President John Dramani Mahama has taken a swipe at the previous Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo administration, saying his government will not celebrate Ghana’s exit from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme with “kenkey and waakye parties.”

Addressing residents at Ndewura Jakpa Senior High School in the Savannah Region on Saturday, May 23, 2026, Mahama said the NDC inherited an IMF-supported programme that was already off track and at risk of collapsing when it took office in January 2025.

He explained that his government had to implement strict corrective measures after key performance targets under the programme fell out of alignment.

“We inherited the IMF programme from the previous government. At the time we took over, all the agreed performance indicators were out of track… so we had to take some stringent actions to bring it back into alignment and we were able to do that,” he said.

According to him, recent IMF review missions have acknowledged improvements in Ghana’s economic programme, with the latest mission giving a positive assessment ahead of a planned Executive Board decision on a $380 million disbursement.

“The missions that came approved the programme… they have given us a satisfying mark… but we are not going to have a kenkey party because it is still work in progress,” Mahama stated.

NPP holds kenkey party

The government raised $3 billion from international financial institutions through a three-tranched Eurobond which attracted more bids than the country asked for.

At the close of a roadshow in London, the appetite for the 2019 sovereign bond had swelled, resulting in orders totaling $21 billion – about seven times more than the amount needed.

The government delegation, led by the former Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, however, accepted only $3 billion, in consonance with the amount budgeted for and approved in the 2019 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the government.

The Ministry of Finance proceeded to organise a Kenkey party yesterday at the Inner Court of the Ministry of Finance, to celebrate what they termed “Ghana’s Hat-Trick” thus The Succesful Eurobond, Completion of IMF-ECF Programme and the Appreciation of the Cedi.

But this did not go down well with many Ghanaians, as many have chastised the Minister for wasting money to celebrate mediocrity.

Ghana exits IMF

Ghana officially exited its Extended Credit Facility (ECF) bailout programme with the IMF, marking what the government says is a major milestone in the country’s economic recovery journey.

In a statement released on Friday, May 15, 2026, the government announced that the programme had been successfully concluded ahead of schedule, citing significant gains in macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability.

The statement, signed by Minister for Government Communications and Presidential Spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu, stated that the Mahama administration took “decisive” action in 2025 to restore the IMF-supported programme after setbacks experienced at the end of 2024.

According to the government, measures including “frontloaded fiscal consolidation, bold expenditure rationalisation, and strong structural reforms” helped restore confidence in the economy.

“These efforts have delivered tangible results: inflation has reduced significantly, the cedi has strengthened markedly, public debt as a share of GDP has declined sharply, and economic growth has rebounded strongly,” the statement said.