Ghana’s economy including oil and gas grew by 3.3 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared with the 3.6 per cent in the same period last year.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimated at current prices for the first quarter this year stood at GH¢139, 390.0 million compared with GH¢115, 691.6 million in the same period last year.
Without oil and gas, the economy grew at 3.7 per cent in the first quarter of this year relative to the 5.3 per cent in the same period last year and the estimate current prices for the Non-oil GDP in the first quarter stood at GH¢131, 025.2 million compared to GH¢111, 691.6 million in the same period last year.
Government Statistician, Professor Samuel K. Annim, who disclosed this in Accra yesterday, said the first quarter growth was the lowest since the economy recovered in 2021.
The economy last year grew by 5.4 per cent from 0.4 per cent in 2020 and on quarterly the economy last year grew at 3.6 per cent, 4.2 per cent, 6.5 per cent and 7.0 per cent in first, second, third and further quarter respectively last year.
Prof. Annim said the first quarter growth rate was driven by the services and agriculture services.
“The Services sector continues to be the largest sector of the Ghanaian economy in the first quarter of the year with a share of 45 per cent of GDP at basic prices,” he said.
He said the growth in the services sector was influenced by information and communication which expanded by 26.6 per cent and water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities which rose by 25.5 per cent.
Prof. Annim said seven sub-sectors contracted in first quarter of the year which weighed down the country’s growth.
He mentioned them as Professional, Administrative and Support Service activities which contracted by 12.8 per cent, Public Administration, Defense and Social Security 9.8 per cent, Real Estate 2.6 per cent, Construction 2.6 per cent, Education 2.0 per cent , Health and Social Work 1.0 and Forestry and Logging 0.1 per cent.
Prof. Annim said on the year-on-year growth rates, agriculture grew the highest at 5.6 per cent, driven by fishing, livestock and crops which grew at 26.2 per cent, 5.5 per cent, and 5.2 per cent respectively and forestry and logging dwindling by 0.5 per cent.
He said services sector grew by 3.7 per cent, influenced largely by information and communication 26.6 per cent, transport and storage 6.4 per cent and hotels and restaurants at 5.3 per cent and finance and insurance 4.2 per cent.
Prof. Annim said industry grew the least at 1.3 per cent on the back of construction which fell by 2.6 per cent and Water Supply, Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation Activities expanding at 25.4 per cent, Electricity 15.9 per cent, manufacturing 2.1 per cent and mining and quarrying 0.6 per cent.
On quarter-on-quarter grow rates (January to March), the Government Statistician said agriculture led the country’s growth, followed by services at 1.0 per cent and industry at 0.4 per cent.
The drivers of the agriculture growth in the first quarter was fishing (4.7 per cent) crops and cocoa (1.5 per cent) and Livestock (1.3 per cent), while Information and Communication (5.6 per cent) Hotel and Restaurants (2.5 per cent) and Transport and Storage drove the services growth quarter-on-quarter, and Water, Supply, Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation Activities at 5.3 per cent, and Electricity 3.8 per cent driving the growth of industry quarter-on-quarter.
BY KINGSLEY ASARE
