Executive Director of the Institute for Energy Policy and Research (INSTEPR), Kwadwo Poku, has urged the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to refrain from politicising Ghana’s inflation figures, insisting that inflation should not be presented as a direct measure of citizens’ standard of living.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, Mr Poku criticised what he described as attempts by the NDC to use inflation statistics to suggest that living conditions for Ghanaians have improved.

“We should take the politics out of inflation. NDC is trying to make inflation sound like a standard of living barometer. Inflation is not a standard of living barometer,” he stressed.

Mr Poku explained that while inflation measures changes in the prices of goods and services within a selected basket, it does not fully capture the everyday financial pressures faced by households.

He noted that key expenses such as rent, insurance, and school fees are not adequately reflected in the inflation basket, even though these costs continue to rise for many families.

“At the end of the day, when you look at your inflation basket, it doesn’t include rent, it doesn’t include insurance, and it doesn’t include school fees, which have increased,” he pointed out.

Mr Poku’s comments come amid growing public debate over Ghana’s recent inflation trends, with many citizens questioning whether the reported figures align with their lived economic realities.

He maintained that inflation data should be discussed objectively and not framed as proof that the cost-of-living crisis has eased.