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Ghana’s president-elect John Dramani Mahama vowed to “reset” the country following his resounding election victory, as analysts predicted challenges in repairing a battered economy.
The country’s electoral commission on Monday declared main opposition candidate Mahama the winner of Saturday’s poll with 56.55% of the vote. His main rival, outgoing Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, had already conceded defeat on Sunday.
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Ghana, the world’s second biggest cocoa grower and major gold producer, is mired in its worst economic crisis in decades, triggered by a 2022 default on its $30 billion sovereign debt, which led to a $3 billion IMF bailout and debt restructuring.
“There is much to do to salvage our country and reset it,” Mahama, previously president from 2012 to 2017, said in his acceptance speech.
David Omojomolo, Africa economist at Capital Economics, said Mahama’s priorities would be to ensure fiscal policies adhere to the IMF program and “keeping investors onside post-debt restructuring.”