be made public once an agreement on the details is reached. Ghana's government, in a bid to mitigate an ongoing economic crisis, has negotiated a staff-level agreement for a $3 billion loan package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The deal will only be approved by the IMF board if Ghana undergoes comprehensive debt restructuring,...

January 12, 2023
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December 2022
23Dec

Government Exempt Worker’s Pensions From Domestic Debt Exchange Program After Given A 7- Day Ultimatum

Government has succumbed to pressure from Organised Labour by exempting workers’ pensions from the recently launched Domestic Debt Exchange Programme. After a crunch meeting with Organised Labour on Thursday, December 22, the Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, gave utmost assurances that pensions of all workers will be exempt from the Programme. The Programme, launched on Monday, December 5 and expected to take off next month, was announced as part of austerity measures to save the economy from collapse. By the Programme, government...

December 23, 2022
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22Dec

Ghana. Conduct stress test on pension funds -Think tank to government

The government has been urged to conduct a comprehensive stress test on the decision to include pension funds in the proposed domestic debt exchange programme (DEP). The test should be conducted by the Ministry of Finance (MoF), in collaboration with all stakeholders and debtors, as part of best practices required to reveal the possible implications of including pension funds in the programme. Contributing to the debate on the proposed involvement of pension funds in the DEP, the Executive Director, Africa Centre...

December 22, 2022
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20Dec

Ghana labour unions call for strike over local debt swap

Ghana's main unions on Monday called for a nationwide strike from next week in protest against the inclusion of workers' pensions in a local debt swap programme as part of the terms for an IMF credit. A top cocoa and gold producer, Ghana has oil and gas reserves but its debt payments are high and its revenues weak. Like the rest of Africa, it has been hit by economic fallout from the global pandemic and the Ukraine war. Two weeks ago, the...

December 20, 2022
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19Dec

Ghana. Debt Exchange Programme Extended to December Ending

The expiration date of the Debt Exchange Programme (DEP) has been extended to the end of December this year, the Ministry of Finance, has announced. It said in view of the of the festive season, the government had decided to extend the Expiration Date of the voluntary offer to Friday December 30, 2022, with a contemplated settlement date on Friday January 6th, 2023. The voluntary programme should have expired today December 19, 2022. A statement issued by the Ministry of Finance in...

December 19, 2022
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13Dec

Ghana. Exempt pension funds from Debt Exchange Programme – TUC insists

The Trade Union Congress (TUC), has reiterated its intention to advice itself if government fails to announce within a week the exemption of pension funds from the Debt Exchange programme. Speaking at a press conference on Monday, December 12, 2022, Dr Yaw Baah, Secretary General, Trade Union Congress, said government should publicly announce that all pension funds, including Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), were exempted from the Debt Exchange Programme. He said the programme will negatively affect pension funds...

December 13, 2022
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06Dec

Ghana. Pensions will be protected against Debt Exchange – TUC assures workers

The Trades Union Congress(TUC) has assured that it will take steps to safeguard workers’ pensions amid the implementation of government’s Domestic Debt Exchange (DDX) Programme. In a statement issued on Monday, the TUC expressed disquiet about the failure of government to engage Labour ahead of the launch given that substantial portion of workers’ pension is invested in government bonds. Read also Shelter Afrique target East African bourses, pension funds in USD 500mn housing bond Nonetheless, the TUC appealed to all workers...

December 6, 2022
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05Dec

Health Services Workers’ Union battles government over ‘haircut’ on pensions

The Health Services Workers’ Union (HSWU) has vowed to resist any attempt by the government to touch the Pensions of its members. The General Secretary of the HSWU, Franklin Owusu Ansah, at a press conference held on Sunday said “If the government finds it so important to do the debt restructuring, we will urge them to ring-fence the Pension Funds of workers. Workers of Ghana can’t continue suffering to the grave. Enough is enough!!” This comes on the back of a...

December 5, 2022
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November 2022
01Nov

No haircuts for pension funds or anybody, says Ghana’s president

Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo ruled out losses for bond investors as a result of negotiations with the IMF for a $3bn bailout. Talks with the IMF are “going well”, Akufo-Addo said in a speech broadcast on Sunday in the capital, Accra. The president criticised speculation in the West African nation predicting a so-called haircut for investors, which he said has triggered renewed selling of the cedi. “No individual or institutional investor, including pension funds, in government Treasury bills or instruments will...

November 1, 2022
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October 2022
28Oct

Ghana. NPRA calls for more collaborations with stakeholders to increase coverage and growth

The National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) is urging stakeholders in the industry to enhance collaboration that would inure to the benefit of Ghanaian workers during retirement. Bono, Bono East, and Ahafo Regions manager of the Authority, William Ohene Adjei, said it is only through effective collaboration that there would be a widening coverage and subsequently rope in more informal workers. He said as part of the Authority’s 5-year strategic plan, they intend to work towards increasing pension coverage and pension income. “It...

October 28, 2022
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