adverts
Former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has opened up about the painful human and social toll of Ghana’s debt restructuring under the G20 Common Framework, describing the process as “one of the darkest and most painful episodes” of his tenure.
Speaking at the AU-EU High-Level Seminar in Brussels on Thursday, October 2, 2025—ahead of the AU-EU Summit—the former president admitted that although the debt restructuring offered temporary economic relief, it came at a devastating cost to citizens.
“I witnessed the suffocating grip of debt on our economy and on our citizens. This deeply troubled me and still does,” he told African and European leaders.
adverts
Ghana adopted the G20 Common Framework in 2023 to restructure $13 billion in Eurobonds, eventually securing commitments that delivered $10.5 billion in external debt service relief through 2026. The move lowered the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio from the mid-80s to 70.5%, restored investor confidence, and anchored an IMF-supported programme.
However, Akufo-Addo revealed that behind the macroeconomic gains lay immense human suffering. He lamented that the drawn-out process eroded trust and prolonged uncertainty for millions.
“The most painful part was the impact on ordinary people. Pensioners, young people, and small investors saw their lives and livelihoods shattered,” he recounted.
Turning to Africa’s wider debt crisis, the former president argued that the continent’s $1 trillion debt burden is the result of a global financial architecture “not built to free us, but to bind us.” He noted that more than 30 African countries currently spend more on interest payments than on public health.
“Every dollar diverted to creditors is a dollar taken from a hospital, from a child’s vaccination, from a community’s future. This is not economics; it is inequity,” he stated.
Akufo-Addo renewed his call for sweeping reforms to the global debt system, urging immediate debt service suspension, comprehensive restructuring, and new concessional financing. He stressed that debt relief for Africa should not be misconstrued as charity.
“Debt relief for Africa is not an act of generosity. It is an act of justice,” he declared.
He also proposed a “Debt Relief for Green Investment and Resilience” framework, linking debt cancellation to climate action. Highlighting Africa’s vulnerability to climate shocks despite contributing less than 4% of global emissions, he reminded world leaders that climate reparations run into trillions of dollars.
“To our European partners, I say this: hear the voice of your neighbouring continent. Stand with the AU and South Africa’s G20 Presidency to advance ambitious reform of the Common Framework,” he urged.
While acknowledging Africa’s responsibility to strengthen institutions, diversify economies, and harness the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Akufo-Addo warned that without fundamental global reforms, even the boldest local efforts would be undermined by “predatory lending and punitive trade terms.”
“The sacrifices we make today, the compromises, and the collaborations we engage in today can only inure to the benefit of our world. When Africa rises free from the weight of debt, the whole world rises with it,” he concluded.
Click the link Puretvonline.com | WhatsApp Channel to join the WhatsApp channel
GOT A STORY?
Contact/WhatsApp: +233243201960 or manuelnkansah33@gmail.com