Ghana’s inflation rate climbed to 3.4 percent in April 2026. This marks the first increase in the cost of living since December 2024. The rise is largely due to increasing costs in services and utilities.
Government Statistician, Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu, presented the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) data. He stated that prices are 3.4 percent higher than they were a year ago. Month-on-month inflation was 1 percent, showing a gradual price increase from March to April 2026. The CPI rose to 267.3 in April 2026 from 258.6 in April 2025.
This slight uptick fits into Ghana's broader economic narrative of managing price stability after significant inflation drops. Inflation sharply decreased by 17.8 percentage points compared to April last year. This indicates an overall environment of relative price stability in the past year. However, the rise signals potential new pressures following a period of decline.
Dr. Iddrisu noted the significance of this increase to The Ghanaian Chronicle. He explained, “This is the first increase since December 2024. So while inflation is rising slightly, it is still at a relatively low level compared to recent history.” This indicates a shift in the inflation trend that policymakers will closely monitor.
The increase implies that households may soon face higher expenses for basic services and essential goods. Businesses might also see increased operational costs. Policymakers will likely focus on interventions to manage these emerging price pressures. The Bank of Ghana will watch these trends for future monetary policy decisions.
A detailed breakdown of the data reveals that food inflation decreased marginally to 2.2 percent in April from 2.3 percent in March. This offered some relief to households. However, month-on-month figures show a 0.8 percent rise in food prices. This suggests renewed short-term pressures on food costs. While vegetables, plantains, and cereals became cheaper, ready-made food and fish saw high inflation rates of 10.1 percent and 11 percent respectively.
Non-food inflation, which excludes food and non-alcoholic beverages, increased to 4.2 percent from 3.9 percent. This was primarily driven by rising costs in services. Services inflation surged to 9.6 percent from 7.2 percent in March. This reflects increasing costs in transport, education, restaurants, and accommodation. Goods inflation, conversely, slowed to 1.1 percent from 1.7 percent. Goods make up nearly 75 percent of the consumer spending basket.
From a sectoral viewpoint, housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels remain the biggest contributor. They accounted for 37 percent of total inflation and recorded a 12.4 percent year-on-year inflation rate. Food and non-alcoholic beverages contributed 28 percent. Education services accounted for 15 percent of total inflation. Regional disparities also exist, with the North East Region recording the highest inflation at 9.5 percent. Greater Accra and Ashanti regions together drove over 70 percent of the national figure. Locally produced items saw a slight decline in inflation to 4.7 percent, while imported inflation rose to 0.5 percent.