An Examination of Reliability and Adequacy of Macroeconomic Data on Ghana: A Case of inflation rates on Ghana

Abstract

This study sets itself to assess and examine the quality of macroeconomic data published in
Ghana with respect to reliability, timeliness; adequacy and inconsistencies in inflation rates in
Ghana.The objective of this study is to assess the quality of official macroeconomic data
produced in Ghana pertaining to reliability and consistency. The following was observed: The
test of reliability indicates that inflation data produced in Ghana are reliable. The F test used to
find the overall significance also indicated that the level of significance was consistently low for
1960/69 and 1980/89. The 1970/79 and 1990/2000 data however, showed a high level of reliability
and consistency. We therefore conclude using the test of reliability results and the F test, to
draw an inference that inflation data are reliable. However, the level of significance is low.
Users must therefore check for these discrepancies before using them for research or policy
analysis. The study recommends that GSS, the Universities and private agencies as well as data
users should join hands to produce quality data.Researchers must also evaluate the quality of
data they use and make recommendations for improvement.GSS must endeavor to produce
complete, timely and accurate statistics