Ghana will ratify African Central Bank treaty by 2027, Ablakwa tells AU ministers in Accra

Ghana has announced its intention to ratify crucial treaties for three African Union (AU) financial institutions by 2027, including the African Central Bank, Foreign Affairs Minister Ablakwa announced during a meeting with AU ministers in Accra. The other two institutions are the African Monetary Fund and the African Investment Bank. The pledge was made while welcoming delegates to the AU Executive Council's 27th Extraordinary Session, which aimed to discuss the Union's financial arrangements.

Ablakwa also presented the Accra Declaration, outlining six commitments for member states to finance the AU. According to his projections, member states are expected to contribute nearly 99% of the Union's operational budget in 2027, but only around 4% of its programme budget and 12% of peace and security spending. He emphasized that Ghana pays for the lights but asks others to fund the work.

In the past, governments pledged to fund 100% of operations, 75% of programmes, and 25% of peace and security at a meeting in Johannesburg in 2015. However, only 18 out of 55 member states have implemented the levy on eligible imports agreed upon a year later in Kigali, according to Ablakwa. As AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf pointed out, African sovereignty must be built and financed.

Youssouf, who is also the champion for setting up the financial institutions, proposed reviewing the ceiling on statutory contributions and expanding the use of the levy. Ablakwa, who will be leading Ghana as AU chairman in 2027, plans to hold an Extraordinary Summit on African Financial Institutions during his tenure, with Accra as the host.

He urged each member state to take at least one concrete step towards ratification before the next ministerial meeting, with several countries, including Ghana, expressing their willingness to pay more.