Building cost inflation holds at 2.2% as construction input prices rise in April
Building cost inflation remained unchanged at 2.2 percent in April 2026, even as the prices of construction inputs recorded a faster increase on a month-on-month basis, according to the latest Prime Building Cost Index (PBCI) published by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).
The report indicated that the PBCI rose to 136.1 in April 2026 from 133.2 in the same month last year, representing an annual inflation rate of 2.2 percent. While the rate was unchanged from March 2026, it was significantly lower than the 24.4 percent recorded in April 2025.
On a monthly basis, however, building input prices increased by 1.5 percent between March and April 2026, compared with a 0.8 percent rise recorded in March. The increase was driven by higher costs across materials, labour and plant categories within the construction sector.
Materials inflation rose slightly on an annual basis to 2.4 percent in April from 2.3 percent in March, while month-on-month materials inflation accelerated to 1.7 percent from 1.3 percent.
Labour inflation eased year-on-year to 1.0 percent in April from 1.6 percent in March. However, labour costs increased by 0.8 percent month-on-month after contracting by 0.4 percent in the previous month.
Plant inflation recorded the highest annual increase among the three major categories, rising to 4.7 percent in April from 2.6 percent in March. On a monthly basis, plant inflation also increased to 1.8 percent from 1.0 percent.
Among the various construction input sub-groups, glazing registered the highest year-on-year inflation rate at 16.2 percent, followed by plumbing at 14.5 percent and roofing sheets at 13.0 percent.
Electrical works remained the largest contributor to overall building inflation, accounting for 52.8 percent of total inflation despite a slight decline in its inflation rate to 11.5 percent from 11.6 percent in March.
Other significant contributors included glazing, which accounted for 37.4 percent of overall inflation, metalwork at 23.0 percent and plumbing at 22.3 percent.
Meanwhile, cement continued to record deflation, posting the lowest annual inflation rate of minus 11.2 percent. Steel prices also declined by 3.6 percent year-on-year, while fine aggregate recorded a fall of 8.7 percent.
According to the GSS, the relatively low level of building cost inflation presents an opportunity for households, businesses and government institutions to plan construction projects more effectively.
The Service advised households undertaking building projects to phase their construction activities, take advantage of lower-priced materials such as cement and steel, and make adequate provision for higher-cost inputs including glazing, plumbing and roofing materials.
Contractors and developers were also encouraged to review project bids regularly and secure medium-term supply contracts for materials that continue to experience price pressures, particularly in electrical works, glazing, plumbing, metalwork and skilled labour.
The GSS further recommended that government accelerate infrastructure investments while construction cost inflation remains subdued, address supply constraints affecting key building materials and expand technical and artisan training programmes to help moderate labour-cost pressures in the sector.
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