Ghana reports low business formalization and high youth unemployment

According to the Ghana Statistical Service, only 7.7% of the country’s 2.64 million businesses were operating formally in 2024. While the number of business establishments nearly tripled between 2014 and 2024, the workforce within them only doubled, suggesting that business growth is not translating into proportional job creation.

Micro enterprises constitute approximately 90% of all businesses in Ghana. Although the national unemployment rate fell from 14.6% in 2023 to 12.8% in 2025, over 70% of all jobs remain in the informal sector. The data also highlights a significant scale of informal cross-border trade, with goods valued at GH¢38.4 billion exchanged with Togo, Burkina Faso, and Côte d’Ivoire.

Demographic concerns were also raised regarding Ghana’s youth population. Approximately 12 million citizens are between the ages of 15 and 35. However, nearly two million young people are neither employed nor in education or training, with women making up more than 60% of this group. Youth unemployment for those aged 15 to 24 averaged 32.4% during the first three quarters of 2025.