Accra (Greater Accra), 10th July 99, -

Ghana and the World Bank on Friday signed a fresh loan agreement under which Ghana will be granted 180 million dollars to deepen her economic reforms.

The loan, under Ghana's Economic Reform Support Operation two (ERSO II) is mainly to support Ghana's privatisation of the external marketing of cocoa, the energy and financial sectors.

Mr Kwame Peprah, Minister of Finance, signed for Ghana while Mr Peter Harold, World Bank country Director in Ghana, signed for the Bank.

Mr Peprah said the timing of the loan is "very important and significant for Ghana" because it confirms the confidence of the international community in Ghana's shift to unleash the potential of the private sector.

"This particular credit is not only the largest of its kind we have received but it is also an indication that our development partners are confident with the path we have chosen and therefore we need to be supported.

"If Ghana really wants to put the private sector at the centre of its future development strategy and achieve the goals in the Vision 2020, then certain measures ought to be taken now," Mr Peprah said.

To him, opening up the external marketing of cocoa from 2000 is part of Ghana's long-term cocoa development strategy which was not imposed by anybody but was determined by Ghanaians.

He, therefore, dismissed the assertion that privatising the external marketing of cocoa was a condition of the World Bank loan.

"In our (Ghana) reforms we determine what to do. We believe that privatisation is good not because the World Bank says so and all the reform programmes we are pursuing are our own programmes," the Minister said.

GRi