Ghana Cedi records first annual appreciation since redenomination, a milestone that signals a potential turning point in the local currency’s performance. Data from JoyNews Research indicates the Cedi has gained about 36% year-to-date against the U.S. dollar, compared with an average annual depreciation of 14.9% between 2008 and 2024.
Since the 2007 redenomination, during which four zeros were removed from the currency, the Cedi had never posted an annual gain against the dollar. The latest appreciation is being attributed to strong foreign-exchange inflows from gold and cocoa, improved fiscal management under the IMF Extended Credit Facility, and disciplined monetary policy.
Analysts say the performance has been aided by the old export-for-reserves initiative and aggressive interventions by the Bank of Ghana (BoG), which has deployed over US$10 billion in recent years to buttress the currency. Although risks remain, the achievement is being seen as an anchor of renewed confidence.
The Cedi’s appreciation has broader implications: it could reduce import costs, ease inflation pressure, improve external debt metrics and boost Ghana’s credit outlook. With international reserves nearing five months of import cover, the BoG Governor said the institution aims to make the Cedi the “currency of choice” while continuing to tackle dollarisation.
However, specialists caution that sustaining the gain will depend on consistent reforms—especially improving export diversification, managing fiscal deficits and reducing reliance on raw-commodity inflows. Without those structural supports, the current upward trend could be reversed.
If the year closes with a net appreciation, 2025 will mark a historic milestone for Ghana’s post-redenomination era. The result may not only reinforce monetary stability but also reshape investor sentiment and the country’s economic trajectory.
#Vitus@GTS
