Ghana’s insurance sector has demonstrated significant resilience, recording a remarkable 22% growth in investment assets in 2023, reaching a total of GH₵10.5 billion, up from GH₵8.6 billion in the previous year. This development was highlighted in the latest Financial Stability Review report published by the Bank of Ghana.
The insurance industry appears to have successfully navigated the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the domestic debt exchange programme. The life insurance sub-sector was the primary driver of this growth, with investment assets valued at GH₵7.0 billion by the end of 2023, in contrast to GH₵3.5 billion in the non-life sector.
Across both life and non-life sectors, fixed-income assets have remained a popular investment strategy. However, there has been a noticeable decline in the share of government securities within investment portfolios, likely influenced by the implications of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).
In the non-life insurance sector, the proportion of government securities fell by 13%, decreasing from 38% in 2022 to 27% in 2023. Fixed deposits now constitute 23% of the investment portfolio, while listed securities and investment properties represent 27% and 19%, respectively.
The life insurance sector mirrored this trend, with a 9% reduction in government securities, dropping from 49% of its portfolio in 2022 to 40% in 2023. Concurrently, investments in other asset classes have risen, with property investments increasing to 23% and fixed deposits growing by 8 percentage points to 21%.
