Ghana
Ghana
Capital Accra Population 24.3 million Language Asante 14.8% Ewe 12.7% Fante 9.9% Boron 4.6% Adult literacy rate* Male 66.4%, Female 49.8% Access to adequate sanitation Urban 15%, Rural 6% Access to improved drinking water Urban 90% Rural 71% Urbanisation 50% Life expectancy Male 59.36 years, Female 61.78 years Religion Christian 68.8% Muslim 15.9% traditional 8.5% Infant mortality rate** 49.89/1000 GNI per capita*** $670 No. Living with HIV/AIDS 260,000 Percentage living on less than US$1.25 per day 30%
*Literacy rate – Percentage of persons aged 15 and over who can read and write. ** Infant mortality rate – Probability of dying between birth and exactly one year of age expressed per 1000 live births. ***GNI per capita – Gross national income (GNI) divided by mid-year population. GNI per capita in US dollars.
Fast Facts: In 1957, Ghana became the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence.
Only 10 per cent of all Ghanaians have access to adequate sanitation facilities—the fourth lowest percentage in the world.
Ghana’s Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake.
Current Issues Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped fighting in Cote d'Ivoire. According to 2007 figures, refugees and internally displaced persons stand at 35,653 (Liberia) and 8,517 (Togo). Ghana is an illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade, and is a major transit hub for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and, to a lesser extent, for South American cocaine destined for Europe and the United States. As a result, there is significant domestic cocaine and cannabis use in the country. Widespread crime and money laundering is also a problem in the country, but the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money laundering centre. Education is currently at the forefront of government concern. In 1996, Ghana’s government introduced the Free Compulsory Basic Education programme (FCUBE), which introduced conceptually free and compulsory basic education for every school-age child. However, significant costs were still being paid by parents to allow their children to attend school, despite the abolishment of tuition fees. In 2003 the Ghanaian government again announced that it would abolish all primary school fees and this time the government would provide a small grant to every school for each pupil to help cover the costs and encourage more children to go to school. The Ghanaian government also decided to dedicate one-fifth of its national budget to education, and international support was sort. At present, there is a shortage of school classrooms and well-trained teachers; in 2004 only 56 per cent of Ghana’s existing teachers were fully trained. In many cases these teachers are expected to handle as many as 100 or more pupils at one time. In October 2010, Ghana’s Minister of Information, Hon. John Akologo Tia, announced that the government, as matter of policy priority, would embark on a program to eliminate “under tree schools”—of which there are currently around 3900.
“The Lord has shown all nations his mighty strength; now everyone will see the saving power of our God.” – Isaiah 52:10
Compassion in Ghana Compassion International began working in Ghana in 2005. Over 21,300 children participate in around 107 child development centres. Compassion Australia assists over 1500 of these children. Our goal is to reach out to Ghanaian children; helping provide them the opportunity to rise above their circumstances and become all God has created them to be.
Background Ghana was the first area in sub-Saharan Africa in which Europeans arrived to trade, first in gold and later in slaves. It was also the first black African nation in the region to achieve independence from a colonial power, in this instance Great Britain. Formed from the merger of the British colony of the Gold Coast and the Togoland trust territory, Ghana gained its independence in 1957. Ghana endured a long series of coups before Lt. Jerry Rawlings took power in 1981 and banned political parties. After approving a new constitution and restoring multiparty politics in 1992, Rawlings won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996, but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John Kufour succeeded him and was re-elected in 2004. John Atta Mills took over as head of state in early 2009. A well-administered country by regional standards, Ghana is often seen as a model for political and economic reform in Africa. Cocoa exports are an essential part of the economy and Ghana is the world's second-largest producer. Although Ghana has largely escaped the civil strife that has plagued other West African countries, in 1994-95 land disputes in the north erupted into ethnic violence, resulting in the deaths of 1,000 people and the displacement of a further 150,000.
Education: The introduction of the government’s Free Compulsory Basic Education programme (FCUBE) introduced conceptually free and compulsory basic education for every school-age child in Ghana. However, many parents are still unable to afford to send their children to school due to the costs involved in buying school resources, such as uniforms, textbooks, as well as travel to and from school.
Primary education lasts six years and is compulsory. Secondary education lasts seven years. Competition to attend the nation's high schools and colleges is very intense. Entrance examinations, for high school and for the university, weed out all but the very best students. Despite the government’s emphasis on education, 20 per cent of males and 24 per cent of females remain illiterate.
Ghana has public universities and professional and technical colleges that offer training in fields including nursing, teaching, fashion design and computer programming.
Religion: Sixty-eight per cent of Ghana’s population is Christian and 15.9 per cent is Muslim. Around eight per cent adhere to traditional indigenous religions or other faiths, including the Baha'i Faith, Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism, Shintoism, Hare Krishna, Rastafarianism, and indigenous religions. Zetahil, a religion that is unique to Ghana, combines elements of both Islam and Christianity. Throughout Ghana there remains a strong belief in witchcraft and ‘witch camps’ have been developed to which suspected witches are banished; violence towards alleged witches is decreasing.
Source: CIA, World Fact Book 2009, UNICEF, The State of the World’s Children, 2009
Capital Accra Population 24.3 million Language Asante 14.8% Ewe 12.7% Fante 9.9% Boron 4.6% Adult literacy rate* Male 66.4%, Female 49.8% Access to adequate sanitation Urban 15%, Rural 6% Access to improved drinking water Urban 90% Rural 71% Urbanisation 50% Life expectancy Male 59.36 years, Female 61.78 years Religion Christian 68.8% Muslim 15.9% traditional 8.5% Infant mortality rate** 49.89/1000 GNI per capita*** $670 No. Living with HIV/AIDS 260,000 Percentage living on less than US$1.25 per day 30%
*Literacy rate – Percentage of persons aged 15 and over who can read and write. ** Infant mortality rate – Probability of dying between birth and exactly one year of age expressed per 1000 live births. ***GNI per capita – Gross national income (GNI) divided by mid-year population. GNI per capita in US dollars.
Fast Facts: In 1957, Ghana became the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence.
Only 10 per cent of all Ghanaians have access to adequate sanitation facilities—the fourth lowest percentage in the world.
Ghana’s Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake.
Current Issues Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped fighting in Cote d'Ivoire. According to 2007 figures, refugees and internally displaced persons stand at 35,653 (Liberia) and 8,517 (Togo). Ghana is an illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade, and is a major transit hub for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and, to a lesser extent, for South American cocaine destined for Europe and the United States. As a result, there is significant domestic cocaine and cannabis use in the country. Widespread crime and money laundering is also a problem in the country, but the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money laundering centre. Education is currently at the forefront of government concern. In 1996, Ghana’s government introduced the Free Compulsory Basic Education programme (FCUBE), which introduced conceptually free and compulsory basic education for every school-age child. However, significant costs were still being paid by parents to allow their children to attend school, despite the abolishment of tuition fees. In 2003 the Ghanaian government again announced that it would abolish all primary school fees and this time the government would provide a small grant to every school for each pupil to help cover the costs and encourage more children to go to school. The Ghanaian government also decided to dedicate one-fifth of its national budget to education, and international support was sort. At present, there is a shortage of school classrooms and well-trained teachers; in 2004 only 56 per cent of Ghana’s existing teachers were fully trained. In many cases these teachers are expected to handle as many as 100 or more pupils at one time. In October 2010, Ghana’s Minister of Information, Hon. John Akologo Tia, announced that the government, as matter of policy priority, would embark on a program to eliminate “under tree schools”—of which there are currently around 3900.
“The Lord has shown all nations his mighty strength; now everyone will see the saving power of our God.” – Isaiah 52:10
Compassion in Ghana Compassion International began working in Ghana in 2005. Over 21,300 children participate in around 107 child development centres. Compassion Australia assists over 1500 of these children. Our goal is to reach out to Ghanaian children; helping provide them the opportunity to rise above their circumstances and become all God has created them to be.
Background Ghana was the first area in sub-Saharan Africa in which Europeans arrived to trade, first in gold and later in slaves. It was also the first black African nation in the region to achieve independence from a colonial power, in this instance Great Britain. Formed from the merger of the British colony of the Gold Coast and the Togoland trust territory, Ghana gained its independence in 1957. Ghana endured a long series of coups before Lt. Jerry Rawlings took power in 1981 and banned political parties. After approving a new constitution and restoring multiparty politics in 1992, Rawlings won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996, but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John Kufour succeeded him and was re-elected in 2004. John Atta Mills took over as head of state in early 2009. A well-administered country by regional standards, Ghana is often seen as a model for political and economic reform in Africa. Cocoa exports are an essential part of the economy and Ghana is the world's second-largest producer. Although Ghana has largely escaped the civil strife that has plagued other West African countries, in 1994-95 land disputes in the north erupted into ethnic violence, resulting in the deaths of 1,000 people and the displacement of a further 150,000.
Education: The introduction of the government’s Free Compulsory Basic Education programme (FCUBE) introduced conceptually free and compulsory basic education for every school-age child in Ghana. However, many parents are still unable to afford to send their children to school due to the costs involved in buying school resources, such as uniforms, textbooks, as well as travel to and from school.
Primary education lasts six years and is compulsory. Secondary education lasts seven years. Competition to attend the nation's high schools and colleges is very intense. Entrance examinations, for high school and for the university, weed out all but the very best students. Despite the government’s emphasis on education, 20 per cent of males and 24 per cent of females remain illiterate.
Ghana has public universities and professional and technical colleges that offer training in fields including nursing, teaching, fashion design and computer programming.
Religion: Sixty-eight per cent of Ghana’s population is Christian and 15.9 per cent is Muslim. Around eight per cent adhere to traditional indigenous religions or other faiths, including the Baha'i Faith, Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism, Shintoism, Hare Krishna, Rastafarianism, and indigenous religions. Zetahil, a religion that is unique to Ghana, combines elements of both Islam and Christianity. Throughout Ghana there remains a strong belief in witchcraft and ‘witch camps’ have been developed to which suspected witches are banished; violence towards alleged witches is decreasing.
Source: CIA, World Fact Book 2009, UNICEF, The State of the World’s Children, 2009
