Accra, Nov. 4, GNA- Mr. Yaw Osafo-Maafo, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Tuesday said the development partners of Ghana have endorsed the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS), thus paving the way for more concessional assistance and debt relief.

He said a new three-year arrangement under the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) was approved by the Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on May 9, 2003, which allows Ghana to access 258 million US dollars for economic programmes in the medium term.

Mr. Osafo-Maafo announced this in parliament on Tuesday when he reviewed the Economic Policy of Ghana for the remainder of the 2003 Financial Year.

He said by the end of 2003, the IMF executive board would reward the country with additional interim assistance under the HIPC initiative of 22 million US dollars.

The Minister said the Board of Executive Directors of the International Development Association (IDA) also approved a Poverty Reduction Support Facility (PRSF) amounting to 128 million US dollars on June 24, 2003. This, he said, includes a grant component of 38 million US dollars transferred to government's account at the Bank of Ghana (BOG).

"The Board of Directors of the African Development Fund (ADF) has also approved a facility of 34 million US dollars in support of the GPRS for 2003," he said.

Touching on the Ghana's prospective benefits from the Multi Donor Budgetary Support (MDBS) framework, Mr Osafo-Maafo said Ghana has been assigned a B+ rating, which allows her to enjoy immensely from development projects with the assistance of its development partners.

The Finance Minister said Ghana's B+ rating was supported by the government's commitment to the macroeconomic stabilization and reform, including fiscal restraint, substantial debt reduction expected under the HIPC initiative, significant political and social stability and substantial improvements in external liquidity.

He said the MDBS arrangement aims at supporting the implementation of the GPRS through direct budgetary contribution, adding that development partners and the government have already endorsed the framework memorandum (FM) that will guide the MDBS arrangement.

Mr. Osafo-Maafo said about 80 per cent of the MDBS pledges has already been disbursed, adding "our development partners have also agreed to recommend to their headquarters, the full disbursement of the remaining budgetary support of approximately 60 million dollars before the end of the year.