Ghana Puts Financial Health at Centre of Five-Year Inclusion Strategy

November 9, 2026 | By Semahegn Nigatu

Ghana plans to make financial health the central focus of its next National Financial Inclusion and Development Strategy (NFIDS), covering 2027 to 2031, shifting policy attention from expanding access to financial services towards improving how households and businesses use them.

Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem announced the initiative at the inauguration of the strategy's development process at the Ministry of Finance, attended by Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, the United Nations Secretary-General's Special Advocate for Financial Health, and other stakeholders.

More than eight in 10 Ghanaian adults own a financial account, according to the World Bank's Global Findex 2025. However, only 22 percent were considered financially healthy in the 2021 FinScope Survey, highlighting the gap between access to financial services and their impact on people's financial well-being.

"We have become good at opening accounts. We must now become better at making accounts improve lives," Nyarko Ampem said.

The proposed strategy will focus on expanding access to affordable and responsible financial services, promoting digital innovation, strengthening consumer protection and improving financial literacy and resilience.

It will give particular attention to women, young people, farmers, informal sector workers and small businesses, which continue to face difficulties accessing financial products suited to their needs.

The government also plans to establish a Financial Inclusion Council to improve coordination and accountability among institutions implementing the strategy. A Financial Health Framework will be introduced to assess whether households can meet everyday financial obligations, withstand unexpected shocks, save and invest for the future.

Nyarko Ampem said the initiative formed part of the government's economic transformation agenda, which aims to strengthen enterprise development, productivity and investment.

He cited economic growth of 6.2 percent in the first half of 2026 and a decline in inflation from 23.8 percent in December 2024 to 5.5 percent in October 2026 as signs of improving macroeconomic conditions.

He added that financial sector reforms would extend beyond conventional banking and mobile money services to deepen capital markets and expand investment opportunities, including through emerging technologies such as asset tokenisation.

A National Technical Committee comprising the Ministry of Finance, financial sector regulators and other stakeholders is developing the strategy. Its official launch is expected in the first half of 2027.

Nyarko Ampem called on financial institutions, regulators, fintech companies, insurers, pension providers and development partners to contribute to the process.

"Our ambition is for an economy that creates opportunity, a financial system that enables participation, and a society in which more people can build secure and prosperous lives," he said.

Source: FSX Business News