John Boadu’s claim that less than 30 countries recorded positive economic growth in 2020 is false

Claim: General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, John Boadu, has said that countries that recorded positive economic growth in the heat of the 2020 pandemic were less than 30.

DUBAWA has analyzed data from the IMF and the World Bank and has found more than 30 countries that recorded positive economic growth in 2020. 

Full Text

The General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, John Boadu, has claimed that less than 30 countries including Ghana, were able to record positive economic growth in 2020.

He made the claim in an interview on Accra-based Peace 104.3 FM.

The leading  New Patriotic Party member made the statement to emphasize what he said is the current government’s efficient management of the economy in the midst of the pandemic.

“Globally, just under 30 countries were able to produce positive [economic] growth. Just under 30 countries and Ghana is part of them,” John Boadu claimed.

His claim can be found between minutes 2:23 to 2:40 of a video uploaded on the Despite Media channel on YouTube.

The video, uploaded on April 21, has since attracted over 500 views.

Verification

Economic growth is defined as the increase in the market value of goods and services produced by an economy over time. It is usually measured as a percentage rate of increase in the real gross domestic product (GDP).

The most comprehensive measure of overall economic performance is gross domestic product or GDP, which measures the “output” or total market value of goods and services produced in the domestic economy during a particular time period. 

A country’s economy can experience negative growth when its GDP reduces year over year.

In effect, when GDP goes up, the economy is generally said to be doing well.

Covid-19 and the Global Economy

The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic greatly affected the economic growth of many countries.

The IMF estimated that the global economy will shrink by 4.4% in 2020.

One of the major economies which saw major growth in 2020 was the Chinese economy. It registered a growth of 2.3%.

Economic Growth across countries

The World Bank has a centralized database that indicates the economic growth of various countries.

Analyzing the data, DUBAWA found that as many as 38 countries/territories, including Ghana, recorded positive economic growth in 2020.

Examining data from the IMF, it was also observed that at least 32 countries, including Ghana, recorded positive economic growth in 2020. 

Below is a table providing the data from the World Bank and IMF.

No.	Country	World Bank	IMF
1	American Samoa	3.92	N/A
2	Bangladesh	3.51	3.5
3	Benin	3.85	3.8
4	Brunei Darussalam	1.13	1.1
5	Burkina Faso	1.93	1.9
6	Burundi	0.30	0.3
7	Cameroon	0.49	0.5
8	Central African Republic	0.83	1
9	China	2.35	2.2
10	Congo, Dem. Rep.	1.74	1.7%
11	Cote d’Ivoire	1.96	2
12	Djibouti	0.50	1
13	Egypt, Arab Rep.	3.57	3.6
14	Ethiopia	6.06	6.1
15	Ghana	0.41	0.4
16	Guinea	6.99	6.4
17	Guyana	43.48	43.5
18	Iran, Islamic Rep.	3.39	1.8
19	Ireland	5.87	5.9
20	Lao PDR	0.50	-0.4
21	Malawi	0.80	0.9
22	Myanmar	3.17	3.2
23	Nauru	1.15	0.7
24	New Zealand	1.86	-2.1
25	Niger	3.58	3.6
26	Sao Tome and Principe	3.09	3
27	Senegal	1.50	1.3
28	Somalia	2.44	N/A
29	Tajikistan	4.50	4.5
30	Tanzania	2.0	4.8
31	Timor-Leste	10.37	-8.6
32	Togo	1.75	1.8
33	Tonga	0.65	0.7
34	Turkey	1.79	1.8
35	Tuvalu	4.40	1
36	Uganda	2.95	-1.4
37	Uzbekistan	1.71	1.9
38	Vietnam	2.91	2.9

Evidently, the data from the sources do not validate John Boadu’s claim that less than 30 countries recorded positive economic growth in 2020.

Conclusion

John Boadu’s claim that less than 30 countries recorded positive economic growth in 2020 is false as data from the World Bank and the IMF indicate otherwise.