World Bank rejects Akufo-Addo’s Covid-19 blame for Ghana’s 2022 crisis

The World Bank has dismissed claims by the Akufo-Addo administration that Ghana’s 2022 economic collapse was chiefly caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war.

In its 2025 Policy Notes on Ghana, the Bank stated that while global conditions worsened due to those crises, they only exposed weaknesses that had long existed in the economy.

“The deterioration of global conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine was not the cause of the 2022 macroeconomic crisis; rather, it merely exposed an economy already beset with deep structural vulnerabilities and precarious macroeconomic conditions,” the document stressed.

The Bank’s findings pointed to domestic failings as the real drivers of the crisis. Weak fiscal management, poor governance, and delayed structural reforms were highlighted as the key factors behind Ghana’s vulnerability.

According to the report, these failings entrenched a cycle of overspending and sharp corrections, which has forced the country into 17 separate IMF programs over nearly seven decades.

The report also outlined the human cost of these recurring crises.

More than 800,000 people were pushed into poverty, while Ghana’s income per capita has stagnated around $2,200 for over ten years.

It further warned of new risks to stability, noting that unbudgeted spending commitments totaling $4.8 billion could deepen fiscal distress.

“Spending indiscipline poses a critical challenge to Ghana’s macro-fiscal stability; the absence of stringent expenditure controls frequently results in budget overruns and excessive borrowing, undermining efforts to maintain fiscal discipline and compromising long-term sustainability,” the World Bank cautioned.

The institution urged a clear break from past approaches, calling for reforms to end the country’s dependency on bailouts.

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It emphasized the need for fiscal discipline, broadening of the tax base, stronger oversight of state-owned enterprises, and improvements in governance.

“Success will ultimately be measured by the ability of the government to regain the trust of its citizens,” the Bank said.