Mahama said the IMF had agreed to send an early mission to conduct a regular review.

The government might have to cut back on interest payments and funding for the transition, he added, unless a budget is passed in December.

Illegal small-scale gold mining known "galamsey" in Ghana has picked up this year following an almost 30 per cent rise in global gold prices.

Factors such as illegal gold mining, climate change, and disease outbreaks like the swollen shoot virus are wreaking havoc on cocoa plantations.