Country at a Glance
Key facts about Ghana for foreign investors: geography, demographics, politics, trade and business environment.
Population growth:2.15% (, 2022)
Population density:133hab/km² (, 2022)
The Republic of Ghana is located in the heart of West Africa and is surrounded by Côte d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Togo. The country has a port capital, Accra, in the middle of the Gulf of Guinea. Ghana covers an area of 238,540 square kilometers and has a population of approximately 33.5 million. About half of the population lives in the economic centre of Ashanti, Greater Accra and the Eastern Region. The official language is English, but Ghanaians speak the languages of many ethnic groups, the main one being Twi.
The country is crossed by a different climate between the coastal region in the south benefiting from Atlantic conditions, the humid savannah in the east with the Volta reservoir, and the north country where the climate becomes more Sahelian. However, despite the diversity, the general climate is tropical-humid-warm, averaging 30°C. Most of the rainfall is generally from May to October.
Formerly a British colony known as the Gold Coast, Ghana was led to independence by Dr. Kwame Nkrumah on March 6, 1957. After three decades of instability, Ghana by conducting elections for alternating power every four years has since been recognized by the international community as a democratic nation. Ghana was the first nation in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence from the colonial yoke. The country is named after the ancient empire of Ghana.
With its multiparty system, independent judiciary, and freedom of speech and press, the country serves as a model for all of Africa. The president is directly elected for four years. He is commander-in-chief of the armed forces and head of government. Ghana recently conducted a territorial reform and now has 16 regions.
President:John Mahama (WB, 2025)
Ghana, along with Senegal, is one of the leading countries in sub-Saharan Africa in terms of long-term competitiveness, only surpassed by Botswana, Namibia and Kenya. Ghana remains in first place in West Africa.
Ghana ranks among the least corrupt countries on the African continent according to Transparency International. However, there is still a long way to go to reach the standards of Western countries.