Ghana

Airports

10 total, 9 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 7 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

8 major transport aircraft

Highways

32,250 km total; 6,084 km concrete or bituminous surface, 26,166 km gravel, laterite, and improved earth surfaces

Inland waterways

Volta, Ankobra, and Tano Rivers provide 168 km of perennial navigation for launches and lighters; Lake Volta provides 1,125 km of arterial and feeder waterways

Merchant marine

5 cargo and 1 refrigerated cargo (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 53,435 GRT/69,167 DWT

Pipelines

none

Ports

Tema, Takoradi

Railroads

953 km, all 1.067-meter gauge; 32 km double track; railroads undergoing major renovation

Telecommunications

poor to fair system handled primarily by microwave links; 42,300 telephones; broadcast stations - 4 AM, 1 FM, 4 (8 translators) TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, National Police Force, National Civil Defense

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $30 million, less than 1% of GNP (1989 est.)

Manpower availability

males 15-49, 3,661,558; 2,049,842 fit for military service; 170,742 reach military age (18) annually

Agriculture

accounts for more than 50% of GDP (including fishing and forestry); the major cash crop is cocoa; other principal crops - rice, coffee, cassava, peanuts, corn, shea nuts, timber; normally self-sufficient in food

Budget

revenues $821 million; expenditures $782 million, including capital expenditures of $151 million (1990 est.)

Currency

cedi (plural - cedis); 1 cedi (C) = 100 pesewas

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $455 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2.6 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $78 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $106 million

Electricity

1,180,000 kW capacity; 4,140 million kWh produced, 265 kWh per capita (1991)

Exports

$843 million (f.o.b., 1991 est.) commodities: cocoa 45%, gold, timber, tuna, bauxite, and aluminum partners: US 23%, UK, other EC

External debt

$3.1 billion (1990 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

$6.2 billion; per capita $400; real growth rate 5% (1991 est.)

Illicit drugs

illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade

Imports

$1.2 billion (c.i.f., 1991 est.) commodities: petroleum 16%, consumer goods, foods, intermediate goods, capital equipment partners: US 10%, UK, FRG, France, Japan, South Korea, GDR

Industrial production

growth rate 7.4% in manufacturing (1989); accounts for almost 1.5% of GDP

Industries

mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, fishing, aluminum, food processing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

10% (1991 est.)

Overview

Supported by substantial international assistance, Ghana has been implementing a steady economic rebuilding program since 1983, including moves toward privatization and relaxation of government controls. Heavily dependent on cocoa, gold, and timber exports, economic growth so far has not spread substantially to other areas of the economy. The costs of sending peacekeeping forces to Liberia and preparing for the transition to a democratic government have been boosting government expenditures and undercutting structural adjustment reforms. Ghana opened a stock exchange in 1990. Much of the economic improvement in 1991 was caused by favorable weather (following a severe drought the previous year) that led to plentiful harvests in Ghana's agriculturally based economy.

Unemployment rate

10% (1991)

Climate

tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north

Coastline

539 km

Comparative area

slightly smaller than Oregon

Disputes

none

Environment

recent drought in north severely affecting marginal agricultural activities; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; dry, northeasterly harmattan wind (January to March)

Land area

230,020 km2

Land boundaries

2,093 km; Burkina 548 km, Ivory Coast 668 km, Togo 877 km

Land use

arable land 5%; permanent crops 7%; meadows and pastures 15%; forest and woodland 37%; other 36%; includes irrigated NEGL%

Maritime claims

Contiguous zone: 24 nm Continental shelf: 200 nm Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm Territorial sea: 12 nm

Natural resources

gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber

Note

Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake

Terrain

mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area

Total area

238,540 km2

Administrative divisions

10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta, Western

Capital

Accra

Constitution

24 September 1979; suspended 31 December 1981

Diplomatic representation

Ambassador Dr. Joseph ABBEY; Chancery at 3512 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone (202) 686-4520; there is a Ghanaian Consulate General in New York US: Ambassador Raymond C. EWING; Embassy at Ring Road East, East of Danquah Circle, Accra (mailing address is P. O. Box 194, Accra); telephone [233] (21) 775348, 775349

Elections

no national elections; district assembly elections held in 1988-89

Executive branch

chairman of the Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC), PNDC, Cabinet

Flag

three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with a large black five-pointed star centered in the gold 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

Independence

6 March 1957 (from UK, formerly Gold Coast)

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Leaders

Chief of State and Head of Government: Chairman of the Provisional National Defense Council Flt. Lt. (Ret.) Jerry John RAWLINGS (since 31 December 1981)

Legal system

based on English common law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

unicameral National Assembly dissolved after 31 December 1981 coup, and legislative powers were assumed by the Provisional National Defense Council

Long-form name

Republic of Ghana

Member of

ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-24, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIIMOG, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday

Independence Day, 6 March (1957)

Political parties and leaders

none; political parties outlawed after 31 December 1981 coup

Suffrage

none

Type

military

Birth rate

45 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate

13 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Ethnic divisions

black African 99.8% (major tribes - Akan 44%, Moshi-Dagomba 16%, Ewe 13%, Ga 8%), European and other 0.2%

Infant mortality rate

86 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Labor force

3,700,000; agriculture and fishing 54.7%, industry 18.7%, sales and clerical 15.2%, services, transportation, and communications 7.7%, professional 3.7%; 48% of population of working age (1983)

Languages

English (official); African languages include Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga

Life expectancy at birth

53 years male, 57 years female (1992)

Literacy

60% (male 70%, female 51%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality

noun - Ghanaian(s); adjective - Ghanaian

Net migration rate

- 1 migrant/1,000 population (1992)

Organized labor

467,000 (about 13% of labor force)

Population

16,185,351 (July 1992), growth rate 3.1% (1992)

Religions

indigenous beliefs 38%, Muslim 30%, Christian 24%, other 8%

Total fertility rate

6.3 children born/woman (1992)