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ACCRA, Sept 14 (Reuters) – Ghana is reopening a debt exchange that was originally settled in February for another 12.9 billion cedis ($1.1 billion) of local bonds, the finance ministry said on Thursday.
The terms of the new invitation are identical to those of the February 2023 exchange, which closed with an 85% participation rate of “relevant” bonds, the ministry said in statement.
The exchanges are part of efforts by Ghana to restructure both domestic and external debt – a condition set by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $3 billion bailout secured in May.
In August, the finance ministry said it had completed a separate swap of 95% of local debt held by pension funds, which had been excluded from the February exchange after labour unions threatened to strike.
Ghana defaulted on most of its $30 billion external debt in December, after its currency tumbled and inflation and debt servicing costs soared.
It is targeting $10.5 billion of external debt service relief from 2023-2026, as it negotiates the restructuring of $20 billion of overseas debt with bilateral creditors including China and Paris Club members and international bondholders.
Reporting by Christian Akorlie and Maxwell Akalaare Adombila
Writing by Sofia Christensen and Rachel Savage; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Toby Chopra
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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