Ghana’s inflation climbs for 2nd month straight to 3.7% in May, driven by food prices
For the second month running, Ghana’s headline inflation rate is heading up. New data from the Ghana Statistical Service shows inflation hit 3.7% in May 2026. That’s a 0.3 percentage point jump from the 3.4% recorded in April 2026.A deeper look at the market basket makes one thing clear: food is the main reason for the rise.
Food flips the script
April’s inflation story was about fuel and utility bills pushing prices up, while food actually gave consumers some breathing space. May 2026 flipped that script completely.
Food inflation accelerated sharply to 3.3% year-on-year in May, up from 2.2% in April. On a monthly basis, food prices alone jumped 2.0% between April and May.
Non-food items told a different story. Inflation for non-food goods and services actually eased slightly, dropping to 4.1% in May from 4.2% the previous month. So, while fuel, transport and manufactured goods cooled off, what’s on the dinner table got more expensive.
What’s making food expensive?
GSS data points to supply problems and a few “outlier” items dragging the whole food index up. These are the biggest drivers for May 2026:1. Tomatoes – The biggest shock. Fresh tomatoes spiked 38.8% month-on-month in May. That pushed their year-on-year inflation rate to 35.8%. If you’ve been to the market, you’ve felt this one.2. Ginger – Still red hot. Ginger’s year-on-year inflation sped up from 68.4% in April to 78.0% in May. 3.
Fruits and staples – Mangoes rose 61.9% year-on-year. Green plantain also climbed, hitting 47.6% year-on-year inflation compared to 37.0% in April.4. Seafood and proteins – Shrimps came in at 47.2% year-on-year. Dried fish like koobi/momoni hit 40.1%.5. Cashew and coconuts – Cashews recorded 40.0% inflation while coconuts stood at 37.2% year-on-year.
Why are prices spiking?
GSS and recent economic trends blame a mix of structural issues and supply chain breakdowns: Local supply gaps + transport costs – Prices aren’t rising evenly across the country. GSS says differences in local supply, poor market access, and high transport costs are creating big regional gaps. The North East Region recorded 10.1% inflation, while Savannah Region actually saw deflation of -3.0%.
Cross-border trade problems – That 38.8% monthly jump in tomato prices didn’t happen in isolation. It’s an escalation of the supply chain bottlenecks and cross-border disruptions that started pushing tomato prices up in April. When trucks can’t move produce easily across borders, markets feel it within weeks.
Farm-level challenges – Crops like ginger and green plantain keep getting hit by deeper agricultural problems. These include huge post-harvest losses because storage facilities are inadequate, poor rural roads, and low mechanization for smallholder farmers. When food rots before it reaches the market, less supply means higher prices.
The bottom line
The national 3.7% figure is an average, and averages can hide reality. If your household depends on tomatoes, plantains, dried fish, and ginger for daily meals, your personal inflation rate is way higher than 3.7%. For many Ghanaian homes, the cost of living in May felt heavier than the official number suggests.
This month’s data makes one point clear: macro stability depends on fixing micro problems. Until Ghana tackles storage, transport costs, and cross-border trade bottlenecks in agriculture, food prices will keep swinging. And when food swings, inflation follows.
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