KEY POINTS
- Ghana cedi is the world’s best-performing currency.
- Inflation has dropped to 13.7 percent in 2025.
- Ghana offers duty-free access to 50 African markets.
President John Mahama told Japanese investors that Ghana’s currency has outpaced every rival worldwide this year, signaling a sharp reversal from its troubled past and underscoring the country’s broader economic turnaround.
Speaking at the Ghana Presidential Investment Forum on the sidelines of TICAD IX in Tokyo, Mahama said the Ghanaian cedi — once derided as Africa’s most volatile — has now become the world’s best-performing currency.
He pointed to falling inflation, sovereign credit upgrades and business-friendly reforms as evidence of new macroeconomic stability.
Ghana cedi named best-performing currency
Mahama said inflation, which spiked at nearly 23 percent in 2024, has cooled to 13.7 percent and could hit single digits by year-end. Ghana has also regained investor confidence with a ratings upgrade from junk status to B minus.
He framed Ghana as a safe, democratic and competitive entry point into West Africa, particularly as host of the African Continental Free Trade Area, which allows duty-free trade across 50 markets. Japanese investors, he noted, could tap into a consumer base of 1.4 billion people.
Ghana cedi fuels opportunities for growth
Mahama said reforms to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre Act will cut barriers for foreign investors, lowering capital requirements to as little as $50,000. He also pitched opportunities in automobile assembly, agribusiness, manufacturing, energy and the fast-growing digital economy.
Highlighting Ghana’s young, English-speaking workforce and ongoing plans for large-scale agro-processing along the Volta Economic Corridor, Mahama urged Japan to align its industrial strength with Ghana’s untapped potential.
“Africa is the next frontier for investment,” he said. “Let us marry Japanese position with Ghanaian potential and create a win-win situation.”
