AfDB: Ghana’s economy grows 3.6% in 2022; weighed down by macroeconomic imbalances
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has reported that Ghana’s economy expanded by 3.6% in 2022, a slight decrease from 5.4% in 2021.
This is slightly lower than the 3.7% forecast by the Government of Ghana and 3.8% by the World Bank.
The AfDB attributes the decrease in growth to deep macroeconomic imbalances, including higher inflation, a depreciating local currency, and high public debt, which is estimated to be 91% of Gross Domestic Product.
In its latest 2023 Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook Report, the AfDB highlighted that the top growth performers in 2022 were Seychelles (8.3%), Rwanda (6.9%), and Kenya (5.5%).
The report also noted that average growth in oil-exporting countries declined marginally to an estimated 4.0% in 2022 from 4.2% in 2021, largely reflecting the sharp decline in Libya and weaker growth in Nigeria.
The bank projects a growth rate of 3.3% for the Ghanaian economy in 2023, which is higher than the Government of Ghana’s forecast of 2.8%, the World Bank’s 2.7% and the International Monetary Fund’s 2.8%.
It is worth noting that the growth projection for 2023 is still subject to considerable uncertainty, and it depends on the government’s ability to address the deep macroeconomic imbalances.
