Significant increases in the prices associated with food, transport and housing have pushed the national year-on-year inflation for March 2022 to 19.4 percent.

This is according to the latest data from the Ghana Statistical Service.

The rate is a 3.7 percentage points higher than the 15.7 percent recorded in February 2022.

The rise in the inflation rate for March 2022 is the highest recorded since the Ghana Statistical Service rebased the Consumer Price Index in August 2019.

Speaking at a press conference, the Government Statistician, Professor Samuel Annim highlighted the impact that the increases in core influencers had on the increase in the overall inflation rate for March 2022.

Food and Non-Food Inflation

According to the figures, food inflation recorded a rate of 22.4% in March 2022, compared to 17.4% in February 2022.

Non-food inflation however recorded a rate of 17.0% in March 2022, from 14.5% recorded in February 2022.

Transport including fuel recorded the highest inflation rate of 27.6%, followed by housing with an inflation rate of 21.4%.

Month-on-month inflation between February 2022 and March 2022 was 4.0%. However, on a month-on-month basis, food inflation exceeded non-food inflation by 0.8 percentage points.

Also, local inflation shot up to 20% in March 2022, as against 17.3% of imported goods or inflation.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures changes in the price of a fixed basket of goods and services purchased by households.

The assumption is that the basket is purchased each month; hence as price changes each month, the total price of the basket will also change. The rate of inflation is the relative change in CPI between periods.

Highlights of the report released by GSS:

1. Year-on-year inflation for March 2021 – March 2022 was 19.4%.

2. Month-on-month (February 2022 – March 2022) inflation was 4.0%.

3. Food inflation has extended its dominance over non-food (22.4% versus 17.0% respectively).

4. On a month-on-month basis food inflation exceeds non-food inflation by 0.8 percentage point (4.5% vs. 3.7%)

5. Transport (which includes fuel) recorded the highest inflation (27.6%) followed by Food and Housing (22.4% and 21.4% respectively)

6. Contribution of food and non-Alcoholic beverages to overall inflation increased by 2.0 percentage points this month from 49.4% in Feb. 2022 to 51.4% in Mar. 2022.

7. The gap between the inflation for locally produced items and imported items is retained

8. Brong Ahafo Region (23.1%) recorded the highest inflation and Upper East Region the lowest (12.5%)