Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita in Ghana
Ghana: Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita was 12.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
12.6%
Change on year
down 2.7%
World rank
154th
of 184 countries
All-time high
18.7%
in 2011
All-time low
2.8%
in 1955
Years of data
69
1955–2023
Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita in Ghana, 1955–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Ghana recorded 12.6% for share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.7% on the previous year and up 22.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in Ghana peaked at 18.7% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 1955.
That places Ghana 154th out of 184 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 69 years of available data.
Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1955 | 2.8% | — |
| 1956 | 3.1% | +8.5% |
| 1957 | 3.5% | +12.6% |
| 1958 | 3.5% | +1.6% |
| 1959 | 3.3% | -6.6% |
| 1960 | 3.5% | +5.5% |
| 1961 | 3.9% | +13.2% |
| 1962 | 4.3% | +8.9% |
| 1963 | 4.4% | +1.8% |
| 1964 | 4.4% | +0.6% |
| 1965 | 5.6% | +27.6% |
| 1966 | 6.0% | +7.7% |
| 1967 | 7.4% | +21.8% |
| 1968 | 8.2% | +10.9% |
| 1969 | 7.3% | -10.8% |
| 1970 | 6.4% | -11.8% |
| 1971 | 6.8% | +5.6% |
| 1972 | 7.6% | +12.2% |
| 1973 | 6.7% | -12.1% |
| 1974 | 7.3% | +9.3% |
| 1975 | 8.3% | +14.2% |
| 1976 | 9.4% | +12.4% |
| 1977 | 10.6% | +12.8% |
| 1978 | 12.3% | +16.7% |
| 1979 | 10.7% | -13.4% |
| 1980 | 11.9% | +11.5% |
| 1981 | 14.9% | +24.7% |
| 1982 | 15.4% | +3.7% |
| 1983 | 15.1% | -1.9% |
| 1984 | 12.0% | -20.4% |
| 1985 | 10.9% | -9.2% |
| 1986 | 11.0% | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 11.2% | +1.8% |
| 1988 | 10.2% | -8.6% |
| 1989 | 10.8% | +5.0% |
| 1990 | 9.8% | -8.5% |
| 1991 | 9.3% | -5.1% |
| 1992 | 11.6% | +24.1% |
| 1993 | 14.1% | +21.7% |
| 1994 | 13.9% | -1.8% |
| 1995 | 13.2% | -4.9% |
| 1996 | 12.8% | -3.3% |
| 1997 | 10.6% | -16.7% |
| 1998 | 11.5% | +8.2% |
| 1999 | 11.0% | -3.9% |
| 2000 | 12.4% | +12.6% |
| 2001 | 13.9% | +11.9% |
| 2002 | 12.4% | -11.0% |
| 2003 | 13.7% | +11.1% |
| 2004 | 11.3% | -17.7% |
| 2005 | 11.0% | -2.7% |
| 2006 | 10.5% | -4.6% |
| 2007 | 9.3% | -11.7% |
| 2008 | 9.8% | +5.9% |
| 2009 | 9.8% | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 11.1% | +13.1% |
| 2011 | 18.7% | +68.5% |
| 2012 | 15.2% | -18.7% |
| 2013 | 10.3% | -32.4% |
| 2014 | 10.1% | -1.4% |
| 2015 | 9.8% | -3.6% |
| 2016 | 9.8% | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 8.4% | -14.0% |
| 2018 | 9.8% | +15.5% |
| 2019 | 10.4% | +6.4% |
| 2020 | 12.2% | +17.6% |
| 2021 | 13.5% | +10.5% |
| 2022 | 12.9% | -4.3% |
| 2023 | 12.6% | -2.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.3% | 2.8% | 3.5% | 5 |
| 1960s | 5.5% | 3.5% | 8.2% | 10 |
| 1970s | 8.6% | 6.4% | 12.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 12.4% | 10.2% | 15.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 11.8% | 9.3% | 14.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.4% | 9.3% | 13.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.4% | 8.4% | 18.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.8% | 12.2% | 13.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
- 151 Côte d'Ivoire 13.1% compare
- 152 Viet Nam 12.8% compare
- 153 Benin 12.7% compare
- 155 Malaysia 12.5% compare
- 156 Dominican Republic 12.3% compare
- 157 Hong Kong, China 12.3% compare
More economy & growth data for Ghana
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.15 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 5 Percent per annum (2029)
- Final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$), per capita 1,869 constant 2015 US$ per person (2024)
- Gross national expenditure (current US$), annual growth rate 0.155 % change on previous year (2024)
- Gross national expenditure (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.9768 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Gross national expenditure (current US$), per capita 2,363 current US$ per person (2024)
- Gross national expenditure (current LCU), annual growth rate 29.05 % change on previous year (2024)
- Gross national expenditure (current LCU), per unit of GDP 13.87 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Gross national expenditure (current LCU), per capita 33,559 current LCU per person (2024)
- Gross national expenditure (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 5.84 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in Ghana?
- Share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in Ghana was 12.6% in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 18.7% in 2011.
- What is the lowest share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 1955.
- How does Ghana rank for share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita?
- Ghana ranks 154th out of 184 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Government consumption divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.