Ghana, located on the Atlantic Ocean and bordering Togo, Côte d'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso, has a population of approximately 34.4 million as of 2024. Over the past two decades, the country has made significant strides toward democracy under a multi-party system, with an independent judiciary that has earned public trust. Ghana has achieved significant economic and social progress over three decades, attaining middle-income status in 2011.
In the December 2024 elections, President John Dramani Mahama was elected. Mr. Mahama’s administration faces a challenging environment in leading Ghana on a path of debt sustainability by enhancing fiscal discipline, expanding tax revenue, and completing the debt restructuring with external creditors under the IMF program.
Economic Overview
Ghana's economy has seen considerable progress. However, more than 20% of the population continue to experience poverty, with rates exceeding 50% in northern regions. Rising deficits and debt have increased macroeconomic risks and financing costs in recent years.
In 2022, a combination of policy challenges and external factors contributed to a macroeconomic crisis, resulting in the closure of international markets, depreciation of the cedi, increased inflation, and decreased private credit due to domestic borrowing. Growth fell to 3.8% in 2022, and debt reached 92.6% of GDP. To address these issues, Ghana launched an IMF-supported recovery program, including comprehensive debt restructuring.
By 2024, Ghana successfully executed a $13 billion Eurobond exchange and entered a Memorandum of Understanding with the Official Creditor Committee. In 2025, Eurobond service resumed, and domestic coupon payments continued. Stabilization has improved conditions, with 2024 growth at 5.7% and 2nd quarter of 2025 real GDP up 6.3% year on year, led by services and agriculture. The cedi appreciated sharply, supported by policy tightening and improved reserves. Inflation eased to 11.5% in August 2025. The external position strengthened, with a current account surplus and rising reserves.
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Fiscal Adjustment and Future Prospects
Fiscal adjustment in 2025 aims for a 1.5% GDP primary surplus, with spending restraint and no new arrears. Financial soundness is broadly stable, though Non-Performing Loans remain high and with real private credit growth being negative. Output growth is projected to soften to 4.3% in 2025 as fiscal adjustment and global uncertainty weigh on demand. Medium-term prospects will be dependent on stabilization, reforms, and new oil production.
Lower inflation and increased growth in agriculture and services should reduce the Low- and Middle-Income poverty rate to 53.3% by 2025. Electrification rates have gradually increased over the past 20 years, with power now reaching over 85% of the population. Ghana relies on a diversified energy mix and hosts the largest hydropower project in West Africa. The country continues to upgrade its electricity transmission and distribution systems with assistance from a range of international development partners, with the goal of becoming a regional exporter of power. Ghana previously had excess power capacity, but that excess is diminishing.
Oil and gas production creates opportunities for auxiliary services. The mining sector, including gold, bauxite, manganese, diamonds, and salt is a major contributor to the Ghanaian economy. The Ghanaian government is strongly pursuing the expansion of local value-added processing.
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Key Sectors and Opportunities
Several sectors in Ghana offer promising opportunities for growth and investment:
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- Construction: The Ghanaian construction industry has proven to be resilient, especially commercial real estate, given Ghana’s strong population growth. Major construction activities include roads, highways and bridges, coastal works, and residential buildings. Developers’ ability to find appropriate financing is a key factor to success. Construction equipment, including re-conditioned equipment, is likely to continue to be a promising sub-sector.
- ICT Services and Digital Trade: These sectors are experiencing high growth, along with fintech, healthcare, and education.
- Mining: Ghana has an important role to play in global supply chain resilience as a source of bauxite, manganese, and lithium.
- E-waste Recycling: Ghana hosts a massive e-waste site with some private recycling that offers potential for e-waste recycling to obtain metals and critical minerals such as copper, nickel, indium, palladium, gallium, and tantalum.
African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)
Ghana is a member country of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement. The 54 countries participating in the AfCFTA - all countries on the African continent except for Eritrea - represent 1.3 billion people with an estimated combined GDP of $3.4 trillion.
By reducing barriers to trade and investment, the AfCFTA aims to integrate the signatories into a larger, more profitable regional market with greater economies of scale. The United States is not a party to the AfCFTA agreement. However, many of the reforms envisioned in this landmark regional integration effort will improve overall conditions for trade and investment in Africa.
Improved customs processes and procedures, the reduction of non-tariff barriers, more harmonized standards and certification procedures, and common rules for digital trade can ease the movement of goods, services, and digital trade in Africa. The AfCFTA Agreement phases out a web of 170 different intra-African Bilateral Investment Treaties by 2028 and creates a more harmonized framework for inward investment in AfCFTA member countries.
Trade Dynamics and Opportunities
AfCFTA member countries started reducing tariffs on their trade with one another in 2021 on a progressive basis. Actual trading under the AfCFTA started in 2022 by select countries that had finalized their tariff schedules. Investors and economic operators that grow, mine, or produce goods in member countries of the AfCFTA and that meet the product-specific rules of origin under the Goods Protocol should be able to take advantage of tariff preferences when exporting those goods to other AfCFTA markets.
In 2025, international companies established in member countries should start to gain a better sense of how these outcomes could impact their business. According to the report, Ghana's total exports to African countries climbed to $4.8 billion in 2024, up from $3.5 billion in 2023. This gave Ghana a 3.8% share of the continent's intra-African exports, ranking sixth behind countries such as South Africa, Nigeria, and Congo. Overall, Ghana's merchandise export earnings reached $19.68 billion in 2024, reflecting a robust 17% year-on-year growth.
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The report also highlighted Ghana's progress in diversifying its export base. While mineral fuels remain a major export, Ghana is steadily shifting towards higher value-added goods by investing in industrial value chains and logistics infrastructure. In West Africa, Côte d’Ivoire maintained its role as a regional trade hub, importing crude oil (mainly from Nigeria) and re-exporting refined petroleum products to countries like Ghana, Burkina Faso, and Mali. The report estimated West Africa’s unrealised intra-African export potential at $7.23 billion out of a possible $13 billion.
Globally, Africa’s share of world exports declined slightly from 3.5% in 2009 to 3.3% in 2024. The 2024 Afreximbank Trade Report casts Ghana as a key player in Africa's trade transformation.
Monetary Policy and Inflation
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) is expected to continue easing through the remainder of 2025 and into H1 2026. However, the cycle is expected to come to a halt in H2 2026 as inflationary pressures re-emerge, caused by the unwinding of favourable base effects and a more expansionary fiscal policy. Persistently high gold prices will continue to bolster the BoG’s reserves and its capacity to defend the currency.
Ghanaian inflation is expected to moderate over H2 2025, supported by a stronger exchange rate, muted global energy prices and fiscal tightening. The rapid disinflation process will allow the Bank of Ghana to pivot towards monetary easing by September and ease financial strain on households and businesses, aiding domestic demand.
Economic Forecasts
The 2025 real GDP growth forecast for Ghana has been revised up from 4.2% to 4.9%, following a stronger-than-expected Q1 outturn of 5.3% y-o-y, underpinned by improved agricultural outputs. Easing inflation-helped by a stronger exchange rate-will support growth over the remainder of the year, although fiscal consolidation, high interest rates, and plateauing oil production will cause the economy to slow from the robust 5.7% recorded in 2024. In 2026, growth is expected to remain robust at 5.0%, driven by lower inflation, monetary easing, and a likely uptick in public spending as Ghana’s IMF programme concludes.
Consumer and Retail Sector
Ghanaian household spending growth is expected to rise over 2025, as tailwinds mount. The recent strength of the cedi will help to cool inflationary pressures, reducing import costs but also giving the Bank of Ghana greater impetus to cut rates over H2 2025. Downsides will largely come from the considerable receding of purchasing power among households, and a more cautious spending approach over H1 2025 as consumer activity slows.
Trade and Investment
Despite the introduction of US tariffs, the 2025 economic growth forecast for Ghana has been maintained at 4.2%. The adverse impact from global trade tensions will be offset by the rise in gold prices, which will boost Ghana’s export earnings. Elevated gold prices, combined with lower energy costs, will drive the current account surplus to a record 6.9% of GDP in 2025. This will support foreign exchange reserves, help stabilise the currency and contribute to a downward trend in inflation over the coming months.
The National Democratic Congress's decisive victory in Ghana's December 2024 election will not shield the government from significant policy challenges in 2025. Fiscal consolidation efforts under Ghana's IMF programme will continue to put pressure on household finances and erode public support for the government, keeping protest activity high by historical standards. Meanwhile, USAID cuts will likely exacerbate public frustration over public service provision while the potential enactment of Ghana's controversial anti-LGBTQ+ bill threatens to increase macroeconomic uncertainty.
After a record surplus of 3.6% of GDP in 2024, Ghana’s current account balance will remain positive at 1.8% in 2025, supported by elevated global gold prices and a recovery in cocoa production. Meanwhile, primary income outflows will remain modest by historical standards following the restructuring of Ghana’s external debt in 2024. That said, current transfers will be hit by foreign aid cuts in the US-Ghana’s largest bilateral donor-weighing on the current account.
An improvement in Ghanaian household spending over 2025 is expected, as household rally from elevated inflation and cedi weakness. Following the presidential elections in December 2024, consumer activity is already beginning to rebound, and with cooler levels of price growth, greater cedi stability and a dovish approach from the Bank of Ghana, households will see a marked uptick in purchasing powers and will support a rebound in both essential and discretionary segments.
Demographics and Business Environment
Ghana is a country of 34 million people with a fast-growing, young, globally and digitally connected population. Fifty-six percent of Ghana’s population is under the age of 25. Beyond its traditional industries of agriculture, mining, and oil and gas production, Ghana’s digital, financial services, construction, education, and franchising sectors are growing fast.
Ghana’s Atlantic ports and daily direct flights from the United States make it an excellent platform for doing business in Africa. As the host to the new African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat, Ghana is at the heart of Africa’s transformative regional integration and can be a good place to launch your business strategy for the African continent.
The country’s capital, Accra, is a bustling metropolitan area that is home to roughly two million people. Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti Region north of Accra, is another large population center and an active commercial center with roughly the same population.
International visitors arriving by air will enter Accra through Kotoka International Airport. There are several business hotels in Accra. Restaurants offering Ghanaian cuisine as well as food from around the world are plentiful. Taxis are available at the airport and Uber and other ridesharing services are well established in the market. Money can be exchanged for Ghanaian Cedis at Kotoka International Airport or at hotels and at some banks. ATMs accepting international bank cards are plentiful in Ghana’s city centers. Kumasi offers a few hotels that meet international business standards; other locations offer several budget to mid-priced hotels.
Ghana enjoys a vibrant media, with more than 350 radio stations, 120 television operators, and 250 newspaper and magazine publications. Companies that can send a representative to visit Ghana and meet potential partners and make site visits will make a favorable impression on potential partners, and be more confident that the potential partners are themselves credible and suitable.
Cultural and Social Context
Ghana has a rich diversity of ethnic groups, each with its own unique culture and way of life. The major ethnic groups are Akans (45.7%), Mole Dagbon (18.5%), Ewe (12.8%), Ga-Dangme (7.1%), Gurma (6.4%), Guan (3.2%), Grusi (2.7%), Mandi (2.0%), and other (1.6%). Less than 1 % of the population is non-Ghanaian, and 90 % of that population comes from other ECOWAS countries.
The official language and the language of business is English, which is the primary medium of instruction in all schools. Ghanaians speak local languages, as well, and many are conversant in several.
Ghanaians are known to be very hospitable people. They are also very religious, with roughly 95% engaging in an organized religion. Approximately 71% of the population is Christian, 19% is Muslim, 5% adheres to indigenous or animistic religious beliefs, and the remaining 5% belongs to other religious groups or has no religious beliefs.
Traditional leaders such as chiefs and queen mothers continue to play an important role in many aspects of daily life, especially in terms of regulating social norms in rural areas and in controlling land and other natural resources. Companies may need to develop relationships with traditional leaders, particularly if they are pursuing large projects in the leader’s area of jurisdiction.
Economic Indicators and Challenges
Although there are occasional disagreements in rural areas among ethnic groups, mainly over land ownership or traditional leadership succession, Ghana has enjoyed peaceful transitions of government following elections for more than three decades. The government concluded a staff level agreement with the IMF for a $3 billion, 3-year Extended Credit Facility, which was approved by the IMF board in May 2023. In 2023, the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate reached 2.9%. GDP grew to 5.7% in 2024.
That year, approximately 47% of Ghana’s GDP was generated by the services sector, 31% by manufacturing/mining, and 22% by agriculture. In 2024, output in the services sector grew by 5.8%, while manufacturing and mining expanded by 9.3%. Services and agriculture employ 41 and 39% of Ghanaians, respectively. The economy remains highly dependent on the export of primary commodities such as gold, cocoa, and oil, and is vulnerable to slowdowns in the global economy and commodity price shocks. Other challenges to Ghana’s economy include access to foreign capital at an affordable rate, low internally generated government revenue, and inefficient state-owned enterprises.
The Ghanaian market, and its urban centers, are price sensitive. The United States exported $967 million in merchandise goods to Ghana in 2024. Ghana’s top global exports include cocoa, gold, and oil. Ghana’s top global export markets include Switzerland (gold and cocoa), United Arab Emirates (gold), South Africa (gold, oil, rubber), China (oil, manganese, aluminum), India (gold), Canada (oil and cocoa), Netherlands (cocoa, shea), Burkina Faso (various), Brazil (oil and cocoa), and the United States (cocoa, oil, rubber, lead).
Trade in Services
Ghana’s services imports and exports have grown exponentially in recent years. In 2020 (the latest year for which data is available), Ghana imported $12 billion in all types of services from the world and exported approximately $9 billion the same year. This growth is led by imports of business services, a category that includes computer and related services as well as architectural/engineering, legal, accountancy and advertising services.
Economic Diversification and Development
The economy of Ghana has a diverse and rich resource base, including the manufacturing and export of digital technology goods, automotive and ship construction and export, and the export of resources such as hydrocarbons and industrial minerals. The Ghanaian domestic economy in 2012 revolved around services, which accounted for 50% of GDP and employed 28% of the work force.
Ghana began its automotive industry with the construction of a prototype robust SUV, named the SMATI Turtle 1, intended for use in the rough African terrain. It was designed and manufactured by the Artisans of Suame Magazine Industrial Development Organization. Ghana became the largest gold-producing country in Africa after overtaking South Africa in 2019. The country is also the second-largest cocoa producer (after Ivory Coast). Ghana is rich in diamonds, manganese or manganese ore, bauxite, and oil.
Key Economic Indicators (1980-2023)
The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1980-2023.
| Year | GDP Growth (%) | Inflation Rate (%) | Current Account Balance (% of GDP) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | -6.1 | 50.1 | - |
| 1990 | 3.3 | 37.2 | - |
| 2000 | 3.7 | 40.4 | - |
| 2010 | 8.0 | 9.1 | - |
| 2020 | 0.9 | 10.4 | - |
| 2023 | 2.9 | - | - |
Trade Composition
Ghana's top export products in 2016 were crude petroleum ($2.66B), gold ($2.39B), cocoa beans ($2.27B), cocoa paste ($382M) and cocoa butter ($252M). Ghana's top import categories in 2016 were refined petroleum ($2.18B), crude petroleum ($546M), gold ($428M), rice ($328M) and packaged medicaments ($297M).
Financial Services and Stock Exchange
The financial services in Ghana have seen a lot of reforms in the past years. The Banking (Amendment) Act 2007 included the awarding of a general banking license to qualified banks, which allows only indigenous Ghana offshore banks to operate in Ghana. The Stock Exchange of Ghana is one of the largest in Africa, with a market capitalization of GH¢57.2 billion or CN¥180.4 billion in 2012.
Oil and Gas Discoveries
Ghana discovered significant reserves of oil and natural gas offshore throughout the 2000s and 2010s. The country officially became an oil & gas producer in 2010 with the commissioning of the Jubilee field by Tullow Oil and currently produces from three major offshore hubs: Jubilee, TEN, and OCTP. Ghana has 5 billion barrels (790×106 m3) to 7 billion barrels (1.1×109 m3) of petroleum in reserves.
Renewable Energy
Ghana has aggressively begun the construction of solar plants across its sun-rich land in an aim to become the first country to get 6% of its energy from solar energy generation. Ghana has Class 4-6 wind resources and high-wind locations, such as Nkwanta, the Accra Plains, and Kwahu and Gambaga mountains. The plan would support private sector investments in the cultivation of bio-fuel feedstock, the extraction of bio-oil, and refining it into secondary products, thereby creating financial and tax incentives.
Tourism
The Ministry of Tourism has placed great emphasis upon further tourism support and development. Tourism contributed to 4.9% of GDP in 2009, attracting around 500,000 visitors. In 2011, Forbes magazine ranked Ghana eleventh-friendliest country in the world. The assertion was based on a survey of a cross-section of travelers in 2010.
Vision 2020
The Ghana: Vision 2020 forecast assumes political stability; successful economic stabilization; the implementation of Ghana: Vision 2020 policy agenda on private sector growth; and aggressive public spending on social services, infrastructure and industrialization.
Challenges and Institutional Reforms
Despite significant economic progress, obstacles do remain. Particular institutions need reform, and property rights need improvement. The overall investment regime lacks market transparency. According to Transparency International's 2022 Corruption Perception Index, Ghana was ranked 72nd out of 180 countries.
Cybersecurity
In June 2012, the National Information Technology Agency announced a national computer emergency response team "strategy" designed to co-ordinate government response to cyber-attacks, both internal and external. The agency also established computer emergency response teams for each municipal, metropolitan, and district assembly to improve co-ordination and information-sharing on cyberspace threats. Ghana is ranked 2nd in Africa and 7th globally in cyber warfare, cyber-terrorism, cyber crime, and internet crime.
