Ghana’s Parliament has approved a $2.8 billion debt relief deal with 25 creditor nations, including economic heavyweights such as China, France, the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom, marking a crucial step in the country’s ongoing efforts to recover from its most severe economic crisis in decades.

The approval, granted late Tuesday, is expected to unlock further disbursements under a $3 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout programme, which Ghana secured in May 2023. That bailout has since helped stabilise the nation’s economy, which had been reeling from inflation, currency depreciation, and debt distress. The IMF-backed deal also prompted a positive credit rating revision from Fitch.

“The terms of the debt treatment offer a debt service relief of $2.8 billion during the Fund-supported programme period (2023–2026),” a parliamentary report seen by Reuters confirmed. The debt restructuring applies to payments due between December 20, 2022, and December 31, 2026, which will now be capitalised and repaid between 2039 and 2043—giving Ghana over 15 years of breathing space on repayments.

Under the terms agreed with the Official Creditor Committee, interest rates on the restructured debt will range from 1% to 3%, depending on original contract terms. This arrangement provides the Ghanaian treasury with substantial savings, as the rates fall well below current market levels.

“The Committee noted that the debt restructuring was critical in supporting government to restore and sustain macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability,” the report concluded, with lawmakers unanimously recommending approval of the deal.

Ghana, the world’s second-largest cocoa producer, defaulted on most of its external debt in December 2022. Since then, it has been actively engaged in negotiations to restore economic order and win back investor confidence. The memorandum of understanding with bilateral creditors, signed in January 2024, reflects broad international support for Ghana’s reform agenda.

While the parliamentary approval is a key milestone, Ghana is still negotiating with commercial creditors to complete the full debt restructuring process. The outcome of those talks will be crucial in determining the country’s long-term economic recovery trajectory.

With this debt relief, the West African nation takes a significant step toward restoring macroeconomic stability, improving debt sustainability, and creating fiscal space for growth, especially in critical sectors like agriculture, manufacturing, and infrastructure.

Ukraine is ramping up its diplomatic and humanitarian presence across Africa in a bold strategy to counterbalance Russia’s long-standing influence on the continent. From opening new embassies to delivering food aid and offering military training, Kyiv is making a calculated push to build partnerships and reshape its image among African nations.

Mauritania, located on Africa’s western tip, has become one of the key stages for this effort. Ukraine recently opened an embassy in the capital, Nouakchott—one of eight new missions launched since Russia’s 2022 invasion. The embassy has already overseen food aid deliveries to Malian refugees at the Mbera camp, West Africa’s largest, which now houses over 250,000 people fleeing Russian-backed forces across the border.

“Ukraine is ready to continue training officers and representatives of the Mauritanian armed forces, to share the technologies and achievements that Ukraine has made,” said Maksym Subkh, Ukraine’s top envoy to Africa. While the Mauritanian government has not publicly commented on the training offer, Ukraine has made it clear that its involvement remains humanitarian in nature, denying any role in covert operations in the Sahel region.

Ukraine’s efforts include a strong humanitarian component, primarily through the EU- and U.S.-funded “Grain from Ukraine” initiative. Nearly 300,000 tonnes of food aid have been delivered across 12 African countries, benefiting over 8 million people. In Mauritania alone, three shipments totaling about 1,400 tonnes of split peas, vegetable oil, and wheat had arrived by the end of 2024, with distribution continuing into 2025. These efforts have been coordinated with the World Food Programme (WFP), which confirmed the aid had reached refugees in Mbera.

“Maintaining its role as one of the guarantors of the world’s food security, Ukraine can prevent Russia from using food supplies as political leverage,” said Roman Sereda, Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires in Nouakchott.

The push into Africa is not without challenges. Ukraine’s Africa strategy, while ambitious, is running on limited resources. Embassies are thinly staffed, often relying on volunteers and diplomatic goodwill from allies. In Mauritania, Viktor Bort, a 29-year-old Ukrainian diplomat, opened the mission solo in May 2024, focusing on building local relationships and coordinating humanitarian efforts. Despite operating without a full security detail at first, Bort quickly became recognized for his drive and diplomacy.

Beyond humanitarian efforts, Ukraine is also seeking to deepen economic and security cooperation. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ukraine’s ambassador Vasyl Hamianin said both countries are exploring long-term agriculture and food security partnerships. The Congolese government welcomed Ukraine’s presence “in a spirit of openness and cooperation,” clarifying that it sees no reason to tie Kyiv’s outreach to its conflict with Moscow.

While African nations were initially hesitant to support Ukraine’s position at the United Nations, many are beginning to engage more openly with Kyiv. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a historic visit to South Africa in April, the first by a Ukrainian leader—seeking closer ties on energy, fertiliser, and trade. Still, some analysts argue Ukraine’s strategy lacks coherence. For instance, Kyiv has not yet appointed an ambassador to Ethiopia, a country central to diplomatic engagement with the African Union.

Despite setbacks, such as the downgrade of a planned Ukraine-Africa summit in Kyiv to a virtual format, Kyiv remains focused on strengthening its footprint. The country now has 18 embassies in Africa and plans to open two more, including one in Sudan, where Russia is accused of fuelling both sides of the country’s conflict.

Ukraine’s growing visibility in Africa is part of a wider push to draw historical parallels between its own fight for sovereignty and African countries’ struggles against colonialism. Subkh, the African envoy, said Ukraine is seeking to show that “its fight against Russia has parallels with their own efforts to overcome the legacy of European colonialism.”

While Kyiv cannot match Moscow’s extensive commercial and military networks which include 40 Russian embassies across Africa and new ones on the way it is slowly carving out its own space. Through strategic aid, diplomatic persistence, and efforts to align with African priorities, Ukraine is redefining its role on the continent, one mission at a time.