GHANA · ECONOMY

Ghana’s opposition says the 2027 growth target of 5.2 per cent is too low to create enough jobs.

Ghana’s opposition says the government’s 2027 growth target is too low to create the jobs young people need. The Minority caucus, the opposition group in Parliament, issued its criticism on Friday 13 November 2026, a day after the budget was presented.

The target is growth in real GDP, which means the economy’s output after prices are stripped out, of at least 5.2 per cent. For US readers the argument matters because it tests how fast Ghana can grow while it funds a US$10 billion spending plan.

What Happened

Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson presented Ghana’s 2027 Budget Statement in Parliament on Thursday 12 November 2026. It sets targets of real GDP growth of at least 5.2 per cent and non-oil real GDP growth, which leaves out the oil sector, of at least 5.7 per cent.

It also targets end-year inflation of 8 per cent, plus or minus 2 points, and a primary surplus of at least 0.5 per cent of GDP. The primary surplus is the budget balance before interest payments, and the plan calls for reserves of at least six months of import cover (how many months of imports the reserves can pay for).

The budget finances a US$10 billion New Economy Programme over 2027 to 2030 by cutting the primary surplus target by 1 percentage point of GDP. It also counts on raising 0.5 per cent of GDP from approved tax reforms and compliance, as set out in our report on the US$10 billion plan.

In 2027 the government will invest 1.5 per cent of GDP, GH¢30 billion (about US$2.6 billion at GH¢11.70 per US$, close of 13 November 2026), in the programme. The speech says the money will “expand businesses, increase exports and create jobs.”

A lorry station in Wa, a town in northern Ghana’s Upper West Region, in a file photo.

What Each Side Says

Dr Amin Adam, the MP for Karaga, a constituency in northern Ghana, and Ranking Member of Parliament’s Finance Committee, called the 5.2% target unambitious, in his own words “paltry”. He said it is a marginal rise on a 4.9 per cent baseline, so the programme adds just 0.3 percentage points.

“This is not realistic,” he said, adding: “It does not offer hope, as this paltry growth cannot provide the jobs the young people are looking for from this government.” He accused the minister of celebrating figures that point to slowing growth, which he called “mediocrity at its best.”

The Minority also says growth momentum weakened between the first halves of 2025 and 2026. It puts real GDP growth falling from 6.4 per cent to 6.2 per cent, and non-oil growth from 8.2 per cent to 5.9 per cent.

“Non-oil growth is where the jobs are created, i.e. manufacturing, agriculture, etc.,” Dr Adam said, and “this economy is not growing; it is sliding.” The government’s speech says the economy “continued to grow strongly” at 6.2 per cent by half year 2026 and describes the programme as creating jobs.

What the Budget Papers Show

Our check of the speech confirms the 2026 figures: real GDP growth of 6.2 per cent in the first half of 2026, against a 2026 target of 4.8 per cent. It also confirms non-oil growth of 5.9 per cent against a target of 4.9 per cent.

The budget speech does not state the 4.9% baseline that the Minority cites, and we have not seen the government document it may come from. It sets the 2026 targets at 4.8% for overall growth and 4.9% for non-oil growth, so against the overall target the 5.2% goal is 0.4 points higher.

The Minority’s 6.4% and 8.2% figures for the first half of 2025 are not in the speech. We could not confirm them against Ghana’s statistics office, so they stay attributed to the Minority.

The speech also puts headline inflation at 5.5 per cent in October 2026 and gross reserves at US$12.7 billion at end-September 2026, or 4.5 months of imports. Ghana’s central bank cut its policy rate from 21.5 per cent in September 2025 to 14.0 per cent in September 2026.

What Is Not Known

The speech gives no overall job-count target for the New Economy Programme, though it says the oil-palm plan could support more than 250,000 jobs and targets unemployment below 8 per cent by 2030. The 2025 comparison figures the Minority uses are also unconfirmed.

As of 13 November we found no direct government reply to the Minority’s statement. The government’s position here rests on the speech itself.

What It Means for You

For investors and readers in the United States, a 5.2% target sits above the 2026 target of 4.8%. It is also in line with the medium-term floor of at least 5.0 per cent growth for 2027 to 2030.

The dispute is about jobs and non-oil growth, not about a crisis. A survey that puts jobs first for the 2027 budget shows why that argument carries weight.

Inflation of 5.5 per cent and a falling policy rate frame the debate. More coverage is on the Ghana hub.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Ghana’s 2027 growth target?

Ghana targets real GDP growth of at least 5.2 per cent in 2027, according to the Finance Minister’s budget speech. The target for non-oil growth is at least 5.7 per cent.

Why does the opposition call the target low?

The Minority says it is a marginal rise on a 4.9 per cent baseline and cannot provide enough jobs. The budget speech does not state that baseline and sets the overall 2026 target at 4.8 per cent, 0.4 points below the 2027 goal.

What is the New Economy Programme?

It is a US$10 billion programme over 2027 to 2030 that the budget says will expand businesses, increase exports and create jobs. The government will invest GH¢30 billion (about US$2.6 billion) in it in 2027.

How fast did Ghana’s economy grow in 2026?

Real GDP grew 6.2 per cent in the first half of 2026, against a target of 4.8 per cent. Non-oil GDP grew 5.9 per cent against a target of 4.9 per cent.

Sources: Ministry of Finance, Ghana, 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy speech, 12 November 2026; Minority statements to the press, 13 November 2026; exchange rate: GH¢11.70 per US$, close of 13 November 2026.