Ghana unrecorded trade hits 31 billion cedis

Ghana’s informal cross-border trade reached GH¢31 billion during the first three quarters of 2025, surpassing the country’s formal trade with neighboring West African nations. The figure, reported by the Ghana Statistical Service, represents about 6% of Ghana’s total trade over that period.

Formal trade with Togo, Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire totaled GH¢20.1 billion during the same months — meaning unrecorded commerce has overtaken official regional trade channels.

Informal trade dominates as traditional routes shift

The findings come from the GSS’s latest Informal Cross-Border Trade Survey, which monitored activity across 206 active border points in 10 regions. Government Statistician Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu presented the report in Accra and described informal cross-border commerce as a critical pillar of Ghana’s economy that has long been invisible in official data.

“For years, informal cross-border trade went almost entirely uncounted—a blind spot in Ghana’s official economy. Yet it feeds families, sustains jobs and keeps markets stocked on both sides of the border,” he said.

Trade with Togo remained overwhelmingly informal throughout the survey period, rising from 70.5% of total trade in the first quarter to 77.8% by the third quarter.

More than 60% of Ghana’s trade with Côte d’Ivoire also took place through informal channels, while commerce with Burkina Faso shifted from largely formal to predominantly informal over the year.

This isn’t the first time informal flows have drawn attention. Across much of West Africa, porous borders and small-scale traders have long kept a parallel economy running — one that national statistics often miss. What’s new here is the scale: GH¢31 billion in nine months makes it harder to treat as a footnote.

Agriculture, fuel and tricycles drive the numbers

The report found that Burkina Faso remained the largest destination for Ghana’s agricultural exports, accounting for nearly 63% of informal agricultural trade. Togo emerged as the leading destination for fuel, food and beverage exports, and also served as Ghana’s largest source of informal imports.

Among exported products, alcoholic beverages, soft drinks and energy drinks accounted for around 30% of informal food exports. Cooking oil was the country’s largest informal food import.

Tricycles were the most common transport method. They carried exports valued at roughly GH¢2 billion and imports worth about GH¢1.7 billion each quarter.

That’s a decentralized logistics network built on three wheels.

Food imports and a narrowing trade surplus

Ghana maintained an overall informal trade surplus during the survey period, but it narrowed significantly.

The surplus dropped from GH¢665.3 million in the second quarter to just GH¢49.3 million in the third quarter. The trade deficit with Togo widened steadily, increasing from GH¢725.5 million in the first quarter to GH¢994.1 million by the end of the third quarter.

One of the report’s biggest concerns was Ghana’s growing dependence on imported food. The informal food trade deficit doubled from GH¢400 million in the first quarter to roughly GH¢800 million by the third quarter.

Dr. Iddrisu said the findings reinforce the need for greater investment in domestic food production and agricultural value chains, particularly in border communities.

“We need to target the goods that dominate flows such as rice, cooking oil and livestock, and invest in local production and value chains in border regions,” he said.

The GSS believes the survey provides evidence for policymakers seeking to strengthen regional trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area. The agency recommended simplifying business registration for small-scale traders, improving border infrastructure, strengthening coordination among border agencies and institutionalizing regular monitoring of informal trade.

Conducted with support from the Government of Ghana, the World Bank’s HISWAP project, and agencies including the Ghana Revenue Authority and the Ghana Immigration Service, the survey provides one of the most detailed pictures yet of informal trade’s contribution to the economy.