The Ghana Statistical Service has confirmed the economy may be much bigger than it is presently estimated. Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which measures the total value of goods and services produced, is presently estimated at about $22 billion.

Head of Research at Standard Bank of Africa Stephen Bailey-Smith is quoted by Bloomberg as saying the bank’s research indicates the GDP figure may have to be revised upwards by about 15 percent.

This would put the current GDP at about $33 billion. Government Statistician Dr. Grace Bediako would not go into specifics, even though she agrees there is some underestimation.

Speaking to Joy Business, Dr Bediako said the service is still collating data and would soon come out with a new GDP figure for the economy.

Asked what margin the current $22 billion figure would increase by, Dr Bediako declined to give any provisional figure but said the final figure would indicate a growth of the economy.

“It can’t be negative. I think we all know that much has changed, we have seen growth and we’ve reported growth so it would be positive,” he indicated.

The service must have “good consistent data” on agriculture, including fishing and livestock, she indicated.

“[On] the whole economy, we have to have a good grasp of what’s going on and what, actually, the developments are,” she indicated.


Source: Myjoyonline.com/Ghana