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FACTS FILE
The Republic of
Ghana extends inland from the Gulf of Guinea on the western
‘bulge’ of Africa, and is bordered by the Atlantic
Ocean to the south, Togo to the east, Burkina Faso to the
north and La Cote d’Ivoire to the west. With a surface
area of 238,837 sq km, it is similar in size to Great Britain
or the American state of Oregon. It is bisected by the Greenwich
Meridian and lies entirely within the northern tropics between
4.50N and 110. Most of the country is relatively flat and
lies below an altitude of 150m but several peaks in the east
rise to above 800m. it has a tropical climate, warn to
hot all year through, and can be divided into two broad geographic
zones: the south and centre are moist and support a cover
of a direr savannah environment.
THE PEOPLE
Ghana’s population is estimated at 20 million, roughly
ten percent of whom live in and around the capital city of
Accra. Other major urban centres include Kumasi, Tamale, Tema,
Takoradi and Cape Coast. More than 70 languages and major
dialects are spoken countrywide, classified in four linguistic
groups: Akan, Mole-Dagbani, Ewe and Ga. The most widespread
Akan language is Twi, which is spoken by roughly half the
population, including the Asante (Ashanti) people of Kumasi
and the coastal Fante. Two-thirds of Ghanaians are Christian,
another 15% are Islamic, and the remainder adhere to traditional
animist beliefs.
RECENT HISTORY & POLITICS
Ghana was settled by Africans and Europeans occupied it since
1482 but external rule was imposed only in 1874, which Britain
claimed a strip of land extending less than 50km inland as
the Gold Coast Colony. The more northerly territories were
annexed to that colony in 1902, following a war with the Asante
Empire, while the eastern border was extended to include present-day
Volta Region (formally part of German Togoland) in 1919. The
Gold Coast attained independence and was renamed Ghana under
the leadership of Dr Kwame Nkrumah in 1957. Nkrumah, having
banned all political opposition, was overthrown in 1966 by
what transpired to be the first of four military coups within
the space 15 years. A multi-party constitution was introduced
in 1991. Jerry Rawlings won the first democratic presidential
election in 1992 and served the constitutional maximum of
two terms before stepping down in 2000, when former opposition
leader John Kufuor was voted into power.
LAND AREA : 238,837 sq km (92,100 sq miles)
COAST LINE : 540 km
CLIMATE : Wet during the rainy season and
sunny tropical days.
RAINY SEASON: March - July, September - October
DRY & HOT SUMMER: (Dry Harmattan winds):
November - March
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