Rising inflation needs inter-Ministerial collaboration – Govt Statistician

The Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has called for a collaborative, cross-sectoral approach to tackling inflation, emphasizing that it should not be seen as solely the responsibility of the Bank of Ghana (BoG).

Instead, the GSS urged the inclusion of all government ministries in addressing the issue.

Historically, the BoG has relied on monetary policy to control inflation, including record-high interest rates in 2022.

In September 2024, the Bank reduced its monetary policy rate to 27%, marking its second rate cut since 2021. This move aimed to provide relief to borrowers and signalled easing inflationary pressures.

Prior to that, the policy rate had been held at 29% for nine months after a reduction from 30% in January 2024.

Despite these measures, recent data from the GSS indicates that the government missed its end-of-year inflation target of 15%.

Inflation climbed for the fourth consecutive month, reaching 23.8% in December 2024, up from 23.0% in November. The rise was largely attributed to surging food prices.

The GSS reiterated the need for coordinated efforts across various sectors to address the underlying causes of inflation and ensure sustainable economic stability.

“We definitely need to move the conversation away from a Central Bank’s responsibility alone. We need to tackle inflation at least from two perspectives. Every sector ministry we talk about in our release should be responsible.

“Our conversation focuses on the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. But, if you look at the items – transport, housing, water, electricity and gas are dominant divisions. These ministries should be part of the conversation in driving down the rate of inflation,” Government Statistician, Professor Samuel Kobina Annim said.

For him, a coordinated and multi-ministerial effort is key to tackling inflation effectively.

“It will be a challenge speaking directly to what different state institutions should be doing differently. Especially, when you don’t know the details of what they are doing, apart from what you are told or you read.

“On the back of this, it will be important we step back and look at how Ghana Statistical Service is promoting the granular data from the headline figure. So we are calling for an inter-ministerial engagement if we want to bring down the rate of inflation”, Prof. Annim added.