The Finance Ministry says it expects the?country’s donor partners and rating agencies to respond positively to the revised?budget estimates approved by Parliament last week.
The Finance Minister asked parliament to approve a GH?3,196,855,671 supplementary budget estimate last week — in conformity with Article 179(8) of the Constitution — for the rest of the year.
Rating agencies, Fitch and Moody?s, have downgraded the country’s credit worthiness because it has not done much to?check the budget overruns, while the country?s donor partners are still holding up funds for various development projects due to concerns over management of the economy.
However, Deputy Minister of Finance, Ato Forson, says their verdict on the economy will soon change.
?Everyone out there will appreciate the fact that government has been forthright. Indeed looking at the shocks that we have actually had for the rest of the year there is the need for us to actually go out there with a supplementary budget?, he said.
He said his outfit has been bold enough to take rigourous measures to manage the country?s economy.
?I think the rating agencies should take this in good faith. They already have the numbers. It is not this [supplementary budget] that is going to inform anything?, he said.
Fitch, is expected to review Ghana’s credit ratings in September, in what some analysts have suggested will result in a further downgrade of the country?s economy in view of its public debet and budget overruns.
Another rating agency, Moody?s in June?downgraded Ghana’s credit ratings to B2 from B1 .
The agency maintained that? it downgraded Ghana because government was not doing enough to check the budget overruns.
Source: Myjoyonline
