Ofori-Atta vs Ato Forson: Who performed better in their first two years?

Ghana’s economic performance under former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and his successor, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, has come under renewed scrutiny following a comparison of key macroeconomic indicators during their respective first two years in office.

The comparison, shared by Franklin Cudjoe, founder and president of IMANI Africa, examines eight economic indicators, including real gross domestic product (GDP) growth, non-oil GDP growth, inflation, the policy rate, the performance of the cedi, gross international reserves, primary balance and public debt.

It comes amid a debate sparked by comments from IMANI Africa Vice President Kofi Bentil, who argued that Ofori-Atta's performance during his first two years as Finance Minister was better than that of Ato Forson.

In the scorecard, Ofori-Atta recorded an average real GDP growth rate of 7.2 per cent over his first two years, compared with 6.1 per cent under Dr Forson.

However, non-oil GDP growth averaged 5.6 per cent during Ofori-Atta’s first two years, against 6.8 per cent under Dr Forson.

On inflation, the scorecard showed that the rate declined from 15.4 per cent in 2016 to 9.4 per cent by the end of 2018 during Ofori-Atta’s period, representing a reduction of 6 percentage points.

Under Dr Forson, inflation fell from 23.8 per cent in 2024 to 5.5 per cent in October 2026, representing an 18.3-percentage-point decline.

The policy rate also declined by 8.5 percentage points under Ofori-Atta, from 25.5 per cent to 17 per cent. Under Dr Forson, it fell by 13 percentage points, from 27 per cent to 14 per cent as of September 2026.

Regarding the performance of the cedi against the US dollar, the scorecard recorded a cumulative depreciation of 12.9 per cent during Ofori-Atta’s first two years.

Under Dr Forson, the cedi recorded a cumulative appreciation of 26.5 per cent, following a 40.7 per cent gain in 2025 and a 10.1 per cent depreciation in 2026 at the time covered by the infographic.

Ghana’s gross international reserves, measured in months of import cover, increased by 0.1 months during Ofori-Atta’s period, compared with an increase of 0.5 months under Dr Forson.

The primary balance, measured on a commitment basis as a percentage of GDP, improved by 4.1 percentage points during Ofori-Atta’s first two years. Under Dr Forson, it improved by 5.7 percentage points, although the 2026 figure used in the comparison is a full-year projection.

On public debt, the scorecard showed a 0.7-percentage-point increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio during Ofori-Atta’s first two years, from 56.9 per cent to 57.6 per cent.

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Under Dr Forson, the ratio declined by 14.3 percentage points, from 61.8 per cent in 2024 to 47.5 per cent in October 2026.

The comparison uses figures from the Ghana Statistical Service, the Bank of Ghana and the Ministry of Finance budget statements covering 2017 to 2027. It also notes that the 2026 growth figures cover the first half of the year, while the primary balance figure is a full-year projection.

Cudjoe’s intervention follows Bentil’s comments on TV3’s The Key Points on Saturday, November 14, 2026, where he argued that Ofori-Atta had performed better during his first two years as Finance Minister.

Bentil, however, acknowledged Dr Forson’s performance, describing him as a good minister and cautioning against making a definitive assessment of his record after only two years.

He also argued that Dr Forson inherited a better economic system than Ofori-Atta.

Cudjoe, in his response, disputed that assessment, arguing that the economic conditions inherited by the two ministers were different. He maintained that the Mahama administration did not inherit an economy in the condition left by the previous government.

He also credited Dr Forson with reducing Ghana’s debt burden and cited improvements in lending rates and inflation as evidence of the changes under the current administration.

The comparison has added another dimension to the debate over how the economic performance of successive Finance Ministers should be assessed, particularly the importance of considering the economic conditions each inherited and the period covered by the available indicators.



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