RACING TO RESCUE GHANA FROM ECONOMIC DOWNTURN: POST COVID 19 AND MATTERS ARISING

The report details Ghana's economic crisis in 2022, characterized by credit rating downgrades from Moody's, S&P, and Fitch, and a sharp depreciation of the cedi. It identifies the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2017 banking sector clean-up, and the Russia-Ukraine war as primary drivers, with the latter specifically impacting fertilizer costs and agriculture. Inflation rose to 31.7% by July 2022, driven by imported inflation and rising food prices. The government responded with policy rate hikes by the Bank of Ghana, increasing the rate from 14.5% in January to 22% by August 2022, and attempted to curb forex irregularities. However, the report notes skepticism regarding these measures, emphasizing the need for expenditure cuts and anti-corruption efforts to restore stability.

• Major international credit rating agencies, including Moody's, S&P, and Fitch, have downgraded Ghana's credit ratings, which has contributed to the country being locked out of the Eurobond market.
• The Ghanaian government attributes the economic crisis to three main factors: the 2017 banking sector clean-up, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russia-Ukraine war, with the war cited as the primary factor hindering recovery.
• The Ghana cedi experienced significant depreciation in early 2022, with official Ministry of Finance figures showing a 15.6% drop against the US dollar, 13.6% against the euro, and 13.1% against the British pound by the end of the first quarter.
• Inflation in Ghana rose sharply in 2022, starting at 13.9% in January and reaching 31.7% by the end of July 2022, with food-price inflation reaching 32.3% in the same period.
• The Bank of Ghana implemented a series of policy rate hikes throughout 2022 to combat cedi depreciation and excess liquidity, raising the rate from 14.5% on January 31 to 22% by August 17.
• The Russia-Ukraine war has severely impacted Ghana's agricultural sector by causing a shortage and a price increase of inorganic fertilizers, with prices rising nearly 400% from 350 to 1200 per tonne by the end of the first quarter.
• Fuel prices in Ghana increased significantly in 2022, with Petrol XP rising 67.67% and diesel XP rising 102.4% from their January 5 levels, driven by cedi depreciation, global crude prices, and a tax build-up estimated at 29%.

APA

Good Governance Africa (n.d.). RACING TO RESCUE GHANA FROM ECONOMIC DOWNTURN: POST COVID 19 AND MATTERS ARISING. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2022/08/Economic-downturn-in-Ghana.pdf

Chicago

Good Governance Africa. RACING TO RESCUE GHANA FROM ECONOMIC DOWNTURN: POST COVID 19 AND MATTERS ARISING. n.d. https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2022/08/Economic-downturn-in-Ghana.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Good Governance Africa |title=RACING TO RESCUE GHANA FROM ECONOMIC DOWNTURN: POST COVID 19 AND MATTERS ARISING |url=https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2022/08/Economic-downturn-in-Ghana.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{goodgovernanceafricandracing, author = {{Good Governance Africa}}, title = {{RACING TO RESCUE GHANA FROM ECONOMIC DOWNTURN: POST COVID 19 AND MATTERS ARISING}}, institution = {Good Governance Africa}, url = {https://digitalmallblobstorage.blob.core.windows.net/wp-content/2022/08/Economic-downturn-in-Ghana.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }