(Corrects “civil servants” to “political appointees” in first paragraph, adds “some” to headline)
ACCRA (Reuters) -Ghana’s government will pump $2 billion into the economy to “rescue the cedi” currency, the presidency wrote on Twitter on Wednesday, adding that it will cut political appointees’ salaries by up to 30% as part of measures to ease its financial problems.
The West African country is facing rampant inflation, a depreciating local currency and a heavy debt burden that has dented investor confidence and could build up into a debt crisis. The cedi has weakened by about 20% against the dollar this year, exacerbating its problems.
The announcement from President Nana Akufo-Addo follows the central bank’s decision on Monday to hike its main lending rate by 250 basis points to 17%, the largest increase in Ghana’s history.
Ghana was long seen as a rising star among Africa’s emerging market economies, but underwhelming oil revenues and supply chain disruptions amid the COVID-19 pandemic have dampened expectations.
The presidency also wrote on Twitter that the cabinet had agreed to reopen land borders within two weeks, lifting measures imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Reporting by Cooper Inveen; Writing by Nellie Peyton; Editing by Bate Felix and Hugh Lawson)
