Ghana’s public debt jumps GH¢13.1bn in two months; As BoG exposes gov’t no borrowing claim

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has revealed that Ghana’s public debt stock rose by GH¢13.1 billion between May and July 2026, a finding that exposes the government’s repeated claim that it has not borrowed.

According to the central bank’s latest economic and financial data for September 2026, total public debt climbed from GH¢720.8 billion in May to GH¢733.9 billion in July.

The figures place the government’s borrowing activities under fresh scrutiny, especially as the increase occurred despite official assurances that no new debt had been contracted.

A brief dip, a sharp climb
The debt trajectory was not a straight line. In June, the stock fell marginally to GH¢719.5 billion, offering a brief moment of fiscal relief.

That respite, however, was short-lived. By July, the debt had risen sharply to GH¢733.9 billion, wiping out the June decline and pushing the total obligation significantly higher.

Different story
In dollar terms, the picture was more stable. The debt stock moved from US$63.4 billion in June, before easing to US$62.8 billion in July.

The relative stability in the dollar valuation suggests that while the cedi value of the debt has grown, external factors and exchange-rate movements have shaped the overall burden.

Domestic borrowing drives surge
A closer look at the data shows that the recent increase was driven primarily by domestic debt. Domestic debt rose from GH¢379.1 billion in May to GH¢396.7 billion in July, an increase of GH¢17.6 billion over the two-month period.

This sharp rise in local borrowing accounts for the bulk of the overall debt accumulation.

External debt eases slightly
External debt, by contrast, remained relatively contained. In dollar terms, it declined marginally from US$28.8 billion. In cedi terms, it fell from about GH¢341.7 billion to GH¢337.2 billion.

The decline suggests that while the government has been active in the domestic market, it has been more restrained in accumulating foreign liabilities.

Debt-to-GDP picture
The figures put total public debt at about 45.9% of GDP, with domestic debt accounting for approximately 24.8% of GDP. This provides a broader measure of the country’s indebtedness relative to the size of the economy.