Ghana Cedi Falls to Africa's Worst-Performing Currency in Africa For 2026 Second Quarter

• The World Bank's October 2026 Africa Economic Update identified the Ghana cedi as the weakest currency on the continent
• The cedi lost nearly 10% of its value against the US dollar between March and June 2026, outpacing declines across 21 other monitored African currencies
• The World Bank linked the depreciation to the escalating Middle East conflict, rising oil prices, and existing domestic vulnerabilities in affected economies

The Ghana cedi recorded the steepest currency decline in Africa between March and June 2026, shedding nearly 10% of its value against the US dollar, according to the World Bank's October 2026 Africa Economic Update.

The Lesotho loti, Namibian dollar, South African rand and Swaziland lilangeni each followed with depreciations exceeding 6% over the same period, but none came close to matching the scale of the cedi's losses.

The World Bank attributed the widespread weakness across African currencies to the intensification of the Middle East conflict, which sent shockwaves through global financial markets during the second quarter of 2026.

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"Most countries with available daily exchange rate data recorded currency depreciations during the second quarter of 2026 relative to end-February, before the conflict intensified. In seven of the 22 countries monitored (excluding the CFA franc zone), the maximum depreciation exceeded 5.0%, including in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, the Seychelles, and South Africa," the report stated.

The Bank noted that conditions had partially stabilised by late August, writing: "By end-August, however, much of this pressure had eased, with only 10 currencies remaining weaker than their end-February levels."

The report described how surging oil and energy prices swelled import bills across net energy-importing economies, driving up demand for US dollars, draining foreign reserves and intensifying depreciation. At the same time, geopolitical uncertainty pushed investors toward safe-haven assets, pulling capital away from emerging and frontier markets. Supply chain disruptions in the Middle East also inflated the cost of agricultural inputs such as fertilisers, adding further pressure through imported inflation.

For countries carrying heavy external debt burdens, the report warned that currency weakness compounded fiscal stress, as the local-currency cost of repaying US dollar-denominated obligations rose in line with the exchange rate losses.

Cedi Remains Under Pressure

Beyond the period covered by the World Bank's analysis, the cedi has continued to struggle. Its year-to-date depreciation against the US dollar has extended to 10.04%, with the interbank market recording a further 1.39% weakening to GH¢11.62 per dollar over the most recent two-week window.

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Performance against other major currencies was more mixed. In the interbank market, the cedi gained 0.70% against the pound and 0.47% against the euro, trading at GH¢15.40 and GH¢13.24 respectively.

Retail forex market movements showed a similar pattern. The cedi appreciated 0.21% against the dollar and 0.91% against the euro in that segment, reaching GH¢11.93 and GH¢13.73, while slipping 0.31% against the pound to GH¢15.88.

Bank of Ghana Urges Calm

YEN.com.gh reported that the central bank has sought to reassure businesses, describing the recent depreciation as temporary market movements and maintaining that it has sufficient capacity to support the market when required.

It earlier downplayed concerns over the cedi’s early-year depreciation in 2026, which has remained steady.

Ghana's international reserves have crossed $14 billion, according to the latest available data from the Bank of Ghana.

Source: YEN.com.gh