Ghana Independence Day

People all across GHANA annually celebrate their country's Independence Day on March 6th. Ghana achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1957. Have a Happy Independence Day!

Ghana is Known for...

●    Coastal castles and slave forts
●    Friendly people
●    Hiplife music
●    Independence
●    Kente cloth
●    Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary General
●    Pan-African politics

Most items were listed in The Africa Book; the MLA citation is below. What are other "trademarks" of this African country? Feel free to share your thoughts with a comment!

Phillips et al. The Africa Book: A Journey through Every
          Country in the Continent. Lonely Planet, 2007.

— #AfricaWeek —

Ghana Exports

The following items are major exports of GHANA: aluminum, bananas, bauxite, cassava, cocoa, cut flowers, diamonds, gold, limestone, manganese ore, okra, peanuts, petroleum, processed food, rice, rubber, salt, seafood (particularly tuna), shea nuts, silver, small watercraft, textiles, and wood. According to the International Monetary Fund (data.imf.org), countries and territories buying and importing most of those exports (February 2017 statistics) include India (top importer), Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, Italy, China, the Netherlands, the United States, Burkina Faso, Malaysia, Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Benin, Japan, South Africa, Spain, Germany, Nigeria, Turkey, and Senegal.

Coastal Cities

GeoFact of the Day currently has seven country-by-country posts highlighting towns, cities, and communities located next to massive water bodies:

— BARBADOS (↗)
— DOMINICA (↗)
— GHANA (↗)
— GRENADA (↗)
— GUINEA (↗)
— SÉNÉGAL (↗)
— TUNISIA (↗)

Want to see your country or territory featured in a new blog post — related to the coastal-city topic or something else altogether? Write a post comment below. Thank you for visiting GeoFact of the Day, today and always!

Ghana Endangered Species

As of August 6th, 2015, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ for GHANA in western Africa lists 10 critically endangered species and 47 endangered species. Fortunately, Ghana does not have any extinct species on the IUCN Red List. Some critically endangered species include the Atlantic Goliath Grouper, Largetooth and Smalltooth Sawfish, Slender-snouted Crocodile, and Togo Slippery Frog. Endangered species include the Blue Whale, Bobiri Reed Frog, Cherry Mahogany (Makore) tree, Rüppell's Vulture and White-backed Vulture, Scalloped Hammerhead shark, and White Skate. The endangered Bobiri Reed Frog is located only in two small regions - one in southwestern Ghana and one south of Kumasi city. Meanwhile, the critically endangered Togo Slippery Frog is found along the border between southeastern Ghana and southwestern Togo.

Ghana post - link opens in a new tab or window

Coastal Cities of Ghana

In GHANA, the Gold Coast of the Gulf of Guinea (part of the Atlantic Ocean) features several cities with relatively higher populations compared to the rest of Ghana. The Atlantic Ocean is south of Ghana, and therefore the cities in this post are along the southern extent of Ghana. Coastal cities with at least 100,000 residents are Accra (Ghana's capital), Cape Coast, Sekondi, Takoradi, Tema, and Teshie. Accra has about 2 million residents within the city and 4 million in the metropolitan area. Meanwhile, Sekondi and Takoradi are considered to be a combined city called Sekondi-Takoradi. This city with a current population around 445,000 has grown rapidly; the population a couple decades ago was less than 100,000. From west to east, smaller cities with more than 10,000 and currently less than 50,000 residents include Axim, Elmina, Winneba, and Keta. Finally, cities and towns with even smaller populations include Bonyeri, Dixcove, Saltpond, Senya Beraku, Teshi, Ada, and Anloga. All cities in this post belong in the Western, Central, Greater Accra, and Volta regions.

Gambaga Scarp, West Africa

Gambaga Scarp is a physical landform feature located at the border of two regions in GHANA, a multilingual and English-speaking country in West Africa. A forested region of multiple cliffs along the Volta River basin, Gambaga Scarp horizontally stretches about 75 miles and 120 kilometers along the southern border of Upper East province and northeast border of Northern province. It also extends eastward to Tandjouaré prefecture (Savanes region) in northwestern TOGO.

The satellite image above — from randmcnally.com/maps and attributed to MapBox and OpenStreetMap — shows just a section of Gambaga Scarp near the border between Ghana and Togo. Crops such as yams and grain are grown and livestock are raised in the area with the help of a relatively cool microclimate. The region of cliffs is generally located over 1,000 feet and 300 meters in elevation. Various cities and small towns dot the area surrounding Gambaga Scarp. They include Bolgatanga, Gambaga, Nakpanduri, Nalerigu, Namasu, and Zarantinga in Ghana and Doré and Nano in Togo.

Lake Volta

Located in Western Africa, Lake Volta is an artificial lake in the eastern part of GHANA. It formed after construction of the Akosombo Dam along the Volta River. The dam, providing hydroelectricity for local areas, is found on the southern side of the lake. The Atlantic Ocean is about 45 miles south of Lake Volta. Communities surrounding the lake include Abooso, Dambai, Kete-Krachi, Kpando, and Mopti.

Ghana

Map Credit: © Maps of the World (mapsofworld.com)
Click on map to enlarge it in a lightbox window.

Officially known as the Republic of Ghana, GHANA is a West African country with approximately 28.2 million people (GeoFact of the Day's 2017 estimate). There are three bordering countries: Burkina Faso to the north, Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire) to the west, and Togo to the east. The southern coast of Ghana straddles the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Guinea. The country's largest lake, Lake Volta in eastern Ghana has an area of approximately 3,280 square miles and 8,500 square kilometers. Its water flows south past the Akosombo Dam through the Volta River and out into the Atlantic Ocean. The capital and most-populated city in Ghana is Accra. There are over 2 million residents in Accra's metropolitan area. Other cities include Ashiaman, Kumasi, Takoradi, and Tamale. The currency is the Ghanian Cedi, and its ISO 4217 currency code is GHS.