Ghana Rides Cocoa and Gold Surge: Following the recovery of its cocoa and gold industries from contractions, Ghana’s GDP grew at its quickest rate since the third quarter of last year.
Alhassan Iddrisu, the government statistician, told reporters in Accra, the capital, on Wednesday that the gross domestic product increased by 5.3% annually in the three months ending in March, as opposed to 3.6% in the previous quarter.
President John Mahama, who won the December elections on a platform of reviving an economy beset by high inflation, a damaged currency, and a 2022 debt default, will cheer the figures.
Amid growing worldwide unpredictability and a sharp increase in the price of the beans needed to manufacture chocolate due to shortages, Africa’s greatest producer of gold and the world’s second-largest supplier of cocoa has profited from a boom in demand for the metal.
In the first four months of the year, cocoa shipments more than tripled to $1.8 billion, and gold exports increased 76% to $5.2 billion, strengthening the cedi and the country’s foreign reserves. It is now the best-performing currency in the world after rising 43% against the dollar this year.
Due to a rise in gold production, the industry sector, which includes mining, expanded 3.4% in the first quarter after growing 0.2% in the previous three months. After declining 2.2% in the previous quarter, gold increased 5.6%.
The agriculture sector, which employs over 40% of the workforce in the West African country, benefited from the cocoa sector’s 3.4% expansion after six quarters of contraction.
It grew 6.6% during that time, up from 2.9% during the previous three months. According to Iddrisu, the services sector grew 5.9% from 6.3% in the fourth quarter.
The stronger cedi, which has helped control inflation, is probably going to keep helping the economy. In May, it dropped from 21.2% to a three-year low of 18.4%, giving the central bank the opportunity to start lowering interest rates, which would encourage consumer spending.
In 2025, Ghana’s Cedi emerges as the top-performing currency globally.
Ghana’s cedi is the currency that has performed the best globally this year, having increased by almost 50% compared to the US dollar in 2025.
The value of the currency increased gradually from ₵15 to the dollar at the beginning of the year to ₵10.21 in early June.
Tighter monetary policy, record gold export profits, and higher investor mood are the main drivers of the gain.
According to Bloomberg data, Ghana’s cedi is the currency that has performed the best globally this year, having increased by almost 50% compared to the US dollar in 2025. The value of the currency increased gradually from ₵15 to the dollar at the beginning of the year to ₵10.21 by early June.
