Food products constitute about one-fourth (23.9%) of total exports in the first half of 2023, the Mid-Year 2023 Trade Report by the Ghana Statistical Service has revealed.

Imports of food products, however, accounted for 13.3% of total imports.

More than 50.0% of food imports fall into five distinct categories. They are Cereals and Grains Products (22.8%), Animal or Vegetable Fats and Oils (12.7%), meat (9.5%) and sugar products (8.6%).

Over half of all food exports are cocoa products (64.9%).

Export of cocoa products is diversified across various countries, while the main exported food products, edible fruits and nuts, are mainly exported to India (48.4%) and Vietnam (27.1%).

For the five main food import products (grains, animals or vegetable fats and oils, meat, cereals, and sugar products), only three countries account for more than half of the imports of these products.

With regard to trade within Africa, the total value of Ghana’s exports to African countries in the first half of 2023 was estimated at ¢19.3 billion, representing almost a quarter (22.0%) of total exports.

Imports to other countries was ¢7.7 billion, which is less than half the value of exports to African countries. Imports to African countries constituted 9.1% of total imports.

Within the African continent, Ghana exports to 49 countries, which is the same number of countries it imports from.

Over half of all exports within Africa go to South Africa (55.4%), followed distantly by Ghana’s neighbouring countries: Burkina Faso (12.9%), Côte d’Ivoire (6.9%), and Togo (6.0%).

Exports to South Africa are more than twice the exports of these three countries combined (25.8%).

South Africa (20.5%), Egypt (19.6%), and Morocco (10.7%) are the sources of half of imports (50.8%) from African countries.