Country Profile · No. 21

Ghana

Capital / Admin Capital

AccraPopulation: ~34.1MIndependence: 1957 (March 6)

First President / Leader

Kwame Nkrumah (Led independence as Prime Minister in 1957, first President 1960– 1966)Current President: Nana Akufo-Addo (Serving since January 2017)

Geography & Borders

Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Togo, Gulf of Guinea (Atlantic Ocean). Features Lake Volta, one of the world's largest artificial reservoirs.

Demographics & Language

Christianity (~71%), Islam (~20%), traditional beliefs (~5%). Official: English language. National: Akan, Ewe, Ga, Dagbani. Major groups: Akan (~47%), Mole-Dagbani (~17%), Ewe (~14%), Ga-Dangme (~7%).

Economy & GDP

Gold and crude oil production, cocoa export, agriculture, service sector, technology.

Global Diaspora

1. United States (~250k–300k), 2. United Kingdom (~150k), 3. Canada (~50k). U.S. Hubs (States / Cities): New York (New York City), New Jersey (Newark), Maryland (Silver Spring/Hyattsville).

Major Conflicts

Anglo-Ashanti Wars (1824–1900, fierce historical military campaigns between the British Empire and the powerful Ashanti Empire), 1966 Ghanaian coup d'état (overthrow of Kwame Nkrumah), 1979 military uprising led by Jerry Rawlings.

3 Must-See Sites

1. Cape Coast Castle and Elmina Castle (Striking colonial whitewashed fortresses along the coast serving as poignant memorials to the transatlantic slave trade), 2. Kakum National Park (Famous rainforest reserve featuring an exhilarating canopy walkway suspended high above the trees), 3. Mole National Park (Ghana's largest wildlife refuge protecting elephants, antelopes, and baboons around open savannah waterholes).

Quick Facts

The first country in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence from colonial rule in 1957; historically renowned as the heartland of the ancient gold-rich Ashanti Empire.