Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson has revealed that Ghana had to borrow GHS17 billion to pay public sector salaries in 2025 due to a high wage bill that exceeds regional thresholds.

He disclosed this during a dialogue with Organised Labour at the Jubilee House in Accra on Tuesday, March 17, as part of ongoing consultations with key stakeholders.

According to Dr. Forson, Ghana’s compensation-to-tax revenue ratio for 2025 was 44 percent, well above the ECOWAS convergence threshold of 35 percent.

“Ghana’s compensation to tax revenue ratio of 44% for 2025 is higher and way above the ECOWAS threshold of 35%. The ECOWAS convergence criteria require that compensation should not exceed 35%, but in the case of Ghana, it is 44%,” he said.

He provided a breakdown of the 2025 fiscal figures, noting that non-oil tax revenue amounted to GHS 183 billion, while statutory funds, including the District Assemblies Common Fund, Ghana Education Trust Fund, and National Health Insurance Levy, totaled about GHS 55.7 billion. Debt servicing reached GHS 64.3 billion.

“This means that of the GHS 183 billion non-oil tax revenue that we collected, only GHS 61.9 billion is available for compensation, goods and service, and capital expenditure. The 2025 compensation bill was GHS 78.9 billion. If you are to deduct all the statutory funds and debt service, what was left was GHS 61.9 billion.

“This means that what was left was not enough to settle Ghana’s compensation bill. This also means that Ghana had to borrow GHS 17 billion to pay Ghanaian workers. Simple put, we borrow to augment what is left to pay Ghanaian workers,” he explained.