Former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has described Ghana’s debt restructuring under the G20 Common Framework as “one of the darkest and most painful episodes” of his presidency.

Speaking at the AU-EU High-Level Seminar in Brussels on Thursday, October 2, 2025, ahead of the AU-EU Summit, Akufo-Addo said that although the framework provided temporary economic relief, it came at a significant social and human cost.

“I witnessed the suffocating grip of debt on our economy and our citizens. This deeply troubled me and still does,” he told African and European leaders.

Ghana joined the Common Framework in 2023, restructuring $13 billion in Eurobonds and securing $10.5 billion in external debt service relief through 2026. The deal reduced the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio from the mid-80s to 70.5 percent, restoring some investor confidence and supporting its IMF-backed programme.

Despite these gains, the former president noted that the drawn-out and sequential nature of the process created uncertainty, eroded public trust, and placed a heavy burden on ordinary Ghanaians. He cited pensioners, youth, and small investors as those hardest hit.

“The most painful part was the impact on ordinary people. Their lives and livelihoods were shattered,” he said.

Akufo-Addo also reflected on Africa’s wider debt challenges, warning that the continent’s $1 trillion burden reflects a global financial system “not built to free us, but to bind us.” He highlighted that more than 30 African countries now spend more on debt servicing than on healthcare.

“Every dollar diverted to creditors is a dollar taken from a hospital, from a child’s vaccination, from a community’s future. This is not economics, it is inequity,” he argued.

He renewed his call for bold reforms, including immediate debt service suspension, comprehensive restructuring, and concessional financing. He insisted that debt relief should not be seen as charity but as justice.

“Debt relief for Africa is not an act of generosity. It is an act of justice,” he stated.

The former president further proposed a “Debt Relief for Green Investment and Resilience” framework, linking debt cancellation to climate action. He stressed that Africa, though contributing less than 4% of global emissions, remains disproportionately vulnerable to climate shocks.

“To our European partners, I say this: hear the voice of your neighbouring continent. Stand with the AU and South Africa’s G20 Presidency to advance ambitious reform of the Common Framework,” he appealed.

Akufo-Addo acknowledged that African nations must also take responsibility by diversifying economies and improving governance. However, he cautioned that without reforms to global finance, efforts would continue to be undermined by “predatory lending and punitive trade terms.”

“The sacrifices we make today, the compromises, and the collaborations we engage in today can only inure to the benefit of our world. When Africa rises free from the weight of debt, the whole world rises with it,” he concluded.