The global credit rating agency Moody's on Friday raised the long-term ratings of local and foreign currency issuers in Ghana from “Caa2” to “Caa3” and “Ca”, respectively, citing extensive debt treatment that has significantly alleviated the government's financial burden. The agency also revised the outlook for the West African country to “positive.”

The “positive outlook reflects the potential for mitigating liquidity risk as part of ongoing fiscal consolidation efforts, supported by an IMF program,” Moody's said in a statement.

Last week, International Monetary Fund staff and Ghanaian officials reached an agreement on the third review of the country's $3 billion loan program.

Ghana's debt restructuring is expected to reduce its debt stock by $4.7 billion and provide cash flow relief worth a total of $4.4 billion over the life of the IMF program, which expires in 2026, the government said in June.