The Ministry of Finance has noted that it has commenced the process of developing the 2026-2029 Budget Statement and Economic Policy to be presented to Parliament on November 15.

The ministry is requesting inputs from the general public for consideration into the 2026-2029 National Budget.

The inputs are to be submitted electronically to bdru@mofep.gov.gh by close of business on Friday, 29th August, 2025.

This call is in line with Government's responsiveness to the needs of the Ghanaian citizenry to deepen citizens' participation in the budget process as well as implement inclusive policies.

The Ministry of Finance expressed its appreciation to the Business Associations, Recognized Professional Bodies, Financial Institutions, Civil Society Organizations, Faith Based Organizations and the general public for their invaluable contributions to the development of the National Budget over the years.

Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson last month revealed that the Mahama-led administration will present its 2026 budget and economic statement to Parliament in October 2025, instead of November 2025.

He noted that the timeline for the presentation of the budget will aid thorough deliberation, allowing room for alterations before the budget comes into force from the beginning of 2026.

“We are aiming to present the 2026 budget to Parliament by the end of October 2025. Preparations are already underway. We want to avoid the delays and uncertainties of the past. This government is committed to proper planning and transparency,” he disclosed during an appearance on a special edition of PM EXPRESS with host Evans Mensah on July 24.

The Finance Minister explained that this should also help government programmes and initiatives to fully take off immediately from the beginning of next year. The presentation of the year ahead’s budget is per the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921) of Ghana, which was passed by Parliament and assented to on August 25, 2016, and it governs how public funds are managed across all government entities.

The Act mandates that the Finance Minister, acting on behalf of the President, lay before Parliament, not later than the 15th of November of each financial year, estimates of the revenues and expenditures of the government.

When asked about the government’s review of the 2025 budget targets, Dr Forson, without mincing words, outrightly warned that the government wants to tread cautiously. “We want to remain cautiously optimistic rather than behave that we have gotten there. We have not gotten out of the woods yet,” Dr. Forson added.

He was, however, optimistic that Ghana would now achieve the 11.9% inflation target before the end of this year. “I am of the firm belief that by the end of the year, we will be entering single digits—for a reason. Based on the trajectory, we are now at 13.7%. The Producer Price Inflation, for example, moved from 10-point-something to 5.9% last month. And based on that, I expect that next month inflation will go down, and if it does, then I believe that by the end of December, we should be able to achieve that.” Dr Forson said.

Concerning growth and other indicators, he insisted that the government will stick to what was announced earlier this year. “We are not changing course. The growth target, the fiscal deficit, the inflation target—all of it remains as announced in the 2025 Budget. We are sticking to it.” “The economy is responding well. We’ve seen 5.3% GDP growth in Q1, inflation is falling, and the cedi is stable. So there’s no need to revise the framework.”

His comments come a few weeks after the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) announced the sixth consecutive reduction in the inflation rate this year so far. According to GSS, as of June, the country recorded a 13.7 percent rate, a 4.7 percent decline from the 18.4 percent rate reported in May. This is also the lowest rate recorded since February 2022. Government Statistician, Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu, following data released on July 2, noted that the reduction in rate was due to the decline in prices of foodstuffs and items.

"The downward inflationary trend over the last 6 months provides some consistency and assurance of a real, sustained shift in prices," Dr Alhassan said. Due to the appreciation of the cedi, the prices of goods and services have seen a relative decline. Food inflation fell by 6.5 percentage points to 16.3 percent, down from 22.8 percent in May, whereas non-food inflation dropped by 3 percentage points to 11.4 percent.

Ghana ended the year 2024 with 23.8% inflation. In January 2025, inflation slightly declined to 23.5%. And since then, it has continued to ease. In February, inflation declined to 23.1%; it saw another decrease in March to 22.4% and declined again in April to 21.2%.

With the 2025 macroeconomic targets being real GDP growth of at least 4.0%, non-oil real GDP growth of at least 4.8%, an end-year inflation rate of 11.9%, a primary balance on a commitment basis at a surplus of 1.5% of GDP, and gross international reserves covering not less than three months of imports, the Finance Minister noted that “the first half of 2025 has demonstrated the government's commitment to recovery.”

He noted that the government does not intend to just run the economy but to make the necessary changes and effect lasting growth. “This government did not come to simply manage the decline. We came to reverse it and reset our country. The signs of recovery are obvious, evident, noticeable, visible, tangible and being felt” he noted.

The minister’s appearance on JoyNews was after he had presented the 2025 Midyear Budget Review on the floor of Parliament earlier on July 24. The presentation of the budget is by Section 28 of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921), to inform the country on its economic performance and fiscal strategy halfway through the year.

The Ghana cedi, the minister noted, had seen a remarkable appreciation against major trading currencies worldwide over the past six months. During the presentation of the 2025 Mid-Year Fiscal Policy Review on July 24, the Minister revealed that the cedi has recorded a remarkable turnaround in the first six months of 2025, appreciating by 42.6% against the US dollar.

Dr Forson described the cedi’s performance as “impressive” and the first of its kind in the history of Ghana’s economy. The cedi, which was initially always experiencing depreciation, is currently showing resilience against the dollar. He noted that the cedi, which was previously trading at about GH¢17.0 to the US dollar, had strengthened to GH¢10.4 as of July 23.

“Mr. Speaker, the cedi’s performance in the first half of this year has been impressive! The Ghana cedi experienced significant appreciation against all major trading currencies in the first six months of 2025. I am happy to inform the House that our precious cedi, which once upon a time was trading at about GH¢17.0 to the US dollar, was trading at about GH¢10.4 as of yesterday, 23rd July, 2025,” he revealed.

In high spirits, the minister adopted the catchphrase from Ghanaian highlife musician King Paluta’s energetic party anthem “For the Popping (Apicki),” released on December 27, 2024, and said, “This level of appreciation of the Ghana cedi has never happened in the history of our nation. Ghanafo, cedi no apicki! Apicki apicki apicki!”

He continued that the strength of the cedi has not appreciated against just the US dollar but against the British pound as well. The cedi also gained 30.3% against the British pound and 25.6% against the euro during the same period. This marks a sharp contrast to the same period in 2024, when the cedi depreciated by 18.6% against the dollar, 17.9% against the pound, and 16.0% against the euro.

“Similarly, the cedi, which was once trading at GH¢21.0 to the Great British Pound, was trading at about GH¢14.1 as of yesterday, 23rd July, 2025. Mr. Speaker, as of end-June 2025, the cedi appreciated by 42.6% against the US dollar, 30.3% against the British pound, and 25.6% against the euro,” he added.

With these gains over the past few months, Dr Cassiel stated that all the losses in the previous years had been reversed. “Mr. Speaker, I repeat, so far, we have almost reversed all the cedi depreciation in 2022, 2023, and 2024,” he mentioned.