The government has announced a major policy shift, committing direct national funds to undertake a comprehensive overhaul of its national statistics system.
Speaking at the 2025 Annual Forum for Data Producers, Users and Enhancers on Tuesday in Accra, the Deputy Minister for Finance, Thomas Nyarko Ampem, acknowledged Ghana’s significant strides in modernising its statistical system.
“These include West Africa’s first fully digital Population and Housing Census, the institutionalisation of high-frequency surveys, expanded enterprise and agricultural data, and the integration of geospatial and data-science methodologies. Digital dissemination tools such as StatsBank and the Ghana Stats App have also improved public access to official statistics,” he added.
He stated that despite these improvements, Ghana’s statistical ecosystem still confronts structural limitations, including excessive dependency on foreign funds, fragmentation of administrative databases among ministries and agencies, and poor interoperability.
Mr Ampem added that to address these bottlenecks, the upcoming National Strategy for the Development of Statistics III (2026-2030) and the Power of Data Initiative will provide a coordinated framework for long-term investment, innovation, and capacity development across the entire national statistical system.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to shifting from donor-reliant financing arrangements toward national ownership and sustainable investment.
The minister revealed that the 2026 Budget allocates GH¢207 million to priority statistical operations, including rebasing GDP and CPI, completing major national surveys and strengthening economic and price measurement systems.
Mr Ampem Nyarko called on development partners to maintain their support, but under stronger coordination and closer alignment with Ghana’s national priorities. To data producers, he urged continuous innovation and inter-institutional collaboration. To data users, including policymakers, researchers and journalists, he issued a challenge to “demand more data, use more data, and champion transparency and accountability.”
He also encouraged the private sector to seize emerging opportunities in the data economy, highlighting areas such as fintech, precision agriculture, satellite analytics and credit-scoring technologies.
Joyce Adwoa Animia Ocran, ISD
