Refusing a pesewa coin over the counter might feel like a small, everyday act of frustration. Under Ghanaian law, it is a criminal offence. The Currency Act, 1964 (Act 242) and the Bank of Ghana Act, 2002 (Act 612) both classify Ghana's coins, from the 1 pesewa up to the 2 cedi piece, as legal tender that traders and individuals are legally required to accept, with penalties that can include a fine and a prison term.
What the law actually says
Section 41 of the Bank of Ghana Act makes clear that all currency notes and coins issued by the central bank carry legal tender status, meaning they must be accepted in settlement of a debt or transaction. The Currency Act goes further, prescribing a term of imprisonment of up to three years, a fine of up to 750 penalty units, or both, for refusing to accept legal tender, subject to a small number of exceptions, such as transactions above a certain value, currency that is genuinely defaced or damaged, or reasonable suspicion of counterfeiting. None of those exceptions cover a trader simply deciding, unilaterally, that a coin is inconvenient.
A gap between law and everyday practice
Despite that legal clarity, rejection of small-denomination coins, particularly the 1, 10 and 20 pesewa pieces, has become widespread in Ghana's markets, lorry stations and shops. Bank of Ghana officials have repeatedly had to intervene: Dominic Owusu, the Bank's Director of Currency Management, has told public forums that there is no justification for rejecting any coin the Bank has legally issued, arguing that refusal drives traders to round prices upward, which feeds inflation rather than reflecting it.
In April this year, traders in Ellembelle were reported to be turning away 10 and 20 pesewa coins despite a Bank of Ghana warning that rejecting legal tender is a punishable offence. The Ghana Police Service has since asked the public to report businesses that refuse to accept recognized denominations.
Voices from the traditional and religious establishment
The complaints are not confined to consumers. A Bank of Ghana Board Member, Dr Stephen Senyo Sapati, disclosed in April that chiefs and opinion leaders had raised the same concern at meetings in the Northern Region, describing the situation as unfortunate and confirming that the Bank's management and Board were treating it as a priority, with a formal communiqué expected once the Board reaches a lasting solution.
Why this keeps happening
Ghanaians who reject coins generally do not cite the law; they cite practicality. Sub-pesewa denominations buy almost nothing on their own, coins are heavier and less convenient to carry than notes, and in an economy where prices routinely include odd sub-units, businesses often find it simpler to round than to keep exact change in coins. None of that changes the legal position. As one lawyer explained, when the reporting first surfaced years ago, refusing even the smallest coin is a breach of the law regardless of how little the coin appears to be worth.
The bottom line
Until the Bank of Ghana formally withdraws a denomination from circulation, which it has not done for any current coin, that coin remains legal tender, and refusing it exposes a trader or individual to prosecution under the Currency Act. Given how routinely the rule is broken across the country, the more realistic risk for most people is not prison but running into an increasingly vocal public education campaign from the Bank of Ghana urging them to simply accept the coin.
Mustapha Bature Sallama.
Medical/ Science Communicator,
Private Investigator, Criminal investigation and Intelligence Analysis.
International Conflict Management and Peace Building.USIP
[email protected]
+233-555-275-880
References
GhanaWeb https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Refusal-to-accept-1-Pesewa-coin-could-land-you-in-jail-Lawyer-465099.html
ModernGhana https://www.modernghana.com/news/1487237/traders-in-ellembelle-reject-10-and-20-pesewas.html
Dubawa Ghana https://ghana.dubawa.org/is-the-20-pesewa-coin-still-legal-tender-in-ghana/
GBC Ghana Online https://www.gbcghanaonline.com/news/business/coins-remain-legal-tender-and-must-not-be-rejected-bog-board-member/2026/
MyJoyOnline https://www.myjoyonline.com/rejecting-coins-as-a-means-of-payment-is-illegal-bog-warns-traders/
GhanaWeb (B&FT) https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/business/GH-186-million-in-legal-tender-at-risk-2018181.html
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