This op-ed was originally published in Business & Finanacial Times.
Ghana’s economy has made a remarkable comeback after the debt default crisis of 2022, one of the country’s toughest economic periods in decades. Following elevated inflation which exceeded 50% and a dramatic depreciation of the Cedi, the government undertook broad-based reforms under the aegis of a USD 3 billion IMF-supported program. By late 2025, headline inflation stood at 5.4%, GDP growth was projected at 4.3%, and the country experienced a record trade surplus driven by strong gold and cocoa exports.
This has bolstered foreign exchange reserves, stabilized the Cedi, and put public finances on a firmer footing. Credit rating agencies have taken note, and Ghana’s sovereign rating was upgraded from restricted default to stable territory, marking a return of investor confidence.
The most recent national budget signaled a deliberate shift from crisis management to investment-led growth, marking a crucial inflection point for the economy. Fiscal savings were redirected into productive sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, and renewable energy. Against this backdrop, and in a context of declining Official Development Assistance (ODA), the government has recognized that blended finance can serve as a catalyst to finance the country’s long-term, inclusive development.
Blended finance refers to financial structures that combine public, philanthropic, and private capital to finance sustainable development. It has gained traction in recent years as a means to leverage different types of funding to achieve development objectives, particularly in countries where traditional sources of financing may be limited or insufficient. Indeed, both of the government’s flagship economic programs, The Big Push and 24-Hour Economy, explicitly recognize the significance of blended finance.
During a recent mission to Ghana, we engaged with several government / quasi-government agencies whose mandate is to mobilize private capital.
A prime example is the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF), which was set up with an anchor investment of USD 345 million from the government. GIIF’s objective is to act as a catalyst for leveraging private capital by deploying debt, equity, and mezzanine funding to de-risk projects for local and international investors.
To date, GIIF has deployed USD 365 million across 13 transactions, which in turn leveraged approximately 10x that amount in commercial financing. GIIF’s success has enabled the organization to partner with organizations like the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Agence Française de Développement (AFD) for lines of credit, demonstrating the usefulness of country platforms to official donors, Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).
The Venture Capital Trust Fund (VCTF) and Ghana Incentive-Based Risk-Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (GIRSAL) are two other models of government-led blended finance initiatives. The VCTF is a government-established fund-of-funds that deploys seed capital to de-risk investments (in the form of equity and quasi-equity) and mobilize private capital across various locally domiciled venture funds.
Thus far, the VCTF has invested USD 33 million across 14 funds, which have gone on to raise over USD 270 million in additional capital from other investors. GIRSAL, with a balance sheet capacity of USD 45 million, de-risks agribusiness loans through credit risk guarantees and technical support, helping commercial banks increase their lending to the agriculture sector. GIRSAL works with 38 partner financial institutions and has guaranteed over USD 150 million in loans for agriculture.
Similarly, the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), one of the most important organizations in Ghana’s cocoa industry, employed a blended finance strategy that enabled them to secure a USD 600 million syndicated facility, with significant contributions from entities like the African Development Bank (AfDB), Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA), and others. A concessionary loan of USD 100 million from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) altered the risk/return tradeoff for more commercially oriented investors, drawing in notable commitments from the likes of Credit Suisse and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC).
In an era of substantial ODA cuts, African countries must increasingly use their own balance sheets to de-risk projects and crowd in private capital. In this respect, as evidenced through the examples above, the Government of Ghana is leading the way.
Domestic pension funds also represent a large and underutilized source of long-term capital. Ghana’s total pension assets have doubled in size over the past five years, to a total of USD 5 billion in 2025. However, exposure to alternative asset classes such as private equity, venture capital, infrastructure, private debt, and real estate remains just 0.5% of assets under management. Blended finance can play a role here to create investable products and opportunities for this major source of long-term domestic capital.
Drawing on the InfraCredit Nigeria model, there are active discussions for a related credit enhancement scheme in Ghana. This new entity will provide credit guarantees for local currency debt, thereby increasing the attractiveness for institutional investors to invest in infrastructure bonds.
Adding to this landscape is the Ci Gaba Fund of Funds, a USD 75 million innovative structure aiming to blend donor and local institutional capital to back venture and private equity funds investing in small and medium-sized enterprises. By absorbing part of the early-stage risk, Ci Gaba aims to unlock institutional investments for high-impact sectors. Taken together, these initiatives illustrate how blended finance can turn Ghana’s capital scarcity into opportunity, channeling funds where they yield the greatest economic and social return.
While the momentum is promising, Ghana can unlock even greater potential through a few targeted policy actions such as regulatory modernization, transparency & cooridnation examples of which include: 1) Legal recognition of limited partnership (LP) structures, a standard globally for private equity and venture funds, would make it easier to establish investment vehicles locally; 2) The creation of a centralized, publicly accessible pipeline of investable projects; and 3) Establishing a national project preparation facility under the Ministry of Finance or the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre could help move high-potential projects from concept to bankability.
The promise of Ghana’s next growth chapter is an economy powered not just by recovery, but by resilience and innovation. The call to action is clear: public agencies and development partners must bring catalytic funding and technical expertise to the table, and commercial investors must look beyond short-term risk to the long-term potential of one of Africa’s most dynamic frontier market.
As Ghana seizes this moment, blended finance could become the defining tool of its economic renaissance, turning fiscal discipline into inclusive development, and transforming stability into sustained prosperity.
