Ghana’s external debt portfolio has undergone a substantial realignment, moving away from costly commercial loans.
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The third quarter of 2025 saw a dramatic realignment of Ghana’s external debt portfolio, moving away from costly commercial loans and toward more sustainable bilateral and multilateral funding sources.
According to official data from the Bank of Ghana Statistical Bulletin, the total amount of external debt was $29.53 billion in September 2025, but the debt’s composition had drastically changed from $28.41 billion during the same period in 2022 prior to restructuring.
The government’s successful debt restructuring program and a conscious policy to give priority to concessional borrowing in order to lower interest rate risks and debt servicing expenses were significantly responsible for the change.
“The government is moving to minimise risks in the public debt portfolio to ensure long-term sustainability,” it said.
“This is reflected in the sharp rise of multilateral debt, which grew from $7.76 billion in 2022 to $12.18 billion by the third quarter of 2025.”
Similarly, after a historic Memorandum of Understanding with the Official Creditor Committee was signed in early 2025, bilateral debt increased significantly, from $1.19 billion to $5.74 billion within the same time period.
The bulletin stated that business creditors’ debt decreased from $3.90 billion to $2.71 billion, and that exposure to global capital markets and commercial creditors had decreased.
As a result of the $13.1 billion Eurobond restructuring that was finished in late 2024, debt held in Eurobonds and other capital market instruments decreased from $13.10 billion in 2022 to $8.90 billion in 2025.
Source: newsthemegh.com
