TICAD-9: Ghana’s cedi is world’s best performing currency – Mahama

President John Dramani Mahama says the Ghanaian cedi is the best-performing currency in the world in 2025.

He announced this while pitching Ghana as a top investment destination to Japanese businesses during a forum in Tokyo.

The announcement came at the Ghana Presidential Investment Forum, held alongside the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD-9) on Wednesday. Addressing a gathering of Japanese business leaders, Mahama positioned Ghana as a stable, democratic, and business-friendly hub for investment in Africa.

“For those of you who know the history of the Ghanaian cedi, it’s been one of the most volatile currencies in Africa. A few years ago, it was even tagged as the worst-performing currency. I am happy to announce that this year, the Ghana cedi has been the best-performing currency in the world,” he said.

The President attributed this turnaround to firm economic management and wide-ranging reforms that have improved investor confidence. Inflation, which peaked at nearly 23 percent in 2024, has since dropped to 13.7 percent and is projected to fall into single digits by the end of the year. He also pointed to Ghana’s recent upgrade from “junk status” to B minus with a stable outlook, predicting further improvement in the next review.

Mahama underscored Ghana’s strategic advantage as host of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, which offers investors access to a continental market of 1.4 billion people. “Once your product meets the required standards, you can export duty-free and tariff-free into each other’s markets,” he explained, stressing the opportunities for Japanese companies seeking to scale across Africa.

To attract even more foreign direct investment, Mahama announced key reforms to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) Act, including the removal of minimum capital requirements for foreign investors. “This change means that whether you have $100,000 or $50,000, you can enter Ghana and start a business,” he said.

He further outlined opportunities in Ghana’s automobile sector, agribusiness, energy, and technology ecosystem. The President highlighted the Volta Economic Corridor Project, an ambitious initiative that will use Volta Lake to irrigate over two million hectares of farmland while establishing industrial zones for agro-processing and textiles.

“Japan has a comparative advantage in automobile manufacturing. Ghana already hosts Japanese firms assembling vehicles for local and sub-regional markets, and we are ready to expand this collaboration,” Mahama noted. He also emphasized Ghana’s growing fintech sector, which he described as one of the fastest-growing in Africa, driven by a young, English-speaking, and technologically adaptable population.

Concluding his pitch, Mahama called for stronger Ghana–Japan ties, urging Japanese firms to see Africa as the next global investment frontier. “Most parts of the world are saturated when it comes to investment. Africa is opening up, growing, and is a place Japan should be looking at. Let us marry Japanese precision with Ghanaian potential and create a win-win situation for ourselves,” he declared.