Amid the Middle East conflict, the Ghana cedi was the worst currency in Africa, depreciating nearly 10% to the US dollar between March 2026 and June 2026, the World Bank has revealed in its October 2026 Africa Economic Update.
It was followed by Lesotho loti (over -6%), Namibia dollar (over -6%), South Africa rand (over -6%) and Swaziland lilangeni (over -6%).
According to the World Bank, the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East initially exerted broad-based pressure on African currencies.
“Most countries with available daily exchange rate data recorded currency depreciations during the second quarter of 2026 relative to end-February, before the conflict intensified. In seven of the 22 countries monitored (excluding the CFA franc zone), the maximum depreciation exceeded 5.0%, including in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, the Seychelles, and South Africa”.
“By end-August, however, much of this pressure had eased, with only 10 currencies remaining weaker than their end-F...
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