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The Ghanaian government will implement a raft of measures to reduce its expenditure as it aims to stabilize its finances and honor its debt obligations.

Ghanaian Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson made the announcement on Wednesday during a meeting with a delegation from the World Bank.

Government delegations to international conferences will be significantly smaller. The number of officials permitted to travel has been reduced from 10 to three.

“As a government, we are taking decisive action to curb unnecessary expenditures across all sectors. Leading by example, I have made it clear that the era of free, non-essential conference travel is over,” Forson said.

Forson also said substantial budget cuts will be implemented across the board, including reductions within the Office of the President.

According to Forson, these measures showed a clear shift towards greater efficiency in government operations and still prioritized essential investments to bolster Ghana’s economic resilience.

He also stressed that Ghana remained committed to fiscal prudence, especially within the framework of the country’s International Monetary Fund (IMF)-supported program, even with the austerity measures.

Ghana has been mired in an economic crisis since 2022, when it defaulted on some of its domestic and international debt and had to request help from the IMF.