Ghana’s total public debt stood at 575.5 billion Ghana cedis (approximately 50 billion U.S. dollars) as of the end of June, data released by Bank of Ghana over the weekend stated.
The new debt level which is 6.3 billion cedis higher than the 569.2 billion cedis recorded as of the end of April translates into 71.9 percent of gross domestic product.
Of the total debt, 328.6 billion cedis (28.5 billion dollars) was external, and the domestic component stood at 246.9 billion cedis (21.46 billion dollars).
Increasing public debts and spiralling budget deficits constitute major factors in Ghana’s economic challenges, not seen in several decades.
Meanwhile the cedi currency depreciated against the U.S. dollar by 22.5 percent year to date in September,24.9 against the Pound Sterling, and 22.8 percent against the Euro.