Ghana’s informal cross-border trade reached GH¢31 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, representing six per cent of the country’s total trade during the period, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has revealed.

The figures, captured in the latest Informal Cross-Border Trade (ICBT) Report, indicate that trade conducted outside the formal customs system has become a major driver of commerce between Ghana and its three neighbouring countries—Togo, Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire.

According to the report, informal trade during the period exceeded formal trade with the three countries, which stood at GH¢20.1 billion, making it about one-and-a-half times larger.

At the launch of the report in Accra yeterday, the Government Statistician, Dr Alhassan Iddrisu, said the findings underscored the significant role informal traders play in the economy and highlighted the need for policies that support rather than penalise them.

He explained that thousands of Ghanaians move goods across land borders daily, but for years much of that activity was not captured in official statistics, creating a major gap in understanding the economy.

Dr Iddrisu said the GSS monitored trade across 321 active border points between October 2024 and September 2025 through direct observation and interviews with traders, providing what he described as the most comprehensive picture yet of informal cross-border trade.

The report showed that informal trade consistently accounted for about six per cent of Ghana’s total trade across the first three quarters of 2025. It further revealed that informal trade made up more than three-fifths of total trade with Côte d’Ivoire and nearly four-fifths of trade with Togo.

Trade with Burkina Faso, the report indicated, shifted from being largely formal in the first quarter to predominantly informal in the subsequent quarters.

Although Ghana maintained an overall trade surplus during the period, the margin narrowed significantly from GH¢665.3 million in the second quarter to GH¢49.3 million in the third quarter.

The country recorded sustained surpluses with Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire, but continued to post a widening trade deficit with Togo.

Food products remained the largest component of informal imports, accounting for nearly half of all imports by the third quarter. Cooking oil emerged as the leading imported food item, while livestock was sourced mainly from Burkina Faso and agricultural raw materials largely from Côte d’Ivoire.

The report also raised concerns about food security, noting that Ghana’s informal food trade deficit doubled from about GH¢400 million in the first quarter to approximately GH¢800 million by the third quarter of 2025.

On the export side, Burkina Faso remained the leading destination for Ghana’s agricultural exports, accounting for nearly 63 per cent, while Togo received the largest share of fuel, food products and beverages exported through informal channels.

The survey further showed that tricycles and motorbikes were the most common means of transporting goods across the borders, reflecting the small-scale and frequent nature of the trade.

It added that men handled about 70 per cent of exported goods, while women accounted for more than 60 per cent of imports.

To maximise the benefits of the sector, Dr Iddrisu called for simplified registration and licensing procedures for small-scale traders, improved border infrastructure, stronger data-sharing among state institutions, increased investment in local production of key imported commodities, and closer collaboration with neighbouring countries under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

He added that sustained investment in data collection would help government, businesses and development partners to make better-informed decisions, while ensuring that the millions of Ghanaians engaged in informal cross-border trade are better integrated into the national economy.