Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu, the Government Statistician, has reported that the informal cross-border trade in Ghana amounts to GH₵31 billion, representing 6% of the total trade, a figure that has been recorded for the first time.
From January to September 2025, the informal cross-border trade between Ghana and its neighboring countries—Togo, Burkina Faso, and Côte d’Ivoire—was valued at GH¢31 billion.
This figure constitutes 6% of all trade conducted by Ghana with the rest of the world, he emphasized.
He pointed out that this development signifies that an economy previously deemed invisible is now being acknowledged.
During the period from January to September 2025, informal trade with Togo, Burkina Faso, and Côte d’Ivoire reached GH¢31 billion, in contrast to GH¢20.1 billion in formal trade.
“The trade that we had not accounted for with our closest neighbors was 1.5 times larger than the trade we had been measuring,” he stated on Wednesday, July 15.
Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu also noted that both men and women play significant roles in Ghana’s informal cross-border trade, albeit in different capacities.
In each of the first three quarters of 2025, he indicated that men were responsible for approximately 70% of exported goods, while women accounted for over 60% of imports. It is essential that policies supporting this trade are inclusive of both genders.
“Ghana’s informal food trade deficit has doubled in the first three quarters of 2025, increasing from about GH₵400 million in the first quarter to approximately GH¢800 million in the third quarter, with cooking oil being the largest food import. This is a critical issue that food security planners must address.
“Informal trade is conducted using tricycles rather than trucks: on average, GH¢2 billion in exports and GH¢1.7 billion in imports were recorded across the quarters. Behind these statistics are everyday Ghanaians, both women and men, who are feeding their families, maintaining jobs, and ensuring that markets are well-stocked on both sides of the border,” he remarked.
He also expressed gratitude to the Government of Ghana, the World Bank, partner institutions, field officers, the dedicated staff of the Ghana Statistical Service, and every trader who placed their trust during the data collection process.
