The $750 million African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) Loan approved by Parliament last month, has hit the Bank of Ghana (BoG)’s account, sources close to Citi Business News have stated.
The loan, which is part of a $1 billion dollar facility, reached the Central Bank on Thursday, August 25, 2022.
Citi Business News sources with the Ministry of Finance say the 750 million dollars came in three tranches of 332 million dollars, 187 million dollars and 193 million euros.
The amount has since been transferred to the Bank of Ghana for a cedi equivalent to help shore up the central bank’s reserves.
The proceeds from the loan, according to the government will help shore up its reserves, which stood at $7.68 billion, as of June 2022, a move that could help slow down the rate of depreciation of the local currency against the dollar.
Government is also looking forward to using the money to finance some infrastructure projects.
It will be recalled that the government had expressed its intentions in the 2022 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of Government to raise up to the Ghana Cedi equivalent of $750 million under a syndicated term loan facility arrangement to support the implementation of the 2022 Budget.
The loan syndication approach was chosen following Government’s announcement that no Eurobond would be issued in 2022 under the International Capital Market Programme (ICMP) until market conditions improve.
The government is targeting about 15 capital projects that it plans to use the loan to finance including the Ofankor -Nsawam Road Project, Ejisu-Konongo Road Project, completion of NsawamApedwa Road Project, Suame Interchange and Local Road Network Project, completion of Flower Pot Interchange, East Legon, Accra and completion of Sofoline Interchange Project.
