The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) commenced their annual meetings on Tuesday in Marrakech, Morocco. This marks the second time an African nation has hosted these key financial gatherings. The conference, themed "Global Action, Global Impact," aims to catalyze action towards poverty eradication, economic development, and aid effectiveness.
The week-long discussions are set to engage around 12,000 participants on a variety of topics such as job creation, digital infrastructure, climate action, and practical solutions for intertwined global challenges. The World Economic Outlook is also expected to be unveiled during these meetings.
IMF's Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, emphasized in her opening speech the importance of global cooperation to address economic fragmentation and enhance economic stability through transformational reforms. She also highlighted the strategy of maintaining higher interest rates for longer periods.
For Ghana, these meetings are particularly significant as they aim to finalize a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with external creditors about a second tranche of $600 million from a $3 billion loan support program. They also hope to solidify a Staff-Level Agreement with the IMF as part of a 36-month Extended Credit Facility (ECF)-supported program.
The conference underscored the necessity of African prosperity for a prosperous 21st century. This significant assembly, the first on African soil in half a century, focused on global economic stability in the face of war, climate change, and weakening major economies.
The IMF maintained its 3% growth forecast for the global economy in 2023 with a slight decrease to 2.9% projected for 2024. Policies preventing credit access to economies without balanced budgets were criticized by African officials. They argued that these policies push governments towards rigid measures such as tax reform or subsidy cuts.
This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.