Finally, Nigeria overtakes Ghana regarding who has higher Interest Rates

Nigeria has officially overtaken Ghana as the country with the highest benchmark interest rate in West Africa, following the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) decision to raise its Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) to 27.5%.  

Ghana’s monetary policy committee announced on Friday that its members agreed to keep rates at 27%, leaving it unchanged as we approach the end of the year.

This move puts Nigeria slightly ahead of Ghana’s 27%, marking a new phase in the monetary policy trajectories of two economies grappling with eerily similar challenges.

The shift highlights the complexities of navigating economic stability in a region beset by rising inflation, currency depreciation, and fiscal deficits.

Yet, while both nations face comparable headwinds, their responses highlight nuanced differences in how monetary policy is wielded as a tool for economic management.

Ghana and Nigeria share a troubling economic narrative, defined by persistently high inflation, depreciating currencies, and deepening fiscal imbalances:

The two countries have implemented strikingly similar monetary and fiscal policies to address these challenges:

While the policies reflect a shared economic playbook, the outcomes have diverged. Ghana’s inflation trajectory has begun to stabilize, allowing the Bank of Ghana to hold rates steady since September 2024.

The rivalry between Ghana and Nigeria on interest rates is more than a monetary policy footnote—it indicates the precarious balance that West African economies must strike between inflation control, currency stabilization, and growth.

The question now is whether the policy similarities between these two giants can lead to equally effective results or whether Nigeria’s higher rates will signal deeper economic distress.