Nearly seven in 10 Ghanaians who faced bribery while trying to access public services in the second half of 2025 said public officials had asked them for unofficial payments, according to new data from the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).
The proportion rose sharply from 50.9% in the first six months of 2025 to 69.4% between July and December, suggesting that demands made by officials were becoming a greater part of citizens’ experience of corruption.
Government Statistician Dr Alhassan Iddrisu presented the findings at a Governance Series event organised by Three Reports and the GSS on Tuesday, 4 August 2026.
He said the share of citizens who actually paid a bribe also increased, rising from 14.3% in the first half of 2025 to 18.0% in the second. That means about one in six people paid money or gave a gift beyond the official cost of a public service.
“So the pressure sits at the counter,” Dr Iddrisu observed. “The problem now is less what citizens offer and more of what officials would ask.”
The survey recorded a rise in the number of people who refused to pay when asked for a bribe. That figure increased from 3.0% in the first half of 2025 to 4.9% in the second, indicating a greater willingness to resist demands for unofficial payments.
Police department remains highest on list
The Ghana Police Service was the institution most closely associated with bribery in the survey, with the Motor Traffic and Transport Department (MTTD) recording the highest incidence.
More than half of those who dealt with MTTD officers said they had given a gift or made an unofficial payment. However, the figure fell from 61.0% in 2024 to 53.6% in 2025.
“Every one of the biggest offending public institutions improved. I must say that the police remain top of the list,” Dr Iddrisu said. “Over half of those dealing with the Motor Traffic and Transport Department still reported giving a gift. But even there, the numbers moved the right way.”
He said bribery was concentrated in a relatively small group of public institutions that have frequent contact with citizens. The Police Service, MTD and Police General Duties consistently appeared at the top of the list.
By contrast, the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), the Narcotics Control Commission and the Minerals Commission recorded no reports of gift-giving.
Despite the deterioration recorded in the second half of the year, Dr Iddrisu said Ghana’s broader annual position improved when compared with 2024.
Across the whole of 2025, contact between citizens and public officials increased from 55.7% to 71.9%. That represented about 1.6 million additional interactions. At the same time, the proportion reporting that they had paid bribes fell from 18.4% in 2024 to 16.8% in 2025.
The proportion of high-value bribes, defined as payments above GH¢1,000, almost halved over the same period, dropping from 14.7% to 7.6%.
“The full year, which is 2025, got better compared to 2024. Both of these stories are true, and that’s the beauty of the six-monthly survey that we do, to be able to look at trends within waves and even compare between years,” Dr Iddrisu explained.
Mixed picture on public participation
The data also showed a substantial improvement in citizens’ sense of exclusion from governance over the full year.
The share of people who said they had no say at all in decisions fell from 42.4% in 2024 to 29.7% in 2025. Those who felt they had no influence at all declined from 43.2% to 33.0%.
However, the latest six-month results indicated a slight setback in citizens’ sense of voice. The proportion who felt completely excluded edged up to 30.5%.
The groups most affected by exclusion were young people, older citizens, unemployed people and persons living with difficulty in performing everyday activities.
Money remained the most common form of bribery. In Wave 3, covering July to December 2025, cash accounted for 94.8% of payments made in addition to official fees.
The use of valuables, including land or goods, roughly doubled over the year. Payments of GH¢500 or less remained the most frequent, although the number of payments above GH¢1,000 increased between the two six-month survey waves.
The survey followed the same nationally representative households across all 16 regions. Interviews with household heads were conducted during the first quarter of 2026 using Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing, covering experiences from July to December 2025.
Dr Iddrisu said the findings highlighted the need to digitise public services, reducing the discretion that can create opportunities for informal payments. He also called for greater protection for people who refuse to pay, more credible and accessible reporting channels, and wider participation by groups that remain excluded from governance.
“Good governance is the foundation under every development plan we have as a country,” he said.
The Governance Series is supported by the African Centre for Parliamentary Affairs, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, Transparency International Ghana and the PAIRed Programme. It is funded by the Hewlett Foundation.
