Ghana
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana former: Gold Coast |
| Gevernment type | constitutional democracy |
| Capital |
name: Accra
geographic coordinates: 5 33 N, 0 13 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Bolivia, which has a coat of arms centered in the yellow band |
| Currency | cedi (GHC) |
| Internet country code | .gh |
| Ports and terminals | Takoradi, Tema |
| Agriculture products | cocoa, rice, coffee, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber |
| Industries | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building |
| Geography |
| Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Cote d'Ivoire and Togo |
| Coordinates | 8 00 N, 2 00 W |
| Continent | Africa |
| Area |
total: 239,460 sq km
land: 230,940 sq km water: 8,520 sq km |
| Boundaries |
total: 2,094 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 549 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km, Togo 877 km |
| Coastline | 539 km |
| Climate | tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north |
| Terrain | mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area |
| Natural resources | gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone |
| Natural hazards | dry, dusty, northeastern harmattan winds occur from January to March; droughts |
| People |
| Population | 22,409,572
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | African 98.5% (includes Akan 44%, Moshi-Dagomba 16%, Ewe 13%, Ga 8%, Gurma 3%, Yoruba 1%), European and other 1.5% (1998) |
| Religions | Christian 63%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 21% |
| Languages | English (official), African languages (including Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga) |
