Amin Adam calls for full disclosure of government’s non-cash borrowing and debt placements

Former Finance Minister Dr Mohammed Amin Adam has called for greater disclosure of government borrowing arrangements that do not pass through regular competitive auctions, warning that opaque transactions could make it difficult to determine the true cost and purpose of public debt. His analysis identified several instruments used in Ghana’s post-DDEP debt management, including reopenings of existing bonds, direct or private placements, non-cash issuance, payment-in-kind coupons, Sinking Fund prefunding and liability-management operations. The write-up cited GH¢2.076 billion in government securities issued in 2025 to recapitalise the National Investment Bank, Agricultural Development Bank and Consolidated Bank Ghana. It also identified GH¢3.747 billion in DDEP coupons that were capitalised in 2025, increasing the principal owed rather than being paid in cash. The analysis said the payment-in-kind arrangement had since ended, with 2026 coupons paid in cash. “The issue is whether each tool is visible, priced against the market, and accounted for,” Dr Amin Adam stated. He argued that non-cash issuance and private placements required particular scrutiny because the price and counterparty might not be observable through public auction results. He proposed that every non-competitive transaction be disclosed within five business days, including its legal basis, counterparty category, price or yield, fees and allocation rationale. He also called for an independent assessment of value for money against the prevailing secondary-market yield curve.