Ghana’s Inflation Is in a Good Place Despite September Rise to 5.2% – BoG Research Director

The Bank of Ghana’s Director of Research, Dr. Philip Abradu-Otoo, has defended Ghana’s recent inflation performance, arguing that comparisons with other African economies must take into account differences in monetary policy frameworks and exchange-rate arrangements.

Ghana’s inflation rate increased to 5.2% in September 2026.

However, Dr. Abradu-Otoo maintained that the country’s performance should be assessed within the context of its inflation-targeting framework, which relies primarily on interest rates to manage price increases.

He explained that several sub-Saharan African countries, including some of Ghana’s neighbours in West Africa, operate currency regimes that peg their currencies to the euro.

According to him, such arrangements can help keep inflation relatively low by limiting exchange-rate fluctuations and influencing the cost of imported goods.

The Bank of Ghana official made the remarks at the launch of the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research’s (ISSER) State of the Ghanaian Economy Report 2025.

Despite the slight increase in inflation recorded in September, Dr. Abradu-Otoo described Ghana’s overall inflation performance as an improvement, suggesting that the country had made significant progress in managing price pressures.

He maintained that the current inflation figures represented a favourable position for the economy, although continued efforts would be necessary to sustain the gains.

Beyond inflation, the research director also addressed concerns about the recent decline in Ghana’s international reserves, attributing the development partly to disruptions in gold exports linked to the Middle East crisis.

He explained that interruptions to gold exports during the first seven months of the year had limited the accumulation of foreign reserves, requiring the central bank to draw on its existing holdings to support trade and broader economic activity.

However, Dr. Abradu-Otoo indicated that gold exports resumed in September, raising expectations that foreign reserve inflows would improve in the coming months and help restore reserves to normal levels by the end of the year.

He also offered an explanation for a slight increase in Ghana’s debt figures, attributing the change to exchange-rate movements rather than new government borrowing.

The Bank of Ghana official pointed to a reported 10.8% depreciation in the exchange rate since the beginning of the year, explaining that currency movements can affect the domestic-currency value of external debt even when no additional borrowing has occurred.

Source: https://www.citinewsroom.com/2026/10/ghanas-inflation-remains-in-very-good-territory-bog/

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