A general view of the Makola market, one of the country's largest trading centres in Accra, Ghana March 26, 2022. Picture taken March 26, 2022. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko

ACCRA (Reuters) -Consumer inflation in Ghana slowed for the 10th consecutive month, falling to 8.0% year on year in October from 9.4% in September - the lowest level since June 2021, the statistics service said on Wednesday.

Government statistician Alhassan Iddrisu told a press conference that food prices were driving the overall decline in inflation.

"Ghana's disinflation process is firmly under way. Price stability is returning, and key drivers that once fuelled double-digit inflation are now losing momentum," Iddrisu said.

The gold-, oil- and cocoa-producing nation in West Africa is emerging from its most severe economic crisis in decades.

Ghana's central bank now targets inflation of 8% with a margin of error of 2 percentage points either side.

The International Monetary Fund said in October it had reached a staff-level agreement with Ghana's authorities on the fifth review of its loan programme.

(Reporting by Emmanuel Bruce and Christian Akorlie; writing by Anait Miridzhanian; editing by Alexander Winning and Mark Heinrich)