Ghana: World Bank cuts GDP growth expectations from 3.7% to 3.5% for 2022
Bretton Wood Institution the World Bank, has cut down GDP growth expectations for Ghana this year.
The World Bank in its latest 26th edition of the Africa Pulse Report, estimated Ghana’s GDP growth to slow to 3.5% this year, from the revised growth of 3.7%.
Accounting for the slowdown in GDP growth, the World Bank noted in its report, were the country’s rising public debt, elevated inflation and a depreciating cedi.
At the moment, Ghana’s public debt stands at 78% of GDP but is however projected to increase by some 26% rising to reach 104% of GDP by the end of the year according by Moody’s.
The country’s headline inflation continues to trend upwards hitting 33.9% in August this year.
The cedi has also lost some 40% in value in its year-to-date performance against the dollar.
Currently, the cedi is ranked as the world’s 147th worst currency, only behind Sri Lanka’s rupee.
On the continent, economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, the report further notes, is set to decelerate from 4.1% in 2021 to 3.3% in 2022, as a result of a slowdown in global growth, rising inflation exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, adverse weather conditions, a tightening in global financial conditions, and the rising risk of debt distress.
However, growth in GDP for Sub-Saharan Africa is anticipated to bounce back to 3.5% in 2023 and 3.9% in 2024.
