President John Dramani Mahama says his administration has restored macroeconomic stability, significantly reduced inflation and strengthened the Ghana cedi within its first year in office.
According to the President, his administration did not “arrest” the United States Dollar, but has rather strengthened the Ghana Cedi against other currencies.
Delivering the State of the Nation Address (SONA) in Parliament on February 27, President Mahama said the most difficult challenge inherited by his government was soaring inflation that was eroding household incomes.
“The heaviest burden we inherited was a very high inflation rate which was slightly, silently eroding every households purchasing power. It peaked at 54.1% at the end of 2022 and it declined to 23.5% at the end of 2024. We treated this with urgency. Through fiscal consolidation, currency stabilization and disciplined monetary policy, inflation fell from 23.5% at the end of 2024 to 3.8% over 13 consecutive months by January 2026.”
He added that food inflation, which had largely driven price increases, also recorded a sharp decline.
“Food inflation, which had been the main driver of the upward pressure in inflation fell by 26.6 percentage points. Inflation for locally produced goods fell by 22.6 percentage points.”
According to him, the improvements are not merely statistical gains but have direct impact on households and businesses.
“This translates into the reality of a parent being able to put food in the table for their children. It translates into the reality of businesses thriving and creating opportunities for Ghanas young people.”
President Mahama further indicated that fuel prices have also reduced significantly.
“Petrol prices dropped from 15.2 Ghana cedis to 10.7 cedis per litre, and only recently it dipped below the 10 cedi mark to 9.97. Diesel fell from 15.4 to 11.3.”
He then touched on exchange rate stability, which he noted was prioritised as part of broader economic reforms.
“Exchange rate volatility has long been on the hearts of hardship in Ghanaian households. We made currency stability a priority, and Mr. Speaker, we have delivered.”
He stressed that the cedi’s performance was achieved through policy discipline, not artificial controls.
“We did not arrest the dollar, we strengthened the Cedi to put up a good fight against the other currencies,” Mahama declared.
He added, “I’m pleased to report to this house that the Cedi appreciated by 40.7% against the US Dollar, and 30.9% against the British pound, and 24% against the Euro.”
The President said Ghana’s economic turnaround is broad-based, noting that all sectors of the economy have witnessed improvement in the first year of the National Democratic Congress administration.
