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Ghana Facts and Figures from Encarta Go to article
Basic Facts
Official name Republic of Ghana
Capital Accra
Area 238,500 sq km
92,090 sq mi
Ghana: Flag and Anthem
Ghana: Flag and Anthem
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People
Population 22,931,299 (2007 estimate)
Population growth
Population growth rate 1.97 percent (2007 estimate)
Projected population in 2025 30,536,326 (2007 estimate)
Projected population in 2050 38,735,638 (2007 estimate)
Population density 99 persons per sq km (2007 estimate)
257 persons per sq mi (2007 estimate)
Urban/rural distribution
Share urban 46 percent (2005 estimate)
Share rural 54 percent (2005 estimate)
Largest cities, with population
Accra 1,904,000 (1999 estimate)
Kumasi 399,300 (1990 estimate)
Tema 180,600 (1990 estimate)
Tamale 151,100 (1988 estimate)
Sekondi 116,500 (1990 estimate)
Ethnic Divisions
Adangbe, Akuapem, Akyem, Ashanti, Bono, Dagomba, Ewe, Fante, Ga, Gonja, Kwahu, Mamprusi, Nzima, and others
Languages
English (official), Akan, Nzima, Dagbane, Ga, Ewe, other African languages
Religious affiliations
Ethnoreligionists or indigenous beliefs 24 percent
Muslim 20 percent
Protestant 17 percent
Independent Christian 14 percent
Roman Catholic 10 percent
Other 15 percent
Health and Education
Life expectancy
Total 59.1 years (2007 estimate)
Female 60 years (2007 estimate)
Male 58.3 years (2007 estimate)
Infant mortality rate 54 deaths per 1,000 live births (2007 estimate)
Population per physician 11,111 people (2004)
Population per hospital bed 691 people (1990)
Literacy rate
Total 76.9 percent (2005 estimate)
Female 69.8 percent (2005 estimate)
Male 84.3 percent (2005 estimate)
Education expenditure as a share of gross national product (GNP) 4.2 percent (1999-2000)
Number of years of compulsory schooling 9 years (2002-2003)
Number of students per teacher, primary school 31 students per teacher (2002-2003)
Government
Form of government Republic
Voting qualifications Universal at age 18
Constitution Approved 28 April 1992
Armed forces
Total number of military personnel 7,000 (2004)
Military expenditures as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) 0.3 percent (2003)
Economy
Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) $10.7 billion (2005)
GDP per capita (U.S.$) $484.80 (2005)
GDP by economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 37.5 percent (2005)
Industry 23.2 percent (2005)
Services 39.4 percent (2005)
Employment
Number of workers 9,802,989 (2005)
Workforce share of economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 55 percent (2000)
Industry 14 percent (2000)
Services 31 percent (2000)
Unemployment rate 8.2 percent (2000)
National budget (U.S.$)
Total revenue $2,110 million (2004)
Total expenditure $1,854 million (2004)
Monetary unit
1 new cedi (C), consisting of 100 pesewas
Major trade partners for exports
Netherlands, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and Nigeria
Major trade partners for imports
Nigeria, United Kingdom, United States, Côte d’Ivoire, and China
Energy, Communications, and Transportation
Electricity production
Electricity from thermal sources 15.99 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from hydroelectric sources 84.01 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from nuclear sources 0 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from geothermal, solar, and wind sources 0 percent (2003 estimate)
Number of radios per 1,000 people 709 (1999 estimate)
Number of telephones per 1,000 people 15 (2005)
Number of televisions per 1,000 people 124 (2000 estimate)
Number of Internet hosts per 10,000 people 0.17 (2003)
Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people 14 (1996)
Number of motor vehicles per 1,000 people 7.7 (1997)
Paved road as a share of total roads 18 percent (2003)
Sources
Basic Facts and People sections
Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org).
Health and Education section
Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).
Government section
Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data is from Military Balance.
Economy section
Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.
Energy, Communication, and Transportation section
Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org).
Note
Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding.
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