The Expanding Middle Class of Ghana

An Expanding Middle Class Reshapes Ghana's Long-term Prospects

Ghana's expanding middle class is reshaping the nation's long-term economic prospects. Factors like education, economic growth, and urbanization drive this expansion, which supports economic diversification and non-traditional industries, such as retail and hospitality. The growing middle class also fuels demand for housing, boosting real estate development. However, challenges like high unemployment, income inequality, and inadequate credit access must be addressed to maximize Ghana's middle class potential and ensure sustainable growth across various sectors.

Key Takeaways

• As Ghana is a particularly price-sensitive market, the inflationary environment and subsequent decline in spending has especially affected certain goods.
• Ghana is a particularly price-sensitive market, the inflationary and decline in pending affects sectors like Luxury good and the food segment
• More than 50% of citizens are under the age of 25, providing a stream of tech-savvy and eager consumers to the potential retail market.
• The country already compares favourably with other African markets in terms of income levels
• Ghana is one of just six countries in sub-Saharan Africa in which the middle class – composed of individuals with a daily income of at least $8.44 – exceeds 1m people.
• supermarkets account for only 4% of total food sales, while small convenience stores make up 36% and traditional open-air markets 60%
• The IMF forecasts GDP growth of 5.9% for 2017 and 8.9% for 2018.

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