By Jibril Abdul Mumuni
Accra, Aug. 15, GNA – Ghana’s agricultural growth slowed to 3.6 per cent in May 2026 from 9.8 per cent a year earlier, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) said.
The 6.2 percentage-point decline marked the largest slowdown among the major sectors of the economy, although agricultural activity remained higher than a year earlier.
The GSS, in its latest Monthly Indicator of Economic Growth (MIEG), said the agriculture index increased to 118.7 in May 2026 from 114.6 in May 2025.
The Service attributed the expansion mainly to activities in the crops and livestock subsectors.
The May performance indicated a moderation in the sector’s growth momentum after the relatively strong expansion recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.
The GSS said the high growth recorded in May 2025 provided a high base for comparison, adding that agricultural activity was highly seasonal and year-on-year comparisons offered a more reliable indication of underlying trends.
Despite the slowdown, the increase in the agriculture index showed that output continued to expand compared with a year earlier.
Agriculture is a major source of employment and income in Ghana and supplies raw materials to local industries while contributing to export earnings.
The GSS said sustained weakness in agricultural growth could have implications for food prices, rural incomes and export performance if the trend continued.
The latest performance comes as efforts to raise agricultural productivity focus on access to inputs, irrigation, mechanisation and storage facilities.
The MIEG is a monthly indicator developed by the GSS to provide an early indication of movements in economic activity ahead of the release of quarterly Gross Domestic Product statistics.
It is compiled from monthly production data and administrative records and adjusted to remove the effects of inflation.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey