According to the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), the GDP expanded significantly by 4.2 percent in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same time in 2022.
The GSS data also showed a rise in the real GDP of the nation, which increased by 1.1% in the first quarter and broke the previous quarter’s record by 0.3 percentage points.
Prof. Samuel Kobina Annim, the government statistician, stressed that the agriculture and service sectors were principally responsible for the rise.
“The growth rate in the first quarter of 2023 was largely driven by the services sector, which displayed a strong increase of 10.1%.
This growth was predominantly influenced by the public administration sub-sector. Additionally, the agricultural sector experienced a growth rate of 4.8%,” Prof Annim explained.
He further highlighted the significance of specific sub-sectors within these industries.
“Within the services sector, public administration played a significant role, while in agriculture, the livestock sub-sector demonstrated the highest growth rate of 6.6%. It is important to note that although livestock exhibited the highest growth rate, the agricultural sector’s overall growth was also influenced by the positive performance of crops, including cocoa, which holds the largest share,” he elaborated.
Prof Annim emphasized the need to consider not only the main sectors but also the sub-sectors, such as public administration and livestock, as their contributions were instrumental in driving the overall growth rate.
