- Population Growth
According to the World Bank, Ghana had an estimated population of 18.83 million in 2000, which has increased to an estimated 25.37 million in 2013. By 2050 the population is expected to increase to almost 40 million. Furthermore, between 2013 and 2050, Ghana’s active/working age population will grow from 56% of the country to 66%; a striking contrast to more mature developed countries whose populations are aging and moving into the dependent category, i.e. 65 years or older. Accordingly, expansion of the economically active population will lead to increased demand for goods and services.
2 .Decrease in Poverty
Poverty levels in Ghana are projected to fall to 20% of the population by 2020 from nearly 45% in the 1980s. In fact, Ghana’s GDP is growing even faster than its rapid rise in population.
- Ghana’s Exports
In 2011, the main contributors to Ghana’s export revenue continued to be cocoa and minerals (mainly gold). Cocoa exports increased by 25.6 percent reaching US$ 2,870.8 million. The increase in cocoa exports is mainly attributed to the increase in the volume of cocoa products exported. (This has increased in recent years and is expected to continue to increase in 2012 as the economy moves up the cocoa value chain).
4 .Ghana and EU Trade
Interim Economic Partnership Agreement (iEPA)
According to the EU, in late 2007 when the regional EPA with West Africa had not been concluded and the WTO-waiver for the ACP trade preferences was expiring, Ghana initialed an interim Economic Partnership Agreement (iEPA) with the EU which has, however, not yet been signed by the Government of Ghana. After the initialing of the iEPA in 2007, the EU afforded Ghana provisional duty-free-quota-free access to the EU market through market access regulation 1528/2007, which was subsequently amended in April 2013.
5 .Government policy continues to be the critical shaping force
As the factsheet delivered in the second quarter of 2014 demonstrates, the government still controls the ability to push GDP growth rates up and down quite rapidly. In other ongoing government initiatives, Ghana experienced three difficult years characterized by declining economic growth, increasing inflation rates, rising debt levels and financial vulnerabilities. In 2014 economic growth reached its lowest level in many years, with non-oil GDP growing at 4.1%, in the context of high interest rates, a fast depreciating currency, low aggregate demand and a deepening energy crisis.
- The Emerging Ghanaian middle class
Ghana gets ranked among those countries which are estimated to have the strongest middle classes in Sub-Sahara Africa. (AfDB 2011)
For 2020 it predicts a rise of that number up to 6.5%. Projections are made until 2030 where 11% of the population should be within the category of middle class.
- The Service and Industry Sectors
The Services Sector in Ghana is the largest sector, and has contributed about half, 49.5% of the country’s GDP in 2013 from 48.4% in 2012. However, the growth rate has reduced from 11.0% in 2012 to 8.9% in 2013. The Financial & insurance activities in Ghana as well as the Information& Communication activities recorded the highest growth rates of 23.2% and 24.7% respectively.
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