Ghana contends for fastest growing economy in the world– reports

Ghana is in contention to become the fastest growing economy in the world, the New York Times and Bloomberg have reported, quoting documents from the World Bank, African Development Bank, International Monetary Fund and the Brookings Institution.

President Nana Akufo-Addo in 2017 launched the ‘Planting for food and job’ programme to boost crop production and food security.

With a projected growth between 8.3 and 8.9 in 2018, the Times reports that Ghana “might outpace even India, with its booming tech sector, and Ethiopia, which over the last decade has been one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies thanks to expanding agricultural production and coffee exports.”

Despite the Ghana’s economic growth, the NYT claims growth in industries like finance and health care has also lagged, in part because government investment has been restricted over the last few years, in order to correct for years of overspending.

In January this year, the Ghana Stock Exchange Composite Index gained 19 percent in dollar terms, the most among benchmarks, according to Bloomberg.

President Nana Akufo-Addo last Tuesday during Ghana's 61st Independence parade hailed as remarkable Ghana's economic growth in the last one year.

He said: “Ghana’s economy has grown from 3.6 per cent in 2016, the lowest in 22 years, to 7.9 per cent in 2017, and this year it’s expected to grow at 8.3 per cent, which would make it the fastest growing economy in the world.

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“Inflation has gone down from 15.6 per cent at the end of 2016 to 10.3 per cent, as of January this year. Ghanaian industry has witnessed a spectacular revival from a growth rate of negative 0.5 per cent in 2016 to 17.7 per cent in 2017.

“Interest rates are on the decline, the cedi is stabilising, and the fiscal deficit has gone down from 9.3 per cent in 2016 to 5.6 per cent of Gross Domestic Product in 2017, with a projection of 4.5 per cent for 2018."

Ghana contends for fastest growing economy in the world– reports

Ghana is in contention to become the fastest growing economy in the world, the New York Times and Bloomberg have reported, quoting documents from the World Bank, African Development Bank, International Monetary Fund and the Brookings Institution.

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