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Ghana

Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It lies adjacent to the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing a border with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Togo in the east. Ghana covers an area of 239567 km2, spanning diverse biomes that range from coastal savannas to tropical rainforests. With nearly 35 million inhabitants, Ghana is the second-most populous country in West Africa. The capital and largest city is Accra; other significant cities include Kumasi, Tamale, and Sekondi-Takoradi.

The earliest kingdoms to emerge in Ghana were the Kingdom of Dagbon in the north and the Bonoman in the south, with Bonoman existing in the area during the 11th century. The Ashanti Empire and other Akan kingdoms in the south emerged over the centuries. Beginning in the 15th century, the Portuguese Empire, followed by other European powers, contested the area for trading rights, until the British ultimately established control of the coast by the 19th century. Following over a century of colonial resistance, the current borders of the country took shape, encompassing four separate British colonial territories: Gold Coast, Ashanti, the Northern Territories, and British Togoland. These were unified as an independent dominion within the Commonwealth of Nations. On 6 March 1957, Ghana became the first colony in Sub-Saharan Africa to achieve sovereignty. Ghana subsequently became influential in decolonisation efforts and the Pan-African movement.

Ghana is a multi-ethnic country with linguistic and religious groups; while the Akan are the largest ethnic group, they constitute a plurality. Most Ghanaians are Christians (71.3%); almost a fifth are Muslims; a tenth practise traditional faiths or report no religion. Ghana is a unitary constitutional democracy led by a president who is head of state and head of government. For political stability in Africa, Ghana ranked seventh in the 2012 Ibrahim Index of African Governance and fifth in the 2012 Fragile States Index. It has maintained since 1993 one of the freest and most stable governments on the continent, and it performs relatively well in healthcare, economic growth, and human development, so that it has a significant influence in West Africa and Africa as a whole. Ghana is highly integrated in international affairs, being a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement and the African Union, and a member of the Economic Community of West African States, the Group of 24 and the Commonwealth of Nations.

Etymology
The name Ghana comes from Wagadu, a vast empire in west Africa from the 3rd to 12th centuries; Wagadu was coined Ghana by Arab traders involved in the trans-Saharan trade. Ghana is thought to originate from the title Kaya Maghan of the rulers of Wagadu, which translates as ruler of gold. As the Gold Coast colony prepared for independence, the nation's founder Kwame Nkrumah settled on Ghana, aiming to evoke a sense of unity and liberation among the Ghanaian people. The name was a powerful reminder of their shared heritage and the legacy of the ancient empire that once thrived in the wider region. It encapsulated the aspirations of the Ghanaian people for self-governance, progress, and a future marked by dignity and resilience.

Medieval kingdoms

The earliest recorded kingdoms to emerge in modern Ghana were the Mole-Dagbon states. Before the unification of Dagbon, societies were decentralised, and headed by the Tindaamba (singular: tindana). These decentralised states were unified by King Gbewaa, who lived a long life, and formed a stable, peaceful society. Dagbon extended beyond the boundaries of present-day Ghana. Kingdoms that emerged from Dagbon include the Mossi Kingdoms of Burkina Faso, and Bouna Kingdom of Ivory Coast. The kingdom enjoyed great prosperity, establishing Ghana's earliest educational systems, and using a writing script prior to European invasion. Female chiefs who rule over male subjects are present in the kingdom, and inheritance is both patrilineal and matrilineal. The Yaa Naa is the King of Dagbon and the Gundo Naa is the Queen. The kingdom remained uncolonised. In 1896, Germany invaded Eastern Dagbon (Naya) and burnt down its capital, Yendi, during the Battle of Adibo.

The Akan-speaking peoples began to move into what later became Ghana toward the 15th century. By the 16th century, the Akans were established in the Akan state called Bonoman, for which the Brong-Ahafo region was named. From the 17th century, Akans emerged from what is believed to have been the Bonoman area, to create Akan states, mainly based on gold trading. These states included Bonoman (Brong-Ahafo region), Ashanti (Ashanti Region), Denkyira (Western North region), Mankessim Kingdom (Central region), and Akwamu (Eastern region). By the 19th century, the territory of the southern part of Ghana was included in the Kingdom of Ashanti. The government of the Ashanti Empire operated first as a loose network and eventually as a centralised kingdom with a specialised bureaucracy centred in the capital city of Kumasi. Prior to Akan contact with Europeans, the Akan people created an economy based on principally gold and gold bar commodities, which were traded with other states in Africa.

The Ga-Dangme and Ewe migrated westward from south-western Nigeria. The Ewe - formerly known as Dogbo- migrated from Oyo area with their Gbe-speaking kinsmen (Adja, Fon, Phla/Phera and Ogun/Gun) and in transition, settled at Ketou in Benin Republic, Tado in Togo, Dogbo Nyigbo in Benin Republic and with Nortsie (a walled town in present-day Togo) as their final dispersal point. Their dispersal from Nortsie was necessitated by the high-handed rule of King Agorkorli (Agɔ Akɔli) who was the reigning monarch of the tribe at that time. The Ewe in Ghana speak three principal dialects: Anlo(along the coast),Tongu(along the Volta river) and Ewedome (in the hill country side).The Ga-Dangme occupy the Greater Accra Region and parts of the Eastern Region, while the Ewe are found in the Volta Region as well as the neighbouring Togo, Benin Republic and Nigeria (around Badagry area).

European contact and colonialism
Akan trade with European states began after contact with the Portuguese in the 15th century. European contact was by the Portuguese people, who came to the Gold Coast region in the 15th century to trade. The Portuguese then established the Portuguese Gold Coast (Costa do Ouro), focused on the availability of gold. The Portuguese built a trading lodge at a coastal settlement called Anomansah (the perpetual drink) which they renamed São Jorge da Mina. In 1481, King John II of Portugal commissioned Diogo de Azambuja to build the Elmina Castle, which was completed in three years. By 1598, the Dutch had joined the Portuguese in the gold trade, establishing the Dutch Gold Coast (Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea - 'Dutch properties at the Guinea coast') and building forts at Fort Komenda and Kormantsi. In 1617, the Dutch captured the Elmina Castle from the Portuguese and Axim in 1642 (Fort St Anthony).

European traders had joined in gold trading by the 17th century, including the Swedes, establishing the Swedish Gold Coast (Svenska Guldkusten), and Denmark–Norway, establishing the Danish Gold Coast (Danske Guldkyst or Dansk Guinea). European traders participated in the Atlantic slave trade in this area. More than 30 forts and castles were built by the merchants. The Germans established the Brandenburger Gold Coast or Groß Friedrichsburg. In 1874, Great Britain established control over some parts of the country, assigning these areas the status of the British Gold Coast. Military engagements occurred between British colonial powers and Akan nation-states. The Kingdom of Ashanti defeated the British some times in the 100-year-long Anglo-Ashanti wars and eventually lost with the War of the Golden Stool in 1900.

Transition to independence
In 1947, the newly formed United Gold Coast Convention led by "The Big Six" called for "self-government within the shortest possible time" following the 1946 Gold Coast legislative election. Kwame Nkrumah, a Ghanaian nationalist who led Ghana from 1957 to 1966 as the country's first prime minister and president, formed the Convention People's Party in 1949 with the motto "self-government now". The party initiated a "positive action" campaign involving non-violent protests, strikes and non-cooperation with the British authorities. Nkrumah was arrested and sentenced to one year imprisonment during this time. In the Gold Coast's 1951 general election, he was elected to Parliament and was released from prison. He became prime minister in 1952 and began a policy of Africanization.

On 6 March 1957 at midnight, the Gold Coast, Ashanti, the Northern Territories, and British Togoland were unified as one single independent dominion within the British Commonwealth under the name Ghana. This was done under the Ghana Independence Act 1957. The current flag of Ghana, consisting of the colours red, gold, green, and a black star, dates back to this unification. On 1 July 1960, following the Ghanaian constitutional referendum and Ghanaian presidential election, Nkrumah declared Ghana a republic and assumed the presidency. 6 March is the nation's Independence Day, and 1 July is celebrated as Republic Day.

Nkrumah led an authoritarian regime in Ghana, as he repressed political opposition and conducted elections that were not free and fair. In 1964, a constitutional amendment made Ghana a one-party state, with Nkrumah as president for life of both the nation and its party. Nkrumah was the first African head of state to promote the concept of Pan-Africanism, which he had been introduced to during his studies at Lincoln University, Pennsylvania in the United States, at the time when Marcus Garvey was known for his "Back to Africa Movement". He merged the teachings of Garvey, Martin Luther King Jr. and the naturalised Ghanaian scholar W. E. B. Du Bois into the formation of 1960s Ghana. Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, as he became known, played an instrumental part in the founding of the Non-Aligned Movement, and in establishing the Kwame Nkrumah Ideological Institute to teach his ideologies of communism and socialism. His life achievements were recognised by Ghanaians during his centenary birthday celebration, and the day was instituted as a public holiday in Ghana (Founders' Day).

Operation Cold Chop and aftermath
The government of Nkrumah was subsequently overthrown in a coup by the Ghana Armed Forces, codenamed "Operation Cold Chop". This occurred while Nkrumah was abroad with Zhou Enlai in the People's Republic of China, on a fruitless mission to Hanoi, Vietnam, to help end the Vietnam War. The coup took place on 24 February 1966, led by Colonel Emmanuel Kwasi Kotoka and Brigadier Akwasi Afrifa. The National Liberation Council was formed, chaired by Lieutenant General Joseph A. Ankrah.

A series of alternating military and civilian governments, often affected by economic instabilities, ruled Ghana from 1966, ending with the ascent to power of Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings of the Provisional National Defence Council in 1981. These changes resulted in the suspension of the constitution in 1981 and the banning of political parties. The economy soon declined, so Rawlings negotiated a structural adjustment plan, changing many old economic policies, and growth recovered during the mid-1980s. A new constitution restoring multi-party system politics was promulgated in the presidential election of 1992, in which Rawlings was elected, and again in the general election of 1996.

In a tribal war in Northern Ghana in 1994, between the Konkomba and other ethnic groups, including the Nanumba, Dagomba and Gonja, between 1,000 and 2,000 people were killed and 150,000 people were displaced.

After the 2000 general election, John Kufuor of the New Patriotic Party became president of Ghana on 7 January 2001 and was re-elected in 2004, thus also serving two terms (the term limit) as president of Ghana and marking the first time under the fourth republic that power was transferred from one legitimately elected head of state and head of government to another.

Nana Akufo-Addo, the ruling party candidate, was defeated in a very close 2008 general election by John Atta Mills of the National Democratic Congress. Mills died of natural causes and was succeeded by Vice President John Mahama on 24 July 2012. Following the 2012 general election, Mahama became president in his own right, and Ghana was described as a "stable democracy". As a result of the 2016 general election, Nana Akufo-Addo became president on 7 January 2017. He was re-elected after a tightly contested election in 2020.

To combat deforestation, on 11 June 2021 Ghana inaugurated Green Ghana Day, with the aim of planting five million trees in a concentrated effort to preserve the country's rainforest cover.

Geography
Ghana is located on the Gulf of Guinea, a few degrees north of the Equator. It spans an area of 239567 km2 and has an Atlantic coastline that stretches 560 km on the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to its south. Dodi Island and Bobowasi Island are near the south coast. It lies between latitudes 4°45'N and 11°N, and longitudes 1°15'E and 3°15'W. The prime meridian passes through Ghana, specifically through Tema. Ghana is geographically closer to the intersection of the Prime Meridian and the Equator than any other country, since this point, (0°, 0°), is located in the Atlantic Ocean approximately 614 km (382 mi) off the south-east coast of Ghana.

Grasslands mixed with south coastal shrublands and forests dominate Ghana, with forest extending northward from the coast 320 km and eastward for a maximum of about 270 km with locations for mining of industrial minerals and timber. Ghana is home to five terrestrial ecoregions: Eastern Guinean forests, Guinean forest–savanna mosaic, West Sudanian savanna, Central African mangroves, and Guinean mangroves. It had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 4.53/10, ranking it 112th globally out of 172 countries.

The White Volta River and its tributary Black Volta, flow south through Ghana to Lake Volta, the world's third-largest reservoir by volume and largest by surface area, formed by the hydroelectric Akosombo Dam, completed in 1965. The Volta flows out of Lake Volta into the Gulf of Guinea. The northernmost part of Ghana is Pulmakong and the southernmost part of Ghana is Cape Three Points.

The climate of Ghana is tropical, and there is wet season and dry season. Ghana sits at the intersection of three hydro-climatic zones. Changes in rainfall, weather conditions and sea-level rise affect the salinity of coastal waters. This is expected to negatively affect both farming and fisheries.

In 2015, the government produced a document titled "Ghana's Intended Nationally Determined Contribution". Following that, Ghana signed the Paris Climate Agreement in 2016.

Politics
Ghana is a unitary presidential constitutional democracy with a parliamentary multi-party system that is dominated by two parties—the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP). Ghana alternated between civilian and military governments until January 1993, when the military government gave way to the Fourth Republic of Ghana after presidential and parliamentary elections in late 1992. The 1992 constitution of Ghana divides powers among a commander-in-chief of the Ghana Armed Forces (President of Ghana), parliament (Parliament of Ghana), cabinet (Cabinet of Ghana), council of state (Ghanaian Council of State), and an independent judiciary (Judiciary of Ghana). The government is elected by universal suffrage after every four years.

Nana Akufo-Addo won the presidency in the general election in 2016, defeating incumbent John Mahama. He also won the 2020 election after the presidential election results were challenged at the Supreme Court by flagbearer of the NDC, John Mahama. Presidents are limited to two four-year terms in office. The president can serve a second term only upon re-election.

The 2012 Fragile States Index indicated that Ghana is ranked the 67th-least fragile state in the world and the fifth-least fragile state in Africa. Ghana ranked 112th out of 177 countries on the index. Ghana ranked as the 64th-least corrupt and politically corrupt country in the world out of all 174 countries ranked and ranked as the fifth-least corrupt and politically corrupt country in Africa out of 53 countries in the 2012 Transparency International Corruption Perception Index. Ghana was ranked seventh in Africa out of 53 countries in the 2012 Ibrahim Index of African Governance. The Ibrahim Index is a comprehensive measure of African government, based on variables which reflect the success with which governments deliver essential political goods to its citizens. According to 2023 V-Dem Democracy indices Ghana is ranked 67th electoral democracy worldwide and 10th electoral democracy in Africa.

Foreign relations
Since independence, Ghana has been devoted to ideals of nonalignment and is a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement. Ghana favours international and regional political and economic co-operation, and is an active member of the United Nations and the African Union.

Ghana has a strong relationship with the United States. Three recent U.S. presidents—Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama—and a Vice President—Kamala Harris—have made diplomatic trips to Ghana. Many Ghanaian diplomats and politicians hold positions in international organisations, including Ghanaian diplomat and former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, International Criminal Court Judge Akua Kuenyehia, as well as former President Jerry John Rawlings and former President John Agyekum Kufuor, who both served as diplomats of the United Nations.

In September 2010, President John Atta Mills visited China on an official visit. Mills and China's former President Hu Jintao marked the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations, at the Great Hall of the People. China reciprocated with an official visit in November 2011, by the vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, Zhou Tienong who visited Ghana and met with Ghana's President John Mahama. China recently became one of the top investing countries of Ghana, which predominantly focus on infrastructure, natural resources, and manufacturing sectors, have promoted economic growth, job creation, and technology transfer in Ghana. However, concerns regarding the sustainability of Chinese-financed projects, environmental impacts, and the lack of transparency in their investments call for a careful assessment of these collaborations. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met with Mahama in 2013 to hold discussions on strengthening the Non-Aligned Movement and also co–chair a bilateral meeting between Ghana and Iran at the Ghanaian presidential palace Flagstaff House.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) were integrated into Ghana's development agenda and the budget. According to reports, the SDGs were implemented through a decentralized planning approach. This allows for stakeholders' participation, such as in UN agencies, traditional leaders, civil society organizations, academia, and others. The 17 SDGs are a global call to action to end poverty among others, and the UN and its partners in the country are working towards achieving them. According to the President Nana Akufo-Addo, Ghana was "the first sub-Saharan African country to achieve the goal of halving poverty, as contained in Goal 1 of the Millennium Development Goals".

Military
In 1957, the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) consisted of its headquarters, support services, three battalions of infantry and a reconnaissance squadron with armoured vehicles. President Nkrumah aimed at rapidly expanding the GAF to support the United States of Africa ambitions. Thus, in 1961, 4th and 5th Battalions were established, and in 1964 6th Battalion was established, from a parachute airborne unit originally raised in 1963. Today, Ghana is a regional power and regional hegemon. In his book Shake Hands with the Devil, Canadian Forces commander Roméo Dallaire highly rated the GAF soldiers and military personnel.

The military operations and military doctrine of the GAF are conceptualised in the constitution, Ghana's Law on Armed Force Military Strategy, and Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre agreements to which GAF is attestator. GAF military operations are executed under the auspices and imperium of the Ministry of Defence. Although Ghana is relatively peaceful and is often considered being one of the least violent countries in the region, Ghana has experienced political violence in the past and 2017 has thus far seen an upward trend in incidents motivated by political grievances.

Law enforcement
The Ghana Police Service and the Criminal Investigation Department are the main law enforcement agencies, responsible for the detection of crime, maintenance of law and order and the maintenance of internal peace and security. The Ghana Police Service has eleven specialised police units, including a Militarized police Rapid deployment force and Marine Police Unit. The Ghana Police Service operates in 12 divisions: ten covering the regions of Ghana, one assigned specifically to the seaport and industrial hub of Tema, and the twelfth being the Railways, Ports and Harbours Division. The Ghana Police Service's Marine Police Unit and Division handles issues that arise from the country's offshore oil and gas industry.

The Ghana Prisons Service and the sub-division Borstal Institute for Juveniles administers incarceration. Ghana retains and exercises the death penalty for treason, corruption, robbery, piracy, drug trafficking, rape, and homicide. The new sustainable development goals adopted by the United Nations call for the international community to come together to promote the rule of law; support equal access to justice for all; reduce corruption; and develop effective, accountable, and transparent institutions at all levels.

Ghana is used as a key narcotics industry transshipment point by traffickers, usually from South America as well as some from other African nations. In 2013, the UN chief of the Office on Drugs and Crime stated that "West Africa is completely weak in terms of border control and the big drug cartels from Colombia and Latin America have chosen Africa as a way to reach Europe." There is not a wide or popular knowledge about the narcotics industry and intercepted narcotics within Ghana, since it is an underground economy. The social context within which narcotic trafficking, storage, transportation, and repacking systems exist in Ghana and the state's location along the Gulf of Guinea makes Ghana an attractive country for the narcotics business. The Narcotics Control Board has impounded container ships at the Sekondi Naval Base in the Takoradi Harbour. These ships were carrying thousands of kilograms of cocaine, with a street value running into billions of Ghana cedis. However, drug seizures saw a decline in 2011. Drug cartels are using new methods in narcotics production and narcotics exportation, to avoid Ghanaian security agencies. Underdeveloped institutions, porous open borders, and the existence of established smuggling organisations contribute to Ghana's position in the narcotics industry. President Mills initiated ongoing efforts to reduce the role of airports in Ghana's drug trade.

Human rights
Homosexual acts are prohibited by law in Ghana. According to a 2013 survey by the Pew Research Center, 96% of Ghanaians believe that homosexuality should not be accepted by society. Sometimes elderly women in Ghana are accused of witchcraft, particularly in rural Ghana. Issues of witchcraft mainly remain as speculations based on superstitions within families. In some parts of northern Ghana, there exist what are called witch camps. These are said to house a total of around 1,000 people accused of witchcraft. The Ghanaian government has announced that it intends to close the camps.

Economy

Ghana possesses industrial minerals, hydrocarbons and precious metals. It is an emerging designated digital economy with mixed economy hybridisation and an emerging market. It has an economic plan target known as the "Ghana Vision 2020". This plan envisions Ghana as the first African country to become a developed country between 2020 and 2029 and a newly industrialised country between 2030 and 2039. This excludes fellow Group of 24 member and Sub-Saharan African country South Africa, which is a newly industrialised country.

Ghana's economy has ties to the Chinese yuan renminbi along with Ghana's vast gold reserves. In 2013, the Bank of Ghana began circulating the renminbi throughout Ghanaian state-owned banks and to the Ghana public as hard currency along with the national Ghanaian cedi for second national trade currency.

Between 2012 and 2013, 38% of rural dwellers were experiencing poverty whereas only 11% of urban dwellers were. Urban areas hold greater opportunity for employment, particularly in informal trade, while nearly all (94 percent) of "rural poor households" participate in the agricultural sector.

The Volta River Authority and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, both state-owned, are the two major electricity producers. The Akosombo Dam, built on the Volta River in 1965, along with the Bui Dam, the Kpong Dam and several other hydroelectric dams, provide hydropower. In addition, the government sought to build the second nuclear power plant in Africa.

The Ghana Stock Exchange is the fifth largest on continental Africa and 3rd largest in sub-saharan Africa with a market capitalisation of GH¢ 57.2 billion or CN¥180.4 billion in 2012 with the South Africa JSE Limited as first. The Ghana Stock Exchange was the second best performing stock exchange in sub-saharan Africa in 2013.

Ghana produces high-quality cocoa. It is the second largest producer of cocoa globally. Ghana is classified as a middle income country. Services account for 50% of GDP, followed by manufacturing (24.1%), extractive industries (5%), and taxes (20.9%). Ghana has an increasing primary manufacturing economy and export of digital technology goods along with assembling and exporting automobiles and ships, diverse resource rich exportation of industrial minerals, agricultural products primarily cocoa, petroleum and natural gas, and industries such as information and communications technology primarily via Ghana's state digital technology corporation Rlg Communications which manufactures tablet computers with smartphones and various consumer electronics. Urban electric cars have been manufactured in Ghana since 2014.

It announced plans to issue government debt by way of social and green bonds in Autumn 2021, making it the first African country to do so. The country, which was planning to borrow up to $5 billion in international markets, would use the proceeds from these sustainable bonds to refinance debt used for social and environmental projects and pay for educational or health. Only a few other nations have sold them so far, including Chile and Ecuador. The country will use the proceeds to forge ahead with a free secondary-school initiative started in 2017 among other programs, despite having recorded its lowest economic growth rate in 37 years in 2020.

It produces and exports hydrocarbons such as sweet crude oil and natural gas. The 100%-state-owned filling station company, Ghana Oil Company, is the number 1 petroleum and gas filling station, and the 100%-state-owned state oil company Ghana National Petroleum Corporation oversees hydrocarbon exploration and production of petroleum and natural gas reserves. Ghana aims to further increase the output of oil to 2.2 e6oilbbl per day and gas to 1.2 e9cuft per day. The Jubilee Oil Field, which contains up to 3 Goilbbl of sweet crude oil, was discovered in 2007. Ghana is believed to have up to 5 Goilbbl to 7 Goilbbl of petroleum in reserves, which is the fifth-largest in Africa and the 21st-to-25th-largest proven reserves in the world. It also has up to 6 e12cuft of natural gas in reserves. The government has drawn up plans to nationalise petroleum and natural gas reserves to increase government revenue.

As of 2019, Ghana was the 7th largest producer of gold in the world, producing ~140 tonnes that year. This record saw Ghana surpass South Africa in output for the first time, making Ghana the largest gold producer in Africa. In addition to gold, Ghana exports silver, timber, diamonds, bauxite, and manganese, and has other mineral deposits. Ghana ranks 9th in the world in diamond export and reserve size. The government has drawn up plans to nationalize mining industry to increase government revenue.

"Shortages" of electricity in 2015 and 2016 led to dumsor ("persistent, irregular and unpredictable" electric power outages), increasing the interest in renewables. As of 2019, there is a surplus of electricity.

The judicial system of Ghana deals with corruption, economic malpractice and lack of economic transparency. According to Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index of 2018, out of 180 countries, Ghana was ranked 78th, with a score of 41 on a scale where a 0–9 score means highly corrupt, and a 90–100 score means very clean. This was based on perceived levels of public sector corruption.

Transport
The trans-African automobile route - the Dakar-Lagos Highway passes through Ghana.

There are several airports in Ghana.

Rail transport in Ghana have a gauge of 1067 mm (Cape gauge). Sea transportation is developed.

Science and technology
Ghana launched a cellular mobile network in 1992. It was later connected to the Internet and introduced ADSL broadband services. It was ranked 99th in the Global Innovation Index in 2023.

The Ghana Space Science and Technology Centre (GSSTC) and Ghana Space Agency (GhsA) oversee space exploration and space programmes. GSSTC and GhsA worked to have a national security observational satellite launched into orbit in 2015. Ghana's annual space exploration expenditure has been 1% of its GDP, to support research in science and technology. In 2012, Ghana was elected to chair the Commission on Science and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (Comsats); Ghana has a joint effort in space exploration with the South African National Space Agency.

Tourism

In 2011, tourists visiting Ghana numbered 1,087,000, with arrivals including South Americans, Asians, Europeans, and North Americans. Among the attractions and tourist destinations are waterfalls such as Kintampo waterfalls and the largest waterfall in west Africa, Wli waterfalls, the coastal palm-lined sandy beaches, caves, mountains, rivers, and reservoirs and lakes such as Lake Bosumtwi and the largest human-made lake in the world by surface area, Lake Volta, dozens of forts and castles, World Heritage Sites, nature reserves and national parks. Notable castles are Cape Coast Castle and the Elmina Castle. Castles mark where blood was shed in the slave trade and preserve and promote the African heritage stolen and destroyed through the slave trade. The World Heritage Convention of UNESCO named Ghana's castles and forts as World Heritage Monuments, based on the criterion: "The Castles and Forts of Ghana shaped not only Ghana’s history but that of the world over four centuries as the focus of first the gold trade and then the slave trade. They are a significant and emotive symbol of European-African encounters and of the starting point of the African Diaspora."

The World Economic Forum statistics in 2010 showed that out of the world's favourite tourist destinations, Ghana was ranked 108th out of 139 countries. The country had moved two places up from the 2009 rankings. In 2011, Forbes magazine published that Ghana was ranked the 11th most friendly country in the world. The assertion was based on a survey in 2010 of a cross-section of travellers. Of all the African countries that were included in the survey, Ghana ranked highest. Tourism is the fourth highest earner of foreign exchange for the country. In 2017, Ghana ranked as the 43rd–most peaceful country in the world.

Up and down the coastline, surfing spots have been identified and cultivated by locals and internationals. Surfers have made trips to the country to sample the waves. Surfers carried their boards amid traditional fishing vessels.

According to Destination Pride —a data-driven search platform used to visualize the world's LGBTQ+ laws, rights and social sentiment—Ghana's Pride score is 22 (out of 100).

Demographics
As of 2019, Ghana has a population of 30,083,000. Around 29% of the population is under the age of 15, while persons aged 15–64 make up 57.8 percent of the population. The 2010 census reported that the largest ethnic groups are the Akan (47.3%), the Mole-Dagbani (16.6%), the Ewe (13.9%), the Ga-Dangme (7.4%), the Gurma (5.7%) and the Guan (3.7%).

The median age of Ghanaian citizens is 30 years old and the average household size is 3.6 persons.

With recent legal immigration of skilled workers who possess Ghana Cards, there is a small population of Chinese, Malaysian, Indian, Middle Eastern and European nationals. In 2010, the Ghana Immigration Service reported many economic migrants and Illegal immigrants inhabiting Ghana: 14.6% (or 3.1 million) of Ghana's 2010 population (predominantly Nigerians, Burkinabe citizens, Togolese citizens, and Malian citizens). In 1969, under the "Ghana Aliens Compliance Order" enacted by Prime Minister Kofi Abrefa Busia, the Border Guard Unit deported over 3,000,000 aliens and illegal immigrants in three months as they made up 20% of the population at the time. In 2013, there was a mass deportation of illegal miners; over 4,000 of which were Chinese nationals.

Languages
English is the official language of Ghana. Additionally, there are eleven languages that have the status of government-sponsored languages:
 * Akan languages (Asante Twi, Akuapem Twi, Fante which have a high degree of mutual intelligibility, and Nzema, which is less intelligible with the above)
 * Dangme
 * Ewe
 * Ga
 * Guan
 * Kasem
 * Mole–Dagbani languages (Dagaare and Dagbanli)

Of these, Asante Twi is the most widely spoken.

Because Ghana is surrounded by French-speaking countries, French is widely taught in schools and used for commercial and international economic exchanges. Since 2006, Ghana has been an associate member of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, the global organisation that unites French-speaking countries (84 nations on six continents). In 2005, more than 350,000 Ghanaian children studied French in schools. Since then, its status has been progressively updated to a mandatory language in every junior high school, and it is in the process of becoming an official language.

Ghanaian Pidgin English, also known as Kru English (or in Akan, kroo brofo), is a variety of West African Pidgin English spoken in Accra and in the southern towns. It can be divided into two varieties, referred to as "uneducated" or "non-institutionalized" pidgin and "educated" or "institutionalized" pidgin, the former associated with uneducated or illiterate people and the latter acquired and used in institutions such as universities.

Religion
Christianity is the largest religion in Ghana, with 71.3% of the population being members of various Christian denominations as of the 2021 census. Islam is practised by 20% of the total population. According to a 2012 report by Pew Research, 51% of Muslims are followers of Sunni Islam, while approximately 16% belong to the Ahmadiyya movement and around 8% identify with Shia Islam, while the remainder are non-denominational Muslims. There is "no significant link between ethnicity and religion in Ghana".

Universal health care and life expectancy
Ghana has a universal health care system strictly designated for Ghanaian nationals, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), is designated for Ghanaian nationals. Health care is variable throughout Ghana and in 2012, over 12 million Ghanaian nationals were covered by the NHIS. Urban centres are well served and contain most of the hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies. There are over 200 hospitals, and Ghana is a destination for medical tourism. In 2010, there were 0.1 physicians per 1,000 people and, 0.9 hospital beds per 1,000 people. In 2010, 5.2% of Ghana's GDP was spent on health. In 2020, the WHO announced Ghana became the second country in the WHO African Region to attain regulatory system "maturity level 3", the second-highest in the four-tiered WHO classification of National medicines regulatory systems.

Life expectancy at birth in 2020 was 71 for a female and 65 for a male. In 2013, infant mortality was to 39 per 1,000 live births. Sources vary on life expectancy at birth; the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated 62 years for men and 64 years for women born in 2016. The fertility rate declined from 3.99 (2000) to 3.28 (2010) with 2.78 in urban region and 3.94 in rural region. The United Nations reports a fertility decline from 6.95 (1970) to 4.82 (2000) to 3.93 live births per woman in 2017.

, the HIV/AIDS prevalence was estimated at 1.40% among adults aged 15–49.

Education
The education system is divided into three parts: basic education, secondary cycle, and tertiary education. "Basic education" lasts 11 years (ages 4‒15). It is divided into kindergarten (two years), primary school (two modules of three years) and junior high (three years). Junior high school ends with the Basic Education Certificate Examination. Once certified, the pupil can proceed to the secondary cycle. Hence, the pupil has the choice between general education (offered by the senior high school) and vocational education (offered by the technical senior high school or the technical and vocational institutes). Senior high school lasts 3 years and leads to the West African Senior School Certificate Examination, which is a prerequisite for enrollment in a university bachelor's degree programme. Polytechnics are open to vocational students.

A bachelor's degree requires four years of study. It can be followed by a one- or two-year master's degree programme, which can be followed by a PhD programme of at least three years. A polytechnic programme lasts two or three years. Ghana possesses colleges of education. Some of the universities are the University of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, and University of Cape Coast.

There are over 95% of children in school. The female and male ages 15–24 years literacy rate was 81% in 2010, with males at 82%, and females at 80%. A education system annually attracts foreign students particularly in the university sector.

Ghana has a free education six-year primary school education system beginning at age 6. The government largely funds basic education comprising public primary schools and public junior high schools. Senior high schools were subsidised by the government until September 2017/2018 academic year that senior high education became free. At the higher education level, the government funds more than 80% of resources provided to public universities, polytechnics and teacher training colleges. As part of the Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education, Fcube, the government supplies all basic education schools with all their textbooks and other educational supplies, like exercise books. Senior high schools are provided with all their textbook requirements by the government. Private schools acquire their educational material from private suppliers.

Food and drink
Ghanaian cuisine includes an assortment of soups and stews with varied seafoods; most Ghanaian soups are prepared with vegetables, meat, poultry or fish. Fish is important in the diet, with tilapia, roasted and fried whitebait, smoked fish and crayfish, all being common components of Ghanaian dishes. Banku (akple) is a common starchy food made from ground corn (maize), and cornmeal based staples kɔmi (kenkey) and banku (akple) are usually accompanied by some form of fried fish (chinam) or grilled tilapia and a very spicy condiment made from raw red and green chillies, onions and tomatoes (pepper sauce). Banku and tilapia is a combo served in most restaurants. Fufu is the most common exported Ghanaian dish and is a delicacy across the African diaspora. Rice is an established staple meal across the country, with various rice-based dishes serving as breakfast, lunch and dinner, the main variants are waakye, plain rice and stew (eight kontomire or tomato gravy), fried rice and jollof rice.

Clothing
During the 13th century, Ghanaians developed their unique art of adinkra printing. Hand-printed and hand-embroidered adinkra clothes were made and used exclusively by royalty for devotional ceremonies. Each of the motifs that make up the corpus of adinkra symbolism has a name and meaning derived from a proverb, a historical event, human attitude, ethology, plant life-form, or shapes of inanimate and man-made objects. The meanings of the motifs may be categorised into aesthetics, ethics, human relations, and concepts. The Adinkra symbols have a decorative function as tattoos but also represent objects that encapsulate evocative messages that convey traditional wisdom, aspects of life, or the environment. There are many symbols with distinct meanings, often linked with proverbs. In the words of Anthony Appiah, they were one of the means in a pre-literate society for "supporting the transmission of a complex and nuanced body of practice and belief". Along with the adinkra cloth, Ghanaians use many cloth fabrics for their traditional attire. The different ethnic groups have their own individual cloth. The most well known is the Kente cloth. Kente is a very important national costume and clothing, and these clothes are used to make traditional and modern Kente attire. Different symbols and different colours mean different things. Kente is the most famous of all the Ghanaian clothes. Kente is a ceremonial cloth hand-woven on a horizontal treadle loom and strips measuring about 4 inches wide are sewn together into larger pieces of cloths. Cloths come in various colours, sizes and designs and are worn during very important social and religious occasions. In a cultural context, kente is more important than just a cloth as it is a visual representation of history and also a form of written language through weaving. The term kente has its roots in the Akan word kɛntɛn which means a basket and the first kente weavers used raffia fibres to weave cloths that looked like kenten (a basket); and thus were referred to as kenten ntoma; meaning basket cloth. The original Akan name of the cloth was nsaduaso or nwontoma, meaning "a cloth hand-woven on a loom"; however, "kente" is the most frequently used term today. Kente is also woven by the Ewe people (Ewe Kente) in the Volta Region. The main weaving centres are Agortime area and Agbozume. Agbozume has a vibrant kente market attracting patrons from all over west Africa and the diaspora.

Contemporary Ghanaian fashion includes traditional and modern styles and fabrics and has made its way into the African and global fashion scene. The cloth known as African print fabric was created out of Dutch wax textiles. It is believed that in the late 19th century, Dutch ships on their way to Asia stocked with machine-made textiles that mimicked Indonesian batik stopped at many West African ports on the way. The fabrics did not do well in Asia. However, in West Africa—mainly Ghana where there was an already established market for cloths and textiles—the client base grew and it was changed to include local and traditional designs, colours and patterns to cater to the taste of the new consumers. Today outside of Africa it is called "Ankara," and it has a client base well beyond Ghana and Africa as a whole. It is popular among Caribbean peoples and African Americans; celebrities such as Solange Knowles and her sister Beyoncé have been seen wearing African print attire. Many designers from countries in North America and Europe are now using African prints, and they have gained a global interest. British luxury fashion house Burberry created a collection around Ghanaian styles. American musician Gwen Stefani has repeatedly incorporated African prints into her clothing line and can often be seen wearing it. Internationally acclaimed Ghanaian-British designer Ozwald Boateng introduced African print suits in his 2012 collection.

Music and dance

Music incorporates types of musical instruments such as the talking drum ensembles, Akan Drum, goje fiddle and koloko lute, court music, including the Akan Seperewa, the Akan atumpan, the Ga kpanlogo styles, and log xylophones used in asonko music. African jazz was created by Kofi Ghanaba. A form of secular music is highlife. Highlife originated in the 19th and 20th centuries and spread throughout West Africa.

In the 1990s, a genre of music was created incorporating the influences of highlife, Afro-reggae, dancehall and hip hop. This hybrid was called hiplife.

There are dances for occasions. Dances for celebrations include the Adowa, Kpanlogo, Azonto, Klama, Agbadza, Borborbor and Bamaya. The Nana Otafrija Pallbearing Services, also known as the Dancing Pallbearers, come from the coastal town of Prampram. The group was featured in a BBC feature story in 2017, and footage from the story became part of an Internet meme in the wake of the COVID-19 world pandemic.

Media

Chapter 12 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana guarantees freedom of the press and independence of the media, while Chapter 2 prohibits censorship. Post-independence, private outlets closed during the military governments, and media laws prevented criticism of government. Press freedoms were restored in 1992, and after the election in 2000 of Kufuor, the tensions between the private media and government decreased. Kufuor supported press freedom and repealed a libel law, and maintained that the media had to act responsibly. The media have been described as "one of the most unfettered" in Africa.

In 1948, the Gold Coast Film Unit was set up in the Information Services Department.

Architecture
There are two types of construction: the series of adjacent buildings in an enclosure around a common, and the round huts with grass roof. The round huts with grass roof architecture are situated in the northern regions, while the series of adjacent buildings are in the southern regions. Postmodern architecture and high-tech architecture buildings are in the southern regions, while heritage sites are evident in the more than 30 forts and castles in the country, such as Fort William and Fort Amsterdam. Ghana has museums that are situated inside castles, and two are situated inside a fort. The Military Museum and the National Museum organise temporary exhibitions.

Ghana has museums that allow an in-depth look at specific regions, with a number of museums providing insight into the traditions and history of the geographical areas. The Cape Coast Castle Museum and St. Georges Castle (Elmina Castle) Museum offer guided tours. The Museum of Science and Technology provides its visitors with a look into the domain of scientific development, through exhibits of objects of scientific and technological interest.

Sports
Association football is the top spectator sport in Ghana. Ghana has won the Africa Cup of Nations four times, the FIFA U-20 World Cup once, and has participated in four consecutive FIFA World Cups (2006, 2010, 2014 and 2022) and has also won the FIFA U-17 World Cup twice. The International Federation of Football History and Statistics crowned Asante Kotoko SC as the African club of the 20th century.

Ghana competes in the Commonwealth Games, sending athletes in every edition since 1954 (except for the 1986 games). Ghana has won 57 medals at the Commonwealth Games, including 15 gold, with all but one of their medals coming in athletics and boxing. The country has also produced a number of boxers, including Azumah Nelson a three-time world champion, Nana Yaw Konadu also a three-time world champion, Ike Quartey, and Joshua Clottey.

Ghana Month
Ghana month is celebrated in March, a month significantly representing independence of Ghana and its historical trajectories. March is mainly for the celebration, showcasing and reflection of Ghana's history, culture, traditions, achievements, music, food etc. During this period, Ghanaian media houses showcase rich Ghanaian culture and tradition, fashion, heritage, tourism and many more on the media space, as well as educating others on Ghana's history. It is also to celebrate pan-Africanism and its pioneers.

Government

 * Ghana site
 * The Parliament of Ghana site
 * National Commission on Culture site

General information

 * Country Profile from BBC News
 * Ghana from Encyclopædia Britannica
 * Ghana from UCB Libraries GovPubs
 * Ghana. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
 * Ghana profile from Africa.com
 * The African Activist Archive Project website has photographs of the All Africa People's Conference held in Accra, Ghana, 5–13 December 1958 including Kwame Nkrumah, Prime Minister of Ghana, addressing the conference, the American Committee on Africa delegation meeting with Nkrumah, and of Patrick Duncan and Alfred Hutchinson of South Africa at the conference.
 * Key Development Forecasts for Ghana from International Futures
 * The African Activist Archive Project website has photographs of the All Africa People's Conference held in Accra, Ghana, 5–13 December 1958 including Kwame Nkrumah, Prime Minister of Ghana, addressing the conference, the American Committee on Africa delegation meeting with Nkrumah, and of Patrick Duncan and Alfred Hutchinson of South Africa at the conference.
 * Key Development Forecasts for Ghana from International Futures

Trade

 * Ghana 2012 Summary Trade Statistics

title: Ghana


text:
Geography of Ghana

Ghana is a West African country in Africa, along the Gulf of Guinea.

Ghana encompasses plains, low hills, rivers, Lake Volta, the world's largest artificial lake, Dodi Island and Bobowasi Island on the south Atlantic Ocean coast of Ghana. Ghana can be divided into four different geographical ecoregions. The coastline is mostly a low, sandy shore backed by plains and scrub and intersected by several rivers and streams. The northern part of Ghana features high plains. South-west and south-central Ghana is made up of a forested plateau region consisting of the Ashanti uplands and the Kwahu Plateau. The hilly Akwapim-Togo ranges are found along Ghana's eastern international border.

The Volta Basin takes up most of south-central Ghana and Ghana's highest point is Mount Afadja which is 885 m and is found in the Akwapim-Togo ranges. The climate is tropical and the eastern coastal belt is warm and comparatively dry, the south-west corner of Ghana is hot and humid, and the north of Ghana is warm and wet. Lake Volta, the world's largest artificial lake, extends through small portions of south-eastern Ghana and many tributary rivers such as the Oti and Afram rivers flow into it.

The northernmost part of Ghana is Pulmakom and the southernmost part of Ghana is Cape Three Points near Axim. Ghana lies between latitudes 4° and 12°N. South Ghana contains evergreen and semi-deciduous forests consisting of trees such as mahogany, odum, ebony and it also contains much of Ghana's oil palms and mangroves with shea trees, baobabs and acacias found in the northern part of Ghana. Its southernmost coast at Cape Three Points is 4° 30' north of the equator. From here, the country extends inland for some 670 km to about 11° north. The distance across the widest part, between longitude 1° 12' east and longitude 3° 15' west, measures about 560 km.

The Greenwich Meridian, which passes through London, also traverses the eastern part of Ghana at Tema.

Area and boundaries

 * Area:
 * Total: 238,537 km²

 * country rank in the world: 80th
 * Land: 227,533 km²
 * Water: 11,000 km²

 * Area comparative
 * Australia comparative: slightly larger than Victoria
 * Canada comparative: slightly less than half the size of the Yukon
 * United Kingdom comparative: slightly smaller than the United Kingdom
 * United States comparative: approximately twice the size of Pennsylvania
 * EU comparative: approximately equal in size to Romania

 * Land boundaries

 * total: 2,420 km
 * border countries: Burkina Faso (602 km) to the north, Ivory Coast (720 km) to the west, and Togo (1,098 km) to the east.

Terrain of Ghana
The terrain consists of desert mountains with the Kwahu Plateau in the south-central area. Half of Ghana lies less than 152 m above sea level, and the highest point is 883 m. The 537 km coastline is mostly a low, sandy shore backed by plains and scrub and intersected by several rivers and streams, most of which are navigable only by canoe.

A tropical rain forest belt, broken by heavily forested hills and many streams and rivers, extends northward from the shore, near the Ivory Coast frontier. This area, known as the "Ashanti," produces most of Ghana's cocoa, minerals, and timber. North of this belt, the elevation varies from 91 to 396 m above sea level and is covered by low bushes, park-like savanna, and grassy plains.

Irrigated land: 309 km2 (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 53.2 km3 (2011)

Geographical regions
Ghana is characterized in general by low physical relief. The Precambrian rock system that underlies most of the nation has been worn down by erosion almost to a plain. The highest elevation in Ghana, Mount Afadja in the Akwapim-Togo Ranges, rises 880 m above sea level.

There are four distinct geographical regions. Low plains stretch across the southern part of Ghana. To their north lie three regions—the Ashanti Uplands, the Akwapim-Togo Ranges, and the Volta Basin. The fourth region, the high plains, occupies the northern and northwestern sector of Ghana. Like most West African countries, Ghana has no natural harbours. Because strong surf pounds the shoreline, two artificial harbours were built at Takoradi and Tema (the latter completed in 1961) to accommodate Ghana's shipping needs.

Low plains
The low plains comprise the four subregions of the coastal savanna, the Volta Delta, the Accra Plains, and the Akan lowlands or peneplains. A narrow strip of grassy and scrubby coast runs from a point near Takoradi in the west to the Togo border in the east. This coastal savanna, only about 8 km in width at its western end, stretches eastward through the Accra Plains, where it widens to more than 80 km, and terminates at the southeastern corner of the country at the lower end of the Akwapim-Togo Ranges.

Almost flat and featureless, the Accra Plains descend gradually to the gulf from a height of about 150 m. The topography east of the city of Accra is marked by a succession of ridges and spoonshaped valleys. The hills and slopes in this area are the favoured lands for cultivation. Shifting cultivation is the usual agricultural practice because of the swampy nature of the very lowlying areas during the rainy seasons and the periodic blocking of the rivers at the coast by sandbars that form lagoons. A plan to irrigate the Accra Plains was announced in 1984. Should this plan come to reality, much of the area could be opened to large-scale cultivation.

To the west of Accra, the low plains contain wider valleys and rounded low hills, with occasional rocky headlands. In general, however, the land is flat and covered with grass and scrub. Dense groves of coconut palms front the coastline. Several commercial centres, including Winneba, Saltpond, and Cape Coast are located here. Winneba has a small livestock industry and palm tree cultivation is expanding in the area away from the coast, with the predominant occupation of the coastal inhabitants being fishing via dug-out canoe.

The Volta Delta, which forms a distinct subregion of the low plains, extends into the Gulf of Guinea in the extreme southeast. The delta's rock formation—consisting of thick layers of sandstone, some limestone, and silt deposits—is flat, featureless, and relatively young. As the delta grew outward over the centuries, sandbars developed across the mouths of the Volta and smaller rivers that empty into the gulf in the same area, forming numerous lagoons, some quite large, making road construction difficult.

To avoid the lowest-lying areas the road between Accra and Keta makes a detour inland just before reaching Ada, and approaches Keta from the east along the narrow spit on which the town stands. Road links with Keta continue to be a problem. By 1989 it was estimated that more than 3,000 houses in the town had been swallowed by flooding from the lagoon. About 1,500 other houses were destroyed by erosion caused by the powerful waves of the sea.

This flat, silt-composed delta region with its abundance of water supports shallot, corn, and cassava cultivation in the region. The sandy soil of the delta gave rise to the copra industry. Salt-making, from the plentiful supply in the dried beds of the lagoons, provides additional employment. The main occupation of the delta people is fishing, an industry that supplies dried and salted fish to other parts of the country.

The largest part of the low plains is the Akan Lowlands. Some experts prefer to classify this region as a subdivision of the Ashanti Uplands because of the many characteristics they share. Unlike the uplands, the height of the Akan Lowlands is generally between sea level and 150 m. Some ranges and hills rise to about 300 m, but few exceed 600 m. The lowlands that lie to the south of the Ashanti Uplands receive the many rivers that make their way to the sea.

The Akan Lowlands contain the basins of the Densu River, the Pra River, the Ankobra River, and the Tano River, all of which play important roles in the economy of Ghana. The Densu River Basin, location of the important urban centres of Koforidua and Nsawam in the eastern lowlands, has an undulating topography. Many of the hills here have craggy summits, which give a striking appearance to the landscape. The upper section of the Pra River Basin, to the west of the Densu, is relatively flat. The topography of its lower reaches resembles that of the Densu Basin and is a rich cocoa and food-producing region. The valley of the Birim River, one of the main tributaries of the Pra, is Ghana's most important diamond-producing area.

The Ankobra River Basin and the middle and lower basins of the Tano River to the west of the lowlands form the largest subdivision of the Akan Lowlands. Here annual rainfall between 1,500 and 2,150 mm helps assure a dense forest cover. In addition to timber, the area is rich in minerals. The Tarkwa goldfield, the diamond operations of the Bonsa Valley, and high-grade manganese deposits are all found in this area. The middle and lower Tano basins have been intensely explored for oil and natural gas since the mid-1980s. The lower basins of the Pra, Birim, Densu, and Ankobra rivers are also sites for palm tree cultivation.

Comprising the Southern Ashanti Uplands and the Kwahu Plateau, the Ashanti Uplands lie just north of the Akan Lowlands and stretch from the Ivory Coast border in the west to the elevated edge of the Volta Basin in the east. Stretching in a northwest-to-southeast direction, the Kwahu Plateau extends 193 km between Koforidua in the east and Wenchi in the northwest. The average elevation of the plateau is about 450 m, rising to a maximum of 762 m. The relatively cool temperatures of the plateau were attractive to Europeans, particularly missionaries, who founded many well-known schools and colleges in this region.

The plateau forms one of the important physical divides in Ghana. From its northeastern slopes, the Afram and Pru Rivers flow into the Volta River, while from the opposite side, the Pra, Birim, Ofin, Tano, and other rivers flow south toward the sea. The plateau also marks the northernmost limit of the forest zone. Although large areas of the forest cover have been destroyed through farming, enough deciduous forest remains to shade the head waters of the rivers that flow from the plateau.

The Southern Ashanti Uplands, extending from the foot of the Kwahu Plateau in the north to the lowlands in the south, slope gently from an elevation of about 300 m in the north to about 150 m in the south. The region contains several hills and ranges as well as several towns of historical and economic importance, including Kumasi, Ghana's second largest city and former capital of the Asante. Obuasi and Konongo, two of the country's gold-mining centres, are also located here. The region is Ghana's chief producer of cocoa, and its tropical forests continue to be a vital source of timber for the lumber industry.

Volta Basin
Taking the central part of Ghana, the Volta Basin covers about 45 percent of the nation's total land surface. Its northern section, which lies above the upper part of Lake Volta, rises to a height of 150 to 215 m above sea level. Elevations of the Konkori Scarp to the west and the Gambaga Scarp to the north reach from 300 to 460 m. To the south and the southwest, the basin is less than 300 m. The Kwahu Plateau marks the southern end of the basin, and forms a natural part of the Ashanti Uplands.

The basin is characterized by poor soil, generally of Voltaian sandstone. Annual rainfall averages between 1,000 and 1,140 mm. The most widespread vegetation type is savanna, the woodlands of which, depending on local soil and climatic conditions, may contain such trees as red ironwood and shea.

The basin's population, principally farmers, is low in density, especially in the central and northwestern areas of the basin, where tsetse flies are common. Archeological finds indicate that the region was once more heavily populated. Periodic burning occurred over extensive areas for perhaps more than a millennium, exposing the soil to excessive drying and erosion, rendering the area less attractive to cultivators.

In contrast with the rest of the region are the Afram Plains, located in the southeastern corner of the basin. Here the terrain is low, averaging 60 to 150 m in elevation, and annual rainfall is between 1,140 mm and about 1,400 mm. Near the Afram River, much of the surrounding countryside is flooded or swampy during the rainy seasons. With the creation of Lake Volta (8500 km2 in area) in the mid-1960s, much of the Afram Plains was submerged. Despite the construction of roads to connect communities displaced by the lake, road transportation in the region remains poor. Renewed efforts to improve communications, to enhance agricultural production, and to improve standards of living began in earnest in the mid-1980s.

High plains
The general terrain in the northern and northwestern part of Ghana outside the Volta Basin consists of a dissected plateau, which averages between 150 and 300 m in elevation and, in some places, is even higher. Rainfall averages between 1,000 and 1,150 mm annually, although in the northwest it is closer to 1,350 mm. Soils in the high plains are more arable than those in the Volta Basin, and the population density is considerably higher. Grain and cattle production are the major economic activities in the high plains of the northern region.

Since the mid-1980s, when former United States President Jimmy Carter's Global 2000 program adopted Ghana as one of a select number of African countries whose local farmers were to be educated and financially supported to improve agricultural production, there has been a dramatic increase in grain production in northern Ghana. The virtual absence of tsetse flies in the region has led to increased livestock raising as a major occupation in the north. The region is Ghana's largest producer of cattle.

Rivers and lakes

Ghana is drained by a large number of streams and rivers. In addition, there are a number of coastal lagoons, the huge man-made Lake Volta, and Lake Bosumtwi, southeast of Kumasi, which has no outlet to the sea. In the wetter south and southwest areas of Ghana, the river and stream pattern is denser, but in the area north of the Kwahu Plateau, the pattern is much more open, making access to water more difficult. Several streams and rivers also dry up or experience reduced flow during the dry seasons of the year, while flooding during the rainy seasons is common.

The major drainage divide runs from the southwest part of the Akwapim-Togo Ranges northwest through the Kwahu Plateau and then irregularly westward to the Ivory Coast border. Almost all the rivers and streams north of this divide form part of the Volta system. Extending about 1,600 km in length and draining an area of about 388,000 km2, of which about 158,000 km2 lie within Ghana, the Volta and its tributaries, such as the Afram River and the Oti River, drain more than two thirds of Ghana. To the south of the divide are several smaller, independent rivers. The most important of these are the Pra River, the Tano River, the Ankobra River, the Birim River, and the Densu River. With the exception of smaller streams that dry up in the dry seasons or rivers that empty into inland lakes, all the major rivers in Ghana flow into the Gulf of Guinea directly or as tributaries to other major rivers. The Ankobra and Tano are navigable for considerable distances in their lower reaches.

Navigation on the Volta River has changed significantly since 1964. Construction of the dam at Akosombo, about 80 km upstream from the coast, created the vast Lake Volta and the associated hydroelectric project. Arms of the lake extended into the lower-lying areas, forcing the relocation of 78,000 people to newly created townships on the lake's higher banks. The Black Volta River and the White Volta River flow separately into the lake. Before their confluence was submerged, the rivers came together in the middle of Ghana to form the main Volta River.

The Oti River and the Daka River, the principal tributaries of the Volta in the eastern part of Ghana, and the Pru River, the Sene River, and the Afram River, major tributaries to the north of the Kawhu Plateau, also empty into flooded extensions of the lake in their river valleys. Lake Volta is a rich source of fish, and its potential as a source for irrigation is reflected in an agricultural mechanization agreement signed in the late 1980s to irrigate the Afram Plains. The lake is navigable from Akosombo through Yeji in the middle of Ghana. A 24 m pontoon was commissioned in 1989 to link the Afram Plains to the west of the lake with the lower Volta region to the east. Hydroelectricity generated from Akosombo supplies Ghana, Togo, and Benin.

On the other side of the Kwahu Plateau from Lake Volta are several river systems, including the Pra, Ankobra, Tano and Densu. The Pra is the easternmost and the largest of the three principal rivers that drain the area south of the Volta divide. Rising south of the Kwahu Plateau and flowing southward, the Pra enters the Gulf of Guinea east of Takoradi. In the early part of the twentieth century, the Pra was used extensively to float timber to the coast for export. This trade is now carried by road and rail transportation.

The Ankobra, which flows to the west of the Pra, has a relatively small drainage basin. It rises in the hilly region of Bibiani and flows in a southerly direction to enter the gulf just west of Axim. Small craft can navigate approximately 80 km inland from its mouth. At one time, the Ankobra helped transport machinery to the gold-mining areas in the vicinity of Tarkwa. The Tano, which is the westernmost of the three rivers, rises near Techiman in the centre of the country. It also flows in a southerly direction, and it empties into a lagoon in the southeast corner of Ivory Coast. Navigation by steam launch is possible on the southern sector of the Tano for about 70 km.

A number of rivers are found to the east of the Pra. The two most important are the Densu and Ayensu, both of which rise in the Atewa Range, and which are important as sources of water for Accra and Winneba respectively. The country has one large natural lake, Lake Bosumtwi, located about 32 km southeast of Kumasi. It occupies the steep-sided meteoric crater and has an area of about 47 km2. A number of small streams flow into Lake Bosumtwi, but there is no drainage from it. Apart from providing an opportunity for fishing for local inhabitants, the lake serves as a tourist attraction.

Climate
The country's warm, humid climate has an annual mean temperature between 26 and 29 °C. Variations in the principal elements of temperature, rainfall, and humidity that govern the climate are influenced by the movement and interaction of the dry tropical continental air mass, or the harmattan, which blows from the northeast across the Sahara, and the opposing tropical maritime or moist equatorial system. The cycle of the seasons follows the apparent movement of the sun back and forth across the equator. During summer in the northern hemisphere, a warm and moist maritime air mass intensifies and pushes northward across the country. A low-pressure belt, or intertropical front, in the airmass brings warm air, rain, and prevailing winds from the southwest. As the sun returns south across the equator, the dry, dusty, tropical continental front, or harmattan, prevails. Climatic conditions across the country are hardly uniform. The Kwahu Plateau, which marks the northernmost extent of the forest area, also serves as an important climatic divide. To its north, two distinct seasons occur. The harmattan season, with its dry, hot days and relatively cool nights from November to late March or April, is followed by a wet period that reaches its peak in late August or September. To the south and southwest of the Kwahu Plateau, where the annual mean rainfall from north to south ranges from 1,250 to 2,150 mm, four separate seasons occur. Heavy rains fall from about April through late June. After a relatively short dry period in August, another rainy season begins in September and lasts through November, before the longer harmattan season sets in to complete the cycle.

The extent of drought and rainfall varies across the country. To the south of the Kwahu Plateau, the heaviest rains occur in the Axim area in the southwest corner of Ghana. Farther to the north, Kumasi receives an average annual rainfall of about 1,400 mm, while Tamale in the drier northern savanna receives rainfall of 1,000 mm per year. From Takoradi eastward to the Accra Plains, including the lower Volta region, rainfall averages only 750 to 1,000 mm a year.

Temperatures are usually high at all times of the year throughout the country. At higher elevations, temperatures are more comfortable. In the far north, temperature highs of 31 °C are common. The southern part of the country is characterized by generally humid conditions. This is particularly so during the night, when 95 to 100 percent humidity is possible. Humid conditions also prevail in the northern section of the country during the rainy season. During the harmattan season, however, humidity drops as low as 25 percent in the north.

Natural hazards
Dry, dusty, harmattan winds occur from January to March. Ghana is also prone to droughts, and was severely affected by floods in 2007 and 2009.

Environmental issues
Environmental issues include recurrent drought in the north, severely affecting agricultural activities, deforestation, overgrazing, soil erosion, poaching and habitat destruction threatens wildlife populations, water pollution, and inadequate supplies of potable water

International agreements (ratified):

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands.

 International agreements (signed, but not ratified)

Marine Life Conservation.

Other
Volta Lake, the largest artificial lake in the world, extends from the Akosombo Dam in southeastern Ghana to the town of Yapei, 520 km to the north. The lake generates electricity, provides inland transportation, and is a potentially valuable resource for irrigation and fish farming.

Ghana has a large and well-preserved national park system that includes Kakum National Park in the Central Region, Mole National Park in the Northern Region, Digya National Park along the western bank of the Volta Lake.

Extreme points
This is a list of the extreme points of Ghana, the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location.
 * Northernmost point – the point at which the border with Burkina Faso enters the Morbira river immediately south of the Burkinabè village of Kanhiré, Upper East Region
 * Easternmost point – the southernmost section of the border with Togo, Volta Region*
 * Southernmost point – Cape Three Points, Western Region
 * Westernmost point - the point where the border with Ivory Coast enters the Manzan river, Western Region
 * Note: Ghana does not have an easternmost point, the border at this section being defined along the line of longitude at 1°12'05.73"E

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Geography of Ghana


text:
Demographics of Ghana

Demographic features of the population of Ghana include population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, religious affiliations, and other aspects.

Ghana's population is 30,832,019 (2021 census).

Languages

Ghana is a multilingual country in which about 80 languages are spoken. English is the official language and lingua franca. Of the languages indigenous to Ghana, Akan is the most widely spoken.

Ghana has more than seventy ethnic groups, each with its own distinct language. Languages that belong to the same ethnic group are usually mutually intelligible.

Eleven languages have the status of government-sponsored languages: four Akan ethnic languages (Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi, Fante and Nzema) and two Mole–Dagbani ethnic languages (Dagaare and Dagbanli). The rest are Ewe, Dangme, Ga, Gonja, and Kasem, Hausa.

Ethnic groups
Ghana has more than seventy native ethnic groups. Major native African ethnic groups in Ghana include the Akan at 45.7% of the population, the Mole-Dagbon at 18.5%, the Ewe at 13.9%, the Ga-Dangme at 7.1%, the Gurma at 6.4%, the Guan at 3.2%, the Grusi at 2.7%, Mande at 2% and others at 1.6%. Some 20 thousands of Native Europeans live in Ghana.

Education
Primary and junior secondary school education is tuition-free and mandatory. Since 1987, the Government of Ghana has increased its education budget by 700%. Basic education's share has grown from 45% to 60% of that total.

Students begin their six-year primary education at the age of six. They pass into a junior secondary school system for three years of academic training combined with technical and vocational training. Those continuing move into the three-year senior secondary school program. Entrance to one of the best Ghanaian universities is by examination following completion of senior secondary school with a pass mark.

Demographic trends

Ghana's first post independence population census in 1961 counted about 6.7 million inhabitants. Between 1965 and 1989, a constant 45% of Ghana total female population was of childbearing age.

The crude death rate of 18 per 1,000 population in 1965 fell to 13 per 1,000 population in 1992. Life expectancy rose from a 1992 average of 42 years for men and 45 years for women to 52 and 56 years in 2002. The fertility rate averaged two children per adult female in 2013.

Population by Sex and Age Group (Census 26.IX.2010):

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2015) (Data based on the 2010 Population Census.):

Births and deaths based on UNDESA
In July 2022, the United Nations published its 2022 World Population Prospects, a biennially-updated database where key demographic indicators are estimated and projected worldwide down to the country level. They prepared the following estimates of demographic indicators in Ghana for every year from 1950 to 2021, as well as projections for future decades.

Fertility and births based on Demographics Health Survey
Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR) Demographics Health Survey:

Other demographic statistics
Demographic statistics according to the World Population Review in 2022.

 * One birth every 35 seconds
 * One death every 2 minutes
 * One net migrant every 53 minutes
 * Net gain of one person every 48 seconds

The following demographics are from the independent Ghana Statistical Service and from the CIA World Factbook unless otherwise indicated.

Population

 * 33,107,275 (2022 est.)
 * 30,802,793 (Feb 2020 )
 * 25,009,153 (December 2013 est. ) Females- 50.5% Male- 49.5%

Religions
Christian: 71.3% (Pentecostal/Charismatic 31.6%, Protestant 17.4%, Catholic 10%, other 12.3%), Muslim 19.9%, traditionalist 3.2%, 2.1% Hindu, other 1.3%, none 1.1% (2021 est.)

Age structure

 * 0-14 years: 37.44% (male 5,524,932/female 5,460,943)
 * 15-24 years: 18.64% (male 2,717,481/female 2,752,601)
 * 25-54 years: 34.27% (male 4,875,985/female 5,177,959)
 * 55-64 years: 5.21% (male 743,757/female 784,517)
 * 65 years and over: 4.44% (male 598,387/female 703,686) (2020 est.)

 * 0–14 years: 37.83% (male 5,344,146 /female 5,286,383)
 * 15–24 years: 18.61% (male 2,600,390 /female 2,629,660)
 * 25–54 years: 34.21% (male 4,663,234 /female 4,950,888)
 * 55–64 years: 5.05% (male 690,327 /female 727,957)
 * 65 years and over: 4.3% (male 557,155 /female 652,331) (2018 est.)

Population growth rate

 * 2.23% (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 35th
 * 2.16% (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 40th

Birth rate

 * 28.55 births/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 34th
 * 30.2 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 35th
 * 16.03 births/1,000 population (2013 est.)

Death rate

 * 6.14 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 150th
 * 6.8 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 134th
 * 7.53 deaths/1,000 population (2013 est.)

Total fertility rate

 * 3.61 children born/woman (2023 est.) Country comparison to the world: 32nd
 * 3.66 children born/woman (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 33rd
 * 3.96 children born/woman (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 34th
 * Fertility rate declined from 3.99 (2000) to 3.28 (2010) with 2.78 in Urban region and 3.94 in rural region.

Median age

 * total: 21.4 years. Country comparison to the world: 184th
 * male: 21 years
 * female: 21.9 years (2020 est.)

 * total: 21.2 years. Country comparison to the world: 185th
 * male: 20.7 years
 * female: 21.7 years (2018 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

 * 22.3 years (2017 est.)
 * note: median age at first birth among women 25–29

Contraceptive prevalence rate

 * 27.2% (2017/18)

Net migration rate

 * -0.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 107th
 * -1.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.) Country comparison to the world: 154th
 * -1.85 migrant(s)/1,020 population (2013 est.)

Infant mortality rate

 * 39.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2013 est.)

Dependency ratios

 * total dependency ratio: 73 (2015 est.)
 * youth dependency ratio: 67.1 (2015 est.)
 * elderly dependency ratio: 5.9 (2015 est.)
 * potential support ratio: 17.1 (2015 est.)

Urbanization

 * urban population: 58.6% of total population (2022)
 * rate of urbanization: 3.06% annual rate of change (2020–25 est.)

 * urban population: 56.1% of total population (2018)
 * rate of urbanization: 3.34% annual rate of change (2015–20 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

 * total population: 69.37 years. Country comparison to the world: 178th
 * male: 67.7 years
 * female: 71.09 years (2022 est.)

 * total population: 67.4 years (2018 est.)
 * male: 64.9 years (2018 est.)
 * female: 70 years (2018 est.)

 * total population: 65.46 years (2013 est.); 66 years
 * male: 64.48 years (2013 est.); 66 years
 * female: 66.48 years (2013 est.); 67 years (2013 est.)

Nationality
noun: Ghanaian

adjective: Ghanaian

Citizenship

 * Ghanaian citizens (20,000,000 million)
 * Ghanaian people

Languages

 * Asante 16%, Ewe 13%, Fante 11.6%, Dagbanli 10%, Bono (Brong) 4.9%, Dangme 4.2%, Dagarte (Dagaba) 3.9%, Likpakpaanl a.k.a. Konkomba language 3.5%, Akyem 3.2%, Ga 3.1%, Other 31.2%

Literacy
Definition: aged 15 and over can read and write
 * total population: 79%
 * male: 83.5%
 * female: 74.5% (2018)

 * total population: 76.6% (2015 est.)
 * male: 82% (2015 est.)
 * female: 71.4% (2015 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

 * total: 12 years
 * male: 12 years
 * female: 12 years (2020)

 * total population: 71.5%
 * male: 78.3%
 * female: 65.3% (2010 census)

Major infectious diseases

 * degree of risk: very high (2020)
 * food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
 * vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever
 * water contact diseases: schistosomiasis
 * animal contact diseases: rabies
 * respiratory diseases: meningococcal meningitis

 * note: since October 2021, there has been a yellow fever outbreak in Ghana with numerous cases, including some deaths, in the following regions: Savannah, Upper West, Bono, and Oti; the CDC recommends travelers going to Ghana should receive vaccination against yellow fever at least 10 days before travel and should take steps to prevent mosquito bites while there; those never vaccinated against yellow fever should avoid travel to Nigeria during the outbreak; there are no medications to treat or cure yellow fever

Unemployment, youth ages 15–24

 * total: 9.1%
 * male: 9.4%
 * female: 8.7% (2017 est.)

Population distribution
Population density increased steadily from 36 per square kilometer in 1970 to 52 per square kilometer in 1984. In 1990 63 persons per square kilometer was the estimate for Ghana's overall population density. These averages did not reflect variations in population distribution. For example, while the Northern Region, one of ten administrative regions, showed a density of seventeen persons per square kilometer in 1984, in the same year Greater Accra Region recorded nine times the national average of 52 per square kilometer.

As was the case in the 1960 and 1970 figures, the greatest concentration of population in 1984 was to the south of the Kwahu Plateau. The highest concentration of habitation continued to be within the Accra-Kumasi-Takoradi triangle, largely because of the economic productivity of the region. All of Ghana's mining centres, timber-producing deciduous forests, and cocoa-growing lands lie to the south of the Kwahu Plateau. The Accra-Kumasi-Takoradi triangle is linked to the coast by rail and road systems—making this area an important magnet for investment and labor.

A large part of the Volta Basin is sparsely populated. The far north is heavily populated. The population density of the Upper East Region is well above the national average. This may be explained in part by the better soil found in some areas.

Urban–rural disparities
Localities of 5,000 persons and above have been classified as urban since 1960. The 1960 urban population totalled 1,551,174 persons, or 23.1% of total population. By 1970, the urban percentage had increased to 28%. That percentage rose to 32% in 1984 and was estimated at 33% for 1992.

Urban areas in Ghana have customarily been supplied with more amenities than rural locations. Consequently, Kumasi, Accra, and many settlements within the southern economic belt attracted more people than the savanna regions of the north; only Tamale in the north has been an exception. The linkage of the national electricity grid to the northern areas of the country in the late 1980s may help to stabilize the north-to-south flow of internal migration. Ghana has a hugely rural population that is dependent on subsistence agriculture. Ghana has continued to be a nation of rural communities. Rural residency was estimated to be 67% of the population in 1992. In the 1970s, 72% of Ghana's population lived in rural areas. The "Rural Manifesto," which assessed the causes of rural underdevelopment, was introduced in April 1984. Development strategies were evaluated, and some were implemented to make rural residency more attractive. The Bank of Ghana established more than 120 rural banks to support rural entrepreneurs, and the rural electrification program was intensified in the late 1980s. The government presented its plans for district assemblies as a component of its strategy for rural improvement through decentralized administration.

title: Demographics of Ghana