Government Statistician Dr Alhassan Iddrisu has disclosed that charcoal has become the single largest contributor to inflation in Ghana, with prices increasing by more than 50% over the past year and placing additional pressure on household budgets.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express Business Edition on Thursday, Dr Iddrisu described Ghana’s recent inflation performance as a significant achievement but cautioned that challenges remain, particularly in the food sector.
“By all standards, this is a remarkable turnaround, and every Ghanaian should know this,” he said.
Despite the overall improvement in inflation figures, Dr Iddrisu noted that food inflation increased to 3.3% in May 2026 from 2.2% in April 2026.
“Food inflation rose to 3.3% year on year, up from 2.2% in April,” he stated.
He explained that food prices recorded one of their sharpest monthly increases in recent times, rising by 2% between April and May 2026.
“In fact, in just one month, that’s between April and May 2026, we saw food prices actually jumped 2%, and that’s one of the fastest we have seen in a single month in terms of price movements,” he said.
According to him, tomatoes were among the major contributors to the increase in food inflation. He revealed that tomato prices rose by 35.8% between May 2025 and May 2026 and surged by 38.8% within a single month.
“In fact, in just the month of May, which is between April and May 2026 alone, the prices of tomatoes actually jumped up 38.8%, so that’s a real supply shock,” he explained.
Dr Iddrisu attributed the spike to disruptions in tomato imports from Burkina Faso following attacks on Ghanaian traders and subsequent export restrictions imposed by the neighbouring country.
“As we all know, earlier this year, Ghanaian traders were attacked in Burkina Faso, and an export ban followed that disrupted tomato supply into our market. Even after the ban was reversed on April 2, the damage had already been done and prices had already spiked,” he said.
The Government Statistician, however, identified charcoal as the most significant contributor to inflation in the country.
“Charcoal prices rose by 50.1% over the year, meaning year on year, between May 2025 and May 2026, and charcoal is actually the single largest contributor to our national inflation,” he stated.
He disclosed that charcoal alone accounted for approximately 13.1% of Ghana’s total inflation rate in May 2026.
“And as we know, many Ghanaian homes still cook with charcoal, and when that cost goes up, everyone feels it,” Dr Iddrisu added.