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Ghana in NumbersGhana Statistical Service

Chapter 5

Business and Economy

The size and structure of the economy, prices, jobs, businesses, tourism, public finances, money and banking, and trade with the world and with Ghana’s neighbours.

Sources
GSS national accounts, CPI, PPI, QLFS, IBES I, ICBT; MoF; Bank of Ghana
Latest
2025 (GDP provisional)

Overall GDP

1,434.1GH¢ billion

2025, nominalProvisional

About GH¢1.4 trillion

Real GDP

209.6GH¢ billion

2025, 2013 pricesProvisional

Growth 6.0% (provisional)

Trade surplus

+148.3GH¢ billion

2025, goods, current prices

Real (price-adjusted) balance −GH¢3.4bn

Inflation

14.6%

2025 annual average

December 2025, year on year: 5.4% (the overview figure)

Businesses

2.64million

2024 IBES I census

2,644,363 counted

Economy at a glance

Latest figure for each indicator

2025 (output and trade); 2024 (businesses)2025 provisional

  • GDP per capita

    GH¢42,502

    2025 (provisional)

  • Real GDP growth

    6.0%

    2025 (provisional)

  • Goods trade surplus

    GH¢148.3billion

    2025, current prices

  • Businesses counted

    2,644,363

    2024 IBES I census

Source: GSS Annual GDP; merchandise trade statistics; 2024 IBES I · pp. 41–42, 49, 74

View data
Economy at a glance
IndicatorYearValue
GDP per capita (GH¢)2025 (provisional)42,502.0
Real GDP growth (%)2025 (provisional)6.0
Goods trade balance (GH¢ billion)2025148.3
Businesses counted20242,644,363

Size and structure of the economy

Nominal GDP measures value at today’s prices; real GDP removes price changes to show how much more was produced.

§5.1 · pp. 40–43

Nominal GDP, 2025 (provisional)

1,434.1GH¢ billion

About GH¢1.4 trillion; US$114.2 billion

Real GDP growth, 2025 (provisional)

6.0%

5.8% in 2024 (revised)

Non-oil GDP growth, 2025

7.6%

Table 2.1, p. 6

Nominal GDP

GH¢ billion, current prices

2013–20252024 revised · 2025 provisional

Rising prices account for much of the elevenfold increase in cedi terms; real GDP shows the change in volume.

Source: GSS Annual GDP 2013–2025 · Figures 5.1–5.2, p. 40

View data
Nominal GDP
YearGH¢ billionUS$ billion
2013124.564.8
2014158.754.1
2015183.548.6
2016219.656.0
2017262.860.3
2018308.667.3
2019356.568.3
2020391.970.0
2021461.779.5
2022614.374.3
2023887.780.6
2024 (revised)1,182.883.4
2025 (provisional)1,434.1114.2

Figure 5.1 also plots non-oil GDP without value labels; it is not reproduced.

Real GDP and growth

Two panels: level at 2013 prices (GH¢ billion) and annual growth (%)

2013–20252024 revised · 2025 provisional

Real GDP, GH¢ billion (2013 prices)

Real GDP growth, %

Real GDP rose 68.4% between 2013 and 2025. Growth was 6.0% in 2025; non-oil GDP grew 7.6% (Table 2.1).

Source: GSS Annual GDP 2013–2025 · Figure 5.5, p. 42

View data
Real GDP and growth
YearReal GDP (GH¢ bn, 2013 prices)Growth (%)
2013124.57.2
2014128.02.9
2015130.72.1
2016135.23.4
2017146.18.1
2018155.26.2
2019165.36.5
2020166.20.5
2021174.65.1
2022181.23.8
2023186.93.1
2024 (revised)197.95.8
2025 (provisional)209.66.0

GDP per capita

GH¢ per person, current prices

2013–20252024 revised · 2025 provisional

Bar labels in whole cedis per person. 2013 is GH¢4,710; 2014–2024 are printed rounded to the nearest GH¢100.

About nine times the 2013 level in cedis; prices also rose, so purchasing power grew far less. An average of output, not household income.

Source: GSS Annual GDP 2013–2025 · Figures 5.3–5.4, p. 41

View data
GDP per capita
YearGH¢US$
20134,710.12,453
20145,900.01,999
20156,600.01,756
20167,800.01,978
20179,100.02,083
201810,400.02,273
201911,800.02,257
202012,700.02,272
202115,000.02,579
202219,600.02,369
202328,300.02,570
2024 (revised)35,800.02,527
2025 (provisional)42,501.93,385

Figure 5.3 is captioned in thousand US$ but its axis and the text are in thousand GH¢; the GH¢ reading is used. Intermediate GH¢ values are labelled in thousands (one decimal).

Sectoral share of nominal GDP

Production approach, % of GDP

2025

  • Agriculture22.8% of GDP
  • Industry31.3% of GDP
  • Services45.9% of GDP

For comparison: share of establishments by sector, 2024 (IBES I)

Agriculture 2.2% · Industry 21.1% · Services 76.7% of establishments

Output shares are not employment shares. The second bar counts establishments (fixed-structure businesses), a different measure: farming is mostly outside establishments.

Source: GSS Annual GDP · p. 41; 2024 IBES I · pp. 51–52

GDP by expenditure

GH¢ billion, current prices

2025

GDP at market prices

1,434.1GH¢ billion

Real growth 6.0% (provisional)

Domestic demand

1,321.3GH¢ billion

Consumption + investment

Net exports of goods and services

+112.9GH¢ billion

Exports − imports (national accounts)

GDP expenditure waterfall, 2025, current pricesConsumption 1,203.7, plus investment 117.6, plus exports 511.8, minus imports 398.9. Published GDP 1,434.1 billion Ghana cedis.05001,0001,5002,000+1,203.7ConsumptionAdd+117.6InvestmentAdd+511.8ExportsAdd−398.9ImportsSubtract1,434.1GDPTotal

Consumption + investment + exports − imports = GDP

Inside consumption

Households account for 94.5% of consumption

GH¢ billion and share of consumption, current prices

  • Households1,137.2 · 94.5%
  • Government62.2 · 5.2%
  • Non-profit institutions (NPISH)4.2 · 0.3%

These items are already included in the consumption bar; do not add them again.

Expenditure levels, not contributions to growth. Domestic demand grew 8.9% in real terms, led by household consumption (+10.5%); real imports grew faster (+19.3%) than exports (+8.2%), leaving real net exports at −GH¢7.6 billion while the nominal balance was +GH¢112.9 billion. Published components may not sum exactly to totals because of rounding.

Source: GSS Quarterly GDP, Expenditure Approach (September 2026) · Table 5.1, p. 42

View data
GDP by expenditure, 2025. Consumption and investment are nested under domestic demand. Household, government and NPISH spending are nested under consumption. Exports and imports are shown under net exports.
Expenditure itemNominalGH¢ billion · current pricesRealGH¢ billion · 2013 pricesReal growth2025 (%)
1.Domestic demand1,321.3217.38.9%
1.1Consumption1,203.7183.19.2%
of whichHousehold final consumption1,137.2167.010.5%
of whichGeneral government final consumption62.214.1-0.1%
of whichNPISH final consumption4.22.0-14.8%
1.2Investment (gross capital formation)117.634.17.2%
2.Net exports of goods and services112.9-7.6370.2%
of whichExports of goods and services511.855.68.2%
of whichImports of goods and services398.963.219.3%
3.GDP at market prices1,434.1209.66.0%
Indented “of which” rows break down their parent; do not add them again. Net exports = exports − imports. GDP = domestic demand + net exports. NPISH: non-profit institutions serving households. Published rounded components may not sum exactly to totals.

Prices and inflation

Consumer prices, building costs and producer prices are rising far more slowly than in 2022–2024.

§5.4 · pp. 54–59

Consumer price inflation

Year-on-year change in the CPI, % · monthly

Jan 2014 to Dec 2025

Year-on-year inflation peaked at 54.1% in December 2022 and fell to 5.4% in December 2025. The annual average (badge) is the mean of the 12 monthly year-on-year rates: 14.6% in 2025. Lower inflation means prices rose more slowly; it does not mean they fell.

Source: GSS Consumer Price Index (StatsBank extract) · Figure 5.11, p. 54

What drove inflation

Year-on-year inflation for selected dated months, %

2022–2025

Food and non-food

Food

61.0%Jan 2023

4.9%Dec 2025

−56.1 pppercentage points

Non-food

47.9%Jan 2023

5.8%Dec 2025

−42.1 pppercentage points

Food led the 2022–23 surge, which weighs most on households that spend a large share of their budget on food.

Locally produced and imported goods

  • Local
  • Imported
  • Jan 2022
    13.7%
    11.1%
  • Jan 2023
    51.3%
    62.4%
  • Dec 2023
    23.9%
    21.8%
  • Dec 2025
    5.9%
    4.3%

Imported inflation peaked higher (62.4%, January 2023); since 2024 local inflation has stayed above imported.

Only the dated values printed in the publication are shown; the full monthly series behind Figures 5.12–5.13 is not labelled. Local inflation’s own peak was 51.9% at the end of 2022.

Source: GSS CPI · Figures 5.12–5.13 and p. 55

View data
Food and non-food inflation
MonthFood (%)Non-food (%)
Jan 202361.047.9
Dec 20254.95.8
Local and imported inflation
MonthLocal (%)Imported (%)Source
Jan 202213.711.1Figure 5.13 labels
Jan 202351.362.4p. 56 text (imported peak)
Dec 202323.921.8p. 56 text
Dec 20255.94.3Figure 5.13 labels

Building cost inflation

Prime Building Cost Index, combined, year-on-year %

Jan 2024 – Mar 2026

Months after December 2025 are outside the main reference period but are printed in the publication. Labour, materials and plant components are drawn without labels and are not reproduced.

Source: GSS PBCI annexes 2024–2026 · Figure 5.14, p. 57

View data
Prime Building Cost Index, combined
MonthYear on year (%)
Jan 20246.3
Feb 20248.3
Mar 20249.1
Apr 20248.5
May 202411.1
Jun 202413.4
Jul 202416.2
Aug 202417.6
Sep 202418.4
Oct 202419.2
Nov 202421.7
Dec 202422.6
Jan 202523.7
Feb 202523.7
Mar 202523.6
Apr 202524.4
May 202522.0
Jun 202518.1
Jul 202514.2
Aug 202512.0
Sep 20259.7
Oct 20257.8
Nov 20255.9
Dec 20254.4
Jan 20263.9
Feb 20262.4
Mar 20262.2

Producer price inflation by sector

Year-on-year, end of year, %

2023–2025

  • All industries+1.9% in 2025
  • Electricity and gas+6.1% in 2025
  • Mining and quarrying+3.3% in 2025
  • Water supply and waste+2.3% in 2025
  • Construction+1.7% in 2025
  • Information and communication+1.7% in 2025
  • Manufacturing+0.1% in 2025
  • Accommodation and food−3.2% in 2025
  • Transportation and storage−3.7% in 2025
  • 2023
  • 2024
  • 2025
Labels show 2025. Negative values (accommodation and food, transport) mean producer prices were below the same point a year earlier, not below 2023 levels. Table 2.1 lists different sector values; the detailed figure is used.

Source: GSS Producer Price Index · Figure 5.15, p. 58

View data
Producer price inflation by sector
Sector2023 (%)2024 (%)2025 (%)
All industries16.426.11.9
Electricity and gas43.98.16.1
Mining and quarrying20.242.83.3
Water supply and waste16.65.02.3
Construction20.529.61.7
Information and communication18.22.91.7
Manufacturing8.518.90.1
Accommodation and food18.130.1-3.2
Transportation and storage14.823.1-3.7

Industrial production growth by sector

Index of Industrial Production, year-on-year at end of period, %

2023–2025

  • 2023
  • 2024
  • 2025
Measures the volume produced, not prices. Labels show 2025: manufacturing and electricity grew while mining and water contracted. Table 2.1 gives −1.1% for water in 2025; the detailed figure’s −2.1% is used.

Source: GSS Index of Industrial Production · Figure 5.16, p. 59

View data
Industrial production growth
Sector2023 (%)2024 (%)2025 (%)
All industries1.11.71.9
Mining and quarrying1.3-1.1-1.2
Manufacturing1.15.16.1
Electricity and gas-0.66.43.9
Water supply and waste-1.8-5.9-2.1

Labour market

More people are working or looking for work, but youth unemployment remains high and most jobs are informal.

§5.5 · pp. 60–61

  • Labour-force participation

    74.5%

    2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)

  • Employment-to-population

    65.0%

    2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)

  • National unemployment

    12.8%

    2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)

  • Youth unemployment, 15–24

    32.4%

    2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)

  • NEET, ages 15–24

    19.1%

    2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)

    Ages 15–35: 17.9%

Persons employed

13.3million

Average Q1–Q3 2025 · Table 2.1

In vulnerable employment

9.7million

Ave Q2–Q3 2025 · Table 2.1

Informal share of employment

Over 70%

All employment, average Q1–Q3 2025

Labour-force participation and employment

% of the working-age population

2022–2025

  • Labour-force participation
  • Employment-to-population
2025 is the Q1–Q3 average (QLFS); 2022–2024 are annual (AHIES). Participation includes jobseekers; the employment-to-population ratio counts only people in work.

Source: GSS AHIES 2022–2024; QLFS 2025 · Figure 5.17, p. 60

View data
Labour market participation
YearParticipation (%)Employment-to-population (%)
202267.158.3
202371.661.2
202470.160.6
2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)74.565.0

Young people not in employment, education or training

NEET, % of all people in the age group

2022–2025

  • Youth 15–24
  • Youth 15–35
The denominator is everyone in the age group, unlike unemployment. 2025 is the Q1–Q3 average; the Q3 2025 rate alone was higher (21.5% and 19.5%).

Source: GSS AHIES 2022–2024; QLFS 2025 · Figure 5.19, p. 61

View data
Youth NEET rate
YearYouth 15–24 (%)Youth 15–35 (%)
202222.421.7
202319.518.4
202420.819.7
2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)19.117.9

Unemployment rate

% of the labour force in each group

2017, 2021–2025

  • Youth 15–24
  • Youth 15–35
  • National
A share of each group’s labour force, not of all young people. The year axis is spaced by time: there is no observation between 2017 and 2021. 2025 is the Q1–Q3 average.

Source: GSS AHIES 2022–2024; QLFS 2025 · Figure 5.18, p. 61

View data
Unemployment rate by group
YearYouth 15–24 (%)Youth 15–35 (%)National (%)
201718.512.68.4
202132.819.713.4
202224.118.813.1
202330.622.214.6
202432.022.513.6
2025 (Q1–Q3 avg)32.421.912.8

Enterprises in Ghana

The first Integrated Business Establishment Survey counted businesses inside buildings, in open spaces and on the move.

§5.3 · pp. 49–53

Businesses counted

2,644,363

2024 IBES I census: establishments, open-space and mobile

Persons engaged in establishments

6.90million

3.38 million in 2014; about 36% unpaid

Formal establishments

7.7%

6.7% of those started 2015–2023

Establishments using digital finance

37.2%

Mobile money, transfers, cards

Businesses with and without walls

Number and share of all businesses

2024

  • Fixed-structure establishments1,867,695 · 70.6%
  • Open-space businesses693,748 · 26.3%
  • Mobile businesses82,920 · 3.1%
Seven in ten businesses work inside a fixed structure. Mobile businesses were counted on a single day and are likely understated. Establishments rose from 638,235 in 2014 to 1,867,690 in 2024, partly because the 2024 census counted more widely.

Source: GSS 2024 IBES I · Table 5.4, p. 49

View data
Businesses by type, 2024
Business typeNumberShare of all businesses
Fixed-structure establishments1,867,69570.6%
Open-space businesses693,74826.3%
Mobile businesses82,9203.1%
All businesses2,644,363100%

Small firms, different employment footprints

Share by establishment size, %

2024

  • Micro
  • Small
  • Medium
  • Large

Share of establishments

Share of persons engaged

Micro establishments are 90.4% of establishments but engage 41.9% of people; large firms are 0.3% of establishments and engage 21.7%.

Size is persons engaged, including owners and unpaid workers: micro 1–5, small 6–30, medium 31–100, large over 100. Just 4,874 large firms engage about 1.5 million people.

Source: GSS 2024 IBES I · Figure 5.10, p. 50

View data
Establishments and persons engaged by size
SizeShare of establishmentsShare of persons engagedFormal within size
Micro (1–5 persons)90.4%41.9%5.5%
Small (6–30)8.5%25.1%31.1%
Medium (31–100)0.8%11.3%55.7%
Large (over 100)0.3%21.7%64.5%

Formality and management by size

% of establishments within each size group

2024

Formal (registered)

  • Micro5.5%
  • Small31.1%
  • Medium55.7%
  • Large64.5%
  • All sizes7.7%

Who manages the establishment

  • Women only
  • Men only
  • Jointly
  • Micro
  • Small
  • Medium
  • Large
  • All sizes

Women manage 59.4% of micro establishments alone, but only 5.8% of large ones.

Rates within each size group, not shares of all establishments; they should not be added across groups. The remainder of each management bar is jointly managed by women and men.

Source: GSS 2024 IBES I · Table 5.5, p. 51

View data
Formality and management by size
SizeFormal (%)Managed by women only (%)Managed by men only (%)Jointly managed (%)
Micro5.559.436.24.4
Small31.129.355.615.1
Medium55.79.060.530.5
Large64.55.854.539.7
All sizes7.756.338.15.6

Jointly managed share derived as the remainder of 100%.

The same country, different business conditions

Highest and lowest region against the national figure, %

2024

  • Lowest region
  • Ghana
  • Highest region

  • Establishments that are formal

    North East 1.8%Ghana 7.7%Greater Accra 12.8%

  • Establishments using digital finance

    Savannah 18.9%Ghana 37.2%Greater Accra 50.9%

  • Persons engaged who are paid

    Western North 43.4%Ghana 64%Greater Accra 82%

  • Establishments in industry

    Greater Accra 15.7%Ghana 21.1%Upper East 37.6%

0%50%100%
Only the highest and lowest regions are published for each indicator. A business in Greater Accra is about seven times as likely to be formal as one in North East.

Source: GSS 2024 IBES I · Table 5.6, p. 51

View data
Business conditions by region
IndicatorLowest regionLowest (%)Ghana (%)Highest regionHighest (%)
Establishments that are formalNorth East1.87.7Greater Accra12.8
Establishments using digital financeSavannah18.937.2Greater Accra50.9
Persons engaged who are paidWestern North43.464.0Greater Accra82.0
Establishments in industryGreater Accra15.721.1Upper East37.6

Establishments operating in 2024, by year started

Number of establishments

2024

Counts only businesses still open in 2024, so it shows survivors rather than how many started in each period. Seven in ten started between 2015 and 2023.

Source: GSS 2024 IBES I · Figure 5.9, p. 50

View data
Establishments by period started
Period startedEstablishments
Before 197521,176
1975–198415,490
1985–199442,205
1995–2004139,310
2005–2014323,634
2015–20231,325,880

Businesses without walls: open-space and mobile

Profile of the 776,668 businesses working outside a building

2024

Open-space and mobile businesses side by side, 2024
FeatureOpen-space businessesMobile businesses
Number of businesses693,74882,920
People working in them922,17782,920 operators
Run by women84.0% of owners77.5% of operators
Ghanaian-owned or operated99.2%94.2%
Selling food68.4% (food and drinks)63.6%
Selling goods, not services84.0%85.2%
In Greater Accra and Ashanti40.6%50.4%
Daily sales of GH¢100 or less31.3%57.1%
Effort63.7% open six or seven days a week35.9% work nine hours or more a day
Mostly women, mostly Ghanaian, mostly selling food. Six in ten mobile operators (52,253) are aged 15–35, and 2,087 are children aged 10–14. Daily sales are money taken in, not profit.

Source: GSS 2024 IBES I · Table 5.7, p. 52

Tourism flow and expenditure

Most trips are domestic, but fewer than a million inbound visitors spent more than all domestic travellers.

§5.6 · pp. 62–63

Tourism flows and spending

Visitors (million) and expenditure (GH¢ billion), by type of trip

2023

Domestic visitors

15,388,978

GH¢6.59 billion spent

Inbound visitors

901,450

GH¢15.42 billion spent

Outbound visitors

470,805

GH¢3.46 billion spent

Visitors, million

  • Overnight
  • Same day

Expenditure, GH¢ billion

  • Overnight
  • Same day

Main purpose of domestic trips

% of domestic trips; bars on a 0–100% scale

  • Funeral39.3%
  • Visiting friends & relatives35.9%
  • Business & professional11.7%
Domestic:
Funerals 39.3% and visiting friends or relatives 35.9% of trips (83% of overnight and 71% of same-day trips together).
Inbound:
Overnight: visiting friends or relatives 42%, business 38%. Same-day: 60% in transit.
Outbound:
Overnight: visiting friends or relatives 37%, business 22%. Same-day: business 31%, funerals 23%, family visits 22%.
Same-day and overnight flows are counted separately and are not unique people. The GH¢22.01 billion headline is domestic plus inbound spending; outbound spending (GH¢3.46 billion) is residents’ spending abroad.

Source: GSS DOTS and GITS 2023 · Figures 5.20–5.21, Table 5.8, pp. 62, 63

View data
Tourism flows and expenditure, 2023
FlowOvernight visitorsSame-day visitorsTotal visitorsOvernight spend (GH¢ bn)Same-day spend (GH¢ bn)Total spend (GH¢ bn)
Domestic8,800,0006,600,00015,388,9784.761.836.59
Inbound888,58412,866901,45015.40.0215.42
Outbound393,30577,501470,8053.40.063.46

Domestic overnight and same-day counts are printed rounded to 0.1 million.

Government fiscal operations

The deficit narrowed sharply in 2025 and the primary balance turned to surplus, while capital spending fell.

§5.7 · pp. 64–70

Show figures
Applies to the figures and the first two charts

Revenue and grants, 2025

224.9GH¢ bn

Same on both bases

Expenditure, 2025 · commitment basis

238.7GH¢ bn

Obligations incurred in the year

Overall balance, 2025 · commitment

−13.9GH¢ bn

Negative = deficit

Primary balance, 2025 · commitment

+36.0GH¢ bn

Excludes interest; positive = surplus

Revenue and expenditure

GH¢ billion, nominal

2022–2025 · Commitment basis

  • Revenue and grants
  • Tax revenue (included)
  • Expenditure (commitment)
Revenue more than doubled in cedis since 2022, but stayed within 15.3–15.8% of GDP (switch to % of GDP). Tax revenue is part of the total, not an addition to it.

Source: Ministry of Finance · Tables 5.9–5.10, pp. 64–65

Deficits and surpluses

GH¢ billion

2022–2025 · Commitment basis

  • Overall balance
  • Primary balance
Bars below zero are deficits. The overall balance includes interest; the primary balance excludes it. On the commitment basis the deficit narrowed from 6.9% of GDP (2024) to 1.0% (2025), partly because capital spending fell.

Source: Ministry of Finance · Tables 5.9–5.10, pp. 64–65

Where the money came from

Revenue and grants by source, GH¢ billion

2022–2025

  • Tax revenue
  • Non-tax revenue
  • Other revenue
  • Grants
  • Social contributions
The five sources add up to total revenue and grants. About 82 of every 100 cedis came from taxes in 2025; grants were less than one cedi in a hundred.

Source: Ministry of Finance · Table 5.9, p. 64

Where committed spending went

Commitment-basis expenditure by item, GH¢ billion

2022–2025

  • Compensation of employees
  • Interest payments
  • Grants to other government units
  • Capital expenditure
  • Goods and services
  • Social benefits
  • Other expenditure
  • Other outstanding expenditure claims
Items add up to commitment expenditure. In 2025 compensation and interest together took about 57% of revenue and grants, while capital spending fell 31.1% to GH¢20.2 billion (1.4% of GDP).

Source: Ministry of Finance · Table 5.9, p. 64

From commitments to cash payments

Net change in unpaid bills (arrears), GH¢ billion · positive = bills built up, negative = bills cleared

2022–2025

Cash expenditure = commitment expenditure − net change in unpaid bills. In 2025 the government cleared GH¢29.5 billion of old bills (2.1% of GDP), so cash spending (GH¢268.3 billion) exceeded commitments (GH¢238.7 billion).

Source: Ministry of Finance · Table 5.9, p. 64

View data
Selected fiscal indicators, nominal GH¢ million
Indicator (GH¢ million)2022202320242025
Total revenue and grants96,651136,011186,593224,884
Tax revenue75,548110,019151,155183,987
Non-tax revenue14,56117,64627,73427,870
Social contributions3506351,060866
Other revenue5,0735,0604,92810,336
Grants1,1192,6521,7161,825
Total expenditure (cash)161,808163,998248,004268,284
Total expenditure (commitment)168,848167,514268,099238,740
Primary expenditure (cash)116,120134,650201,212218,393
Primary expenditure (commitment)123,161138,167221,306188,849
Compensation of employees39,43450,80867,18978,970
Interest payments45,68729,34846,79249,891
Use of goods and services7,9268,44611,5096,090
Capital expenditure18,68921,11129,38920,235
Grants to other government units24,55031,15046,42657,720
Social benefits944297372,908
Other expenditures13,78426,22326,96122,926
Other outstanding expenditure claims18,684039,0970
Payables/arrears clearance (net)7,0413,51620,095-29,544
Overall balance (commitment)-72,197-31,503-81,505-13,856
Overall balance (cash)-65,156-27,987-61,411-43,400
Primary balance (commitment)-26,510-2,155-34,71336,035
Primary balance (cash)-19,4691,361-14,6186,491
Nominal GDP614,336887,7481,182,7991,434,115
Selected fiscal indicators, percent of GDP
Indicator (% of GDP)2022202320242025
Total revenue and grants15.715.315.815.7
Tax revenue12.312.412.812.8
Non-tax revenue2.42.02.31.9
Social contributions0.10.10.10.1
Other revenue0.80.60.40.7
Grants0.20.30.10.1
Total expenditure (cash)26.318.521.018.7
Total expenditure (commitment)27.518.922.716.6
Primary expenditure (cash)18.915.217.015.2
Primary expenditure (commitment)20.015.618.713.2
Compensation of employees6.45.75.75.5
Interest payments7.43.34.03.5
Use of goods and services1.31.01.00.4
Capital expenditure3.02.42.51.4
Grants to other government units4.03.53.94.0
Social benefits0.00.00.10.2
Other expenditures2.23.02.31.6
Payables/arrears clearance (net)1.10.41.7-2.1
Overall balance (cash)-10.6-3.2-5.2-3.0
Overall balance (commitment)-11.8-3.5-6.9-1.0
Primary balance (cash)-3.20.2-1.20.5
Primary balance (commitment)-4.3-0.2-2.92.5

Indented rows break down their parent and must not be added to it. Published totals may differ from arithmetic on rounded components.

Monetary and financial sector

Inflation fell, interest rates followed, lending revived and reserves rose; credit stayed low relative to GDP and one in five cedis lent was not being repaid.

§5.8 · pp. 70–73

Each indicator keeps its own unit and scale.

Broad money M2+

GH¢ billion

2022–2025

384.3GH¢ billion in 2025

+54.5 GH¢ billion from 2024

M2+ growth

%

2022–2025

16.5% in 2025

−15.4 percentage points from 2024

Private-sector credit

GH¢ billion

2022–2025

106.2GH¢ billion in 2025

+17.1 GH¢ billion from 2024

Nominal private-sector credit growth

%

2022–2025

19.2% in 2025

−7.1 percentage points from 2024

Real private-sector credit growth

%

2022–2025

13.1% in 2025

+11.1 percentage points from 2024

Private-sector credit (% GDP)

% of GDP

2022–2025

7.4% of GDP in 2025

−0.1 percentage points from 2024

Bank deposits

GH¢ billion

2022–2025

325.3GH¢ billion in 2025

+49.1 GH¢ billion from 2024

Bank assets

GH¢ billion

2022–2025

446.9GH¢ billion in 2025

+79.1 GH¢ billion from 2024

View data
Monetary and financial indicators, 2022–2025
Indicator (end of period unless stated)2022202320242025
Broad money M2+ (GH¢ bn)180.3250.0329.8384.3
M2+ growth (%)33.038.731.916.5
Private-sector credit (GH¢ bn)63.870.689.1106.2
Nominal private-sector credit growth (%)31.810.726.319.2
Real private-sector credit growth (%)-14.5-10.22.013.1
Private-sector credit (% GDP)10.48.07.57.4
Bank deposits (GH¢ bn)159.3214.5276.2325.3
Bank assets (GH¢ bn)212.0274.9367.8446.9
Gross international reserves (US$ bn)6.35.99.113.8
Reserves (months of import cover)2.72.74.15.7
Monetary policy rate (%)27.030.027.018.0
Interbank weighted average rate (%)25.530.227.016.3
Average lending rate (%)35.633.830.320.5
91-day Treasury bill rate (%)35.529.427.711.1
182-day Treasury bill rate (%)36.231.728.412.5
364-day Treasury bill rate (%)36.133.030.012.9
Capital adequacy ratio (%)16.213.914.017.5
Non-performing loans ratio (%)16.020.621.818.9
Return on assets, before tax (%)-3.85.45.05.7
Return on equity, after tax (%)-34.434.230.830.8

Source: Bank of Ghana · Table 5.11, p. 70. The nominal credit-growth row (31.8, 10.7, 26.3, 19.2) is published in Table 5.11 and Table 2.1.

Ghana in the global market

A record current-price goods surplus in 2025, built on gold.

§5.9 · pp. 73–78

Merchandise trade

Exports, imports and trade balance, GH¢ billion, current prices

2014–2025

Exports and imports, GH¢ billion

  • Exports
  • Imports

Trade balance, GH¢ billion · above zero = surplus

Goods only. The 2025 current-price surplus (GH¢148.3 billion; US$11.5 billion) became a real deficit of GH¢3.4 billion after adjusting for prices, largely because gold prices were high. This differs from national-accounts net exports of goods and services (−GH¢7.6 billion real). Cedi values also move with the exchange rate.

Source: GSS merchandise trade statistics · Figures 5.22–5.23, pp. 74–75; p. 78

View data
Merchandise trade
YearExports GH¢ bnImports GH¢ bnBalance GH¢ bnExports US$ bnImports US$ bnBalance US$ bn
201442.740.72.014.714.10.6
201544.749.2-4.512.113.3-1.2
201641.645.5-4.010.611.6-1.0
201754.760.5-5.812.613.9-1.3
201875.059.215.916.412.93.5
201986.264.521.816.512.44.1
202075.581.5-6.113.514.5-1.0
202186.1103.6-17.614.817.8-3.0
2022143.8148.6-4.817.618.3-0.7
2023186.0180.75.316.816.30.5
2024294.9250.244.720.617.53.1
2025401.5253.2148.332.020.511.5

Published balances may differ from exports minus imports by 0.1 because of rounding.

Top five export and import commodities

% of the value of exports or imports

2025

Exports

  • Gold bullion62.9%
  • Cocoa beans8.6%
  • Crude Petroleum8.3%
  • Cocoa paste2.3%
  • Cashew nuts1.8%

Imports

  • Gas Oil11.2%
  • Motor spirit9.2%
  • Used cars (1.5–3.0L)3.7%
  • Crude Petroleum2.3%
  • Cement clinkers1.9%
Bars are drawn on a 0–100% scale. Exports are concentrated: the top five make up 83.9% (gold bullion alone 62.9%). Imports are spread out: the top five make up 28.3%. Crude oil is 8.3% of exports while refined fuels (gas oil and motor spirit) are 20.4% of imports.

Source: GSS · Figure 5.24, p. 76

View data
Top five exports, 2025
Export% of exports
Gold bullion62.9
Cocoa beans8.6
Crude Petroleum8.3
Cocoa paste2.3
Cashew nuts1.8
Top five imports, 2025
Import% of imports
Gas Oil11.2
Motor spirit9.2
Used cars 1.5-3.0L3.7
Crude Petroleum2.3
Cement clinkers1.9

Trade by continent

% of exports and of imports

2025

  • Exports
  • Imports
  • Asia
    50.1%
    48.4%
  • Europe
    26.8%
    24.7%
  • Africa
    17.5%
    14.1%
  • North America
    4.2%
    9.5%

Largest named export destinations, GH¢ billion

  • 104.0United Arab Emirates
  • 64.3India
  • 56.8Switzerland
  • 19.6China
Bars are drawn on a 0–100% scale. Ghana exported to 163 partners and imported from 216. Trade with Africa ran a surplus: GH¢70.3bn exported, GH¢35.6bn imported. South America, Oceania and unknown destinations are small and not labelled in the source.

Source: GSS · Figure 5.25, p. 77

View data
Trade by continent, 2025
Continent% of exports% of imports
Asia50.148.4
Europe26.824.7
Africa17.514.1
North America4.29.5
Named export destinations, 2025
DestinationExports (GH¢ bn)
United Arab Emirates104.0
India64.3
Switzerland56.8
China19.6

Destinations named in the text; the publication does not print a complete top-ten country list.

Informal cross-border trade

Goods crossing land borders with Togo, Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire without customs records.

§5.10 · pp. 78–83

Informal trade, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025

38.40GH¢ billion

5.6% of all Ghana’s trade

Informal exports

20.06GH¢ billion

Full 12-month survey period

Informal imports

18.34GH¢ billion

Full 12-month survey period

Informal trade balance

+1.72GH¢ billion

Surplus; 1.4× formal trade with the three neighbours

Informal exports and imports by quarter

GH¢ billion

Q4 2024 – Q3 2025

  • Exports
  • Imports
Only four quarters have been observed; Q4 2024 was the survey’s first quarter, so read the rise into 2025 with care. The survey period is not calendar-year 2025.

Source: GSS ICBT Survey · Table 5.12, p. 80

View data
Informal and formal trade by quarter
PeriodInformal exportsInformal importsInformal totalInformal balanceFormal total (all partners)Informal share of all trade (%)
Q4 20243.953.537.480.41165.34.3
Q1 20255.625.0310.650.60181.65.5
Q2 20255.765.1010.860.67157.36.5
Q3 20254.734.689.400.05145.06.1
12 months20.0618.3438.401.72649.25.6

GH¢ billion unless stated. Rounded quarterly balances are shown as published and can differ from exports minus imports (e.g. Q4 2024: 3.95 − 3.53 = 0.42, published 0.41).

Informal trade balance with each neighbour

GH¢ million · above zero = Ghana sells more

Q4 2024 – Q3 2025

  • Burkina Faso
  • Côte d’Ivoire
  • Togo
Surpluses with Burkina Faso (+GH¢2.8bn over 12 months) and Côte d’Ivoire (+GH¢2.0bn) offset a widening deficit with Togo (−GH¢3.2bn). The three add up to the quarterly balance; the surplus nearly vanished in Q3 2025 (GH¢49–50 million).

Source: GSS ICBT Survey · Figure 5.26, p. 81

View data
Informal trade balance by neighbour, GH¢ million
QuarterBurkina FasoCôte d’IvoireTogoSum
Q4 2024576378-539415
Q1 2025699624-726597
Q2 2025936634-905665
Q3 2025632412-99450

What crosses the border

Top five goods, GH¢ million

Oct 2024 – Sep 2025

Exports

  • Alcoholic drinks746
  • Soft drinks731
  • Petrol624
  • Energy drinks579
  • Weedicide (minimum)534

Imports

  • Cooking oil1,397
  • Mattresses755
  • Rice734
  • Material cloth650
  • Cattle604
Drinks and fuel go out; food and household goods come in. Top five: 16% of informal exports and 22.6% of imports. Weedicide is a minimum (earlier quarters unpublished).

Source: GSS ICBT Survey · Table 5.13, p. 81

How informal trade moves

Value carried by means of transport, GH¢ billion (% of total)

Oct 2024 – Sep 2025

  • Tricycle13.7 (36%)
  • Motorbike10.1 (26%)
  • Canoe4.0 (10%)
  • On foot3.5 (9%)
  • Truck2.6 (7%)
  • Car1.9 (5%)
  • All others2.6 (7%)
Tricycles and motorbikes carried 62% of the value. Upper East is the export gateway (GH¢5.3bn) and Volta the import gateway (GH¢6.1bn).

Source: GSS ICBT Survey · Figure 5.27a, p. 82

Women as transporters

% of transporters who are women

Q4 2024 – Q3 2025

  • Exports
  • Imports
About two in three export transporters are men; women make up about four in ten import transporters.

Source: GSS ICBT Survey · Figure 5.27b, p. 82

View data
Women as % of transporters
QuarterExports (%)Imports (%)
Q4 20243441
Q1 20253239
Q2 20253039
Q3 20253038

Observed 6 a.m.–6 p.m. on 10–14 days a month at 321 border points; other days estimated. Night trade, hawked food and illegal goods are excluded, so the true value is likely higher.

Agriculture

Fish and crop output grew strongly; spending, livestock and the full crop series are in the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing deep dive.

§5.2 · pp. 44–48

Fish production

Thousand tonnes, by source

2010 and 2025

Aquaculture

10.2k2010

124.2k2025

+1,117.3%aquaculture output

Inland

83.1k2010

154.7k2025

+86.1%inland output

Marine

319.3k2010

443.8k2025

+39.0%marine output

Total

412.7k2010

722.6k2025

+75.1%all fish

k = thousand tonnes.

Only these two years are printed as quantities. Components sum to 412,658 and 722,647 tonnes against published totals of 412,658 and 722,648 (rounding); the published totals are kept.

Source: Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development · p. 45

View data
Fish production by source, tonnes
Source2010 (tonnes)2025 (tonnes)Change (%)
Aquaculture10,200124,1611,117.3
Inland83,127154,69286.1
Marine319,331443,79439.0
Total412,658722,64875.1

Major crop production

Million tonnes

2013 and 20242024 provisional

  • Cassava

    16.02013

    28.52024

    +78.1%million tonnes

  • Maize

    1.82013

    3.32024

    +83.3%million tonnes

  • Plantain

    3.72013

    7.22024

    +94.6%million tonnes

  • Rice

    0.62013

    1.12024

    +83.3%million tonnes

  • Yam

    7.12013

    11.42024

    +60.6%million tonnes

Quantities harvested, not yields or value. Each crop has its own scale; the full annual series is in the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing deep dive.

Source: SRID, Ministry of Food and Agriculture (March 2024) · Figure 5.7, p. 47

View data
Major crop production, million tonnes
Crop20132024 (provisional)Change (%)
Cassava16.028.578.1
Maize1.83.383.3
Plantain3.77.294.6
Rice0.61.183.3
Yam7.111.460.6

Agriculture’s share of GDP

22.8%

2025, nominal

Public spending on agriculture

0.2% of GDP

2024, approximate

Agriculture Orientation Index

0.02

2022–2024 (below 1 = under-funded relative to GDP share)

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