Ghana - Gross capital formation (% of GDP)

Gross capital formation (% of GDP) in Ghana was 19.49 as of 2020. Its highest value over the past 60 years was 29.00 in 2005, while its lowest value was 3.75 in 1983.

Definition: Gross capital formation (formerly gross domestic investment) consists of outlays on additions to the fixed assets of the economy plus net changes in the level of inventories. Fixed assets include land improvements (fences, ditches, drains, and so on); plant, machinery, and equipment purchases; and the construction of roads, railways, and the like, including schools, offices, hospitals, private residential dwellings, and commercial and industrial buildings. Inventories are stocks of goods held by firms to meet temporary or unexpected fluctuations in production or sales, and "work in progress." According to the 1993 SNA, net acquisitions of valuables are also considered capital formation.

Source: World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files.

See also:

Year Value
1960 24.40
1961 20.11
1962 17.12
1963 18.73
1964 19.50
1965 17.87
1966 12.85
1967 10.31
1968 11.12
1969 11.79
1970 14.17
1971 14.12
1972 7.10
1973 9.03
1974 13.05
1975 12.72
1983 3.75
1984 6.88
1985 9.57
1986 9.36
1987 10.43
1988 11.30
1989 13.21
1990 14.44
1991 15.88
1992 12.80
1993 22.21
1994 23.96
1995 20.02
1996 21.20
1997 24.81
1998 23.11
1999 21.00
2000 24.00
2001 26.60
2002 19.70
2003 22.94
2004 28.38
2005 29.00
2006 22.95
2007 15.38
2008 16.49
2009 16.43
2010 13.10
2011 12.81
2012 16.97
2013 24.77
2014 27.20
2015 27.84
2016 25.71
2017 20.59
2018 22.65
2019 19.66
2020 19.49

Limitations and Exceptions: Because policymakers have tended to focus on fostering the growth of output, and because data on production are easier to collect than data on spending, many countries generate their primary estimate of GDP using the production approach. Moreover, many countries do not estimate all the components of national expenditures but instead derive some of the main aggregates indirectly using GDP (based on the production approach) as the control total. Data on capital formation may be estimated from direct surveys of enterprises and administrative records or based on the commodity flow method using data from production, trade, and construction activities. The quality of data on government fixed capital formation depends on the quality of government accounting systems (which tend to be weak in developing countries). Measures of fixed capital formation by households and corporations - particularly capital outlays by small, unincorporated enterprises - are usually unreliable. Estimates of changes in inventories are rarely complete but usually include the most important activities or commodities. In some countries these estimates are derived as a composite residual along with household final consumption expenditure. According to national accounts conventions, adjustments should be made for appreciation of the value of inventory holdings due to price changes, but this is not always done. In highly inflationary economies this element can be substantial.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Gross domestic product (GDP) from the expenditure side is made up of household final consumption expenditure, general government final consumption expenditure, gross capital formation (private and public investment in fixed assets, changes in inventories, and net acquisitions of valuables), and net exports (exports minus imports) of goods and services. Such expenditures are recorded in purchaser prices and include net taxes on products.

Aggregation method: Weighted average

Periodicity: Annual

Classification

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt Indicators

Sub-Topic: National accounts