The Ghana Drunkards Association has issued a three-week ultimatum to the government, demanding an immediate reduction in the cost of alcoholic beverages, citing the recent rise in the value of the cedi.
In a video that went viral on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday, the group’s president, Moses Drybones, expressed frustration over the persistent price hikes, despite the cedi’s significant appreciation against foreign currencies.
“To date, the prices of alcoholic drinks keep going up. If you purchase alcohol, there is an increment of about 15%, and this affects vendors,” Drybones said.
According to the association, the strengthening of the local currency should have translated to reduced prices across the board, including for alcohol. But that hasn’t been the case.
“We’ve learnt that the cedi has gained some strength and the price of some items has been reduced. However, the cost of alcohol remains high,” another representative declared in the video.
The association also pointed to the struggles of bar owners and drink sellers nationwide, blaming the price hikes for declining sales and hardship among vendors.
They appealed to key figures, including former President John Dramani Mahama and the Minister for Trade and Industry, to intervene.
“We are therefore calling on President John Dramani Mahama and his Minister for Trade and Industry to do something about the prices,” the group said.
The Drunkards Association stressed that their demand goes beyond just alcoholic drinks.
“We are not making this call for only alcoholic drinks but for the non-alcoholic ones as well,” they clarified.
They warned that if the government fails to engage with them within the three-week window, the association’s estimated 16.6 million members will launch a nationwide protest.
“We have given them a three-week grace period to meet us so we can deliberate on how to reduce the prices of alcohol,” the group insisted.
Their protest threat comes amid reports by Bloomberg that the Ghanaian cedi has appreciated by nearly 50% in 2025, making it the best-performing currency globally so far this year.
The cedi, which opened the year around ₵15 to the dollar, is now trading close to ₵10.
Despite this economic rebound, the association claims the price of alcohol, largely made up of imported products, has not seen a corresponding decrease.
