The United States Ambassador to Ghana, Virginia Palmer, has stressed the importance for the government of Ghana to address payment arrears to American companies to improve its business climate.
Ranking Member of the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Senator James E. Risch, recently claimed that Ghana owes approximately $251 million in arrears to several U.S-based businesses and demanded that the US leverages its position as the IMF’s largest shareholder to ask the IMF to get Ghana to repay its debts to American entities.
Speaking to journalists in Accra, the US ambassador, Virginia Palmer, noted that the country’s indebtedness to American companies remains a major concern.
Ambassador Palmer highlighted the need to prioritise the payment of arrears despite being under an IMF programme.
“I’m saying on the one hand, you know, stick with your IMF program – fiscal conservatism on one hand, and please pay American companies. But that’s a liability. It’s a debt, like other debts. And it’s important that the government knows that before new investors come, they call their friends, and the word will get out. Well, you know, it’s a great place, well-educated workforce, wonderful place to live, peaceful, stable, democratic,” she stressed.
The government of Ghana’s unpaid debts has placed a significant financial burden on US businesses in Ghana and could jeorpadise their operations and investments.
“I’m owed hundreds of millions of dollars, and no company can sort of face their shareholders with that kind of liability. Indeed, now it’s gotten to the point where it is a break on. I think further investment and the government of Ghana acknowledges that, and so, it has been open to some kind of creative solutions for resolving the debt, as companies have been,” she explained.
The US Ambassador also identified disregard for contract sanctity as a major worry for investors.
“Contract sanctity is even more complicated than that. My predecessor used to talk about contract sanctity, and I thought it meant, I thought it was ‘Diplo speech’ for corruption, and it’s not. It’s landlords even saying, oh, well, I have a lease with you, but I like this lease better, so you’re out of luck. It’s just sticking with whatever contract you have”, she added.
Ambassador Palmer, however, reaffirmed the strength of the partnership between Ghana and US, stressing that Ghana remains an important partner to the United States, with economic and social cooperation continuing to be a priority.
