Ghana’s annual inflation rate climbed to 5.0% in August 2026, up from 4.6% in July, according to the latest data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).
The 0.4 percentage-point increase represents the second consecutive monthly rise in inflation, although the August rate remains below the 5.5% recorded in the same month last year.
Despite the increase in annual inflation, Government Statistician, Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu said the country continued to record significant progress in reducing price pressures.
“Overall, inflation has declined by more than half in 12 months, and on month-to-month basis, prices decreased 1% in August, the sharpest monthly fall of the year so far,” he said.
The latest figures show that non-food items remain the dominant source of inflationary pressure. Non-food inflation rose marginally from 6.7% in July to 6.8% in August and accounted for 70.9% of total inflation, compared with 29.1% for food.
Services inflation also increased from 8.5% to 8.6%, while goods inflation rose from 3.6% to 3.8%.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages inflation, however, eased slightly to 3.0% from 3.1% in July.
Fresh tomatoes recorded the sharpest year-on-year price increase, surging by 458.3% and contributing about 21.4% to total inflation. Ginger prices increased by 128.3%, while rents contributed 14.7%.
Other significant price increases were recorded for parking space and other services at 40.0%, fresh coconut at 38.0%, charcoal at 35.6% and fresh green pepper at 30.5%.
Housing, water and energy recorded inflation of about 10.2%, while transport inflation stood at 10.5%. Education services recorded 6.6% inflation, with clothing and footwear at about 8.0%.
The data also point to stronger domestic price pressures. Inflation for locally produced items increased from 5.9% in July to 6.1% in August, compared with 2.2% for imported items. Locally produced goods and services accounted for 86.2% of total inflation.
Regionally, the Central Region recorded the highest inflation at 11.1%, followed by Ashanti at 8.7%. Greater Accra matched the national rate at 5.0%, while Bono East recorded the lowest inflation at 3.3%.
The August figures come as Ghana continues its recovery from a severe economic crisis that pushed consumer inflation to 11.5% in August 2025.
The country’s economic outlook has also been supported by the completion of the International Monetary Fund’s final review of its $3 billion support programme in July, which unlocked about $371 million in funding.
However, the IMF has stressed the need for continued reforms and fiscal discipline, while the Bank of Ghana has maintained its focus on keeping inflation within its 6%-10% target range.
