By: Roselyn Ganyaglo
The Bank of Ghana (BoG) in its latest Monetary Policy Report disclosed that Ghana’s economy posted stronger than expected growth in the first quarter of 2024, with GDP increasing by 4.7 percent. This represents a significant improvement compared to the 3.1 percent growth recorded in Quarter 1 (Q1) last year.
The overall GDP growth projection for 2024 has also been revised upward to 3.1 percent, from an earlier estimate of 2.8 percent.
The growth according to the latest monetary policy report released by the Bank of Ghana was primarily driven by a robust recovery in the industry sector, which expanded by 6.8 percent after a 1.4 percent contraction in the same period last year.
The agriculture and services sectors also saw positive growth, with increases of 4.1 percent and 3.3 percent. It says recent indicators suggest a positive outlook for economic activity moving forward.
Meanwhile, there was significant growth in passenger arrivals and port activities in 2024. Passenger arrivals in Ghana rose by 12.7 percent year-on-year, reaching 98,205 in May 2024, up from 87,156 recorded in May 2023.
This also represents an 8.1 percent increase compared to April 2024.
The report shows Ghana’s ports also recorded improved international trade activity. Laden container traffic at Tema and Takoradi harbours increased by 9.4 percent year-on-year, with 59,639 containers handled in May 2024, compared to 54,538 in May 2023. Cumulatively, container traffic for the first five months of 2024 grew by 14.2 percent, reaching 284,745 containers.
