Ghana is a West African country with Accra as its capital. Ghana shares boundary with Togo on the east, Ivory Coast on the west and Burkina Faso at the north, at the south is the Atlantic Ocean. Ghana was the first Sub-Saharan African country to gain independence from British colonial rule on the 6th of March 1957.

Upon independence, the political leadership at the time lead by Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah who also became the first president of the country adopted the name Ghana for the newly independent country. Ghana was the first medieval western Sudanese empire formed in the 8th century AD and was rich and great. The meaning of Ghana is ‘Warrior King’.

The name Ghana was chosen because of the evidence of strong historical connections between Ancient Ghana Empire and the new Ghana. They both share similar socio-political institutions (systems of governance and inheritance were the same), and both are famous for their wealth in gold, among many others. Ghana before independence, under British colonial rule was called Gold Coast, because of the abundance of Gold the European explorers found here.

The climate in Ghana is tropical. There are two main season’s namely rainy season which is between April and August and the dry season which is from December until March. There is quite a good road transportation system which is safe for long and short distance travels. We have about six mobile phone companies operating in the country, which makes communication effective, faster and easier.

There are internet cafes and international banks and shops lined along the streets in towns. In Ghana women are not only appreciated but also respected.

Ghana is a Democratic nation with a population of about 24 million people and predominantly Christian. Official language is English; however there are over 30 local languages spoken in Ghana but the most populous and widely spoken language is Twi which is the language of the dominant ethnic group called the Akans

Ghana’s major export is cocoa which has earned her the position of the second largest world producer of cocoa after Ivory Coast. Ghana is also an oil producing country. The passion of the people is football; Black Stars is the name of the Men’s national football team. The Women’s National football team is called The Black Queens. Ghana is a middle lower income country.

At the end of the 15th century, Ghana unfortunately became the hub of the unfortunate Atlantic Slave Trade business. This saw the presence of many European nations like the Portuguese, Dutch, and English on the gold coast shipping Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas and the West Indies to work on plantations and in the mines.

The evidence of this is the many slave forts and castles dotted along the coastline of Ghana namely the Cape Coast castle, Elmina castle, and many more which have been adopted by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites.

Ghana is also the home country of the first black UN Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, and the first Sub-Saharan country, first visited by President Barack Obama of the United States when he historically assumed his presidency. There are number tourists’ sites to see with descent long beaches along the Atlantic coastline of Ghana to enjoy.

Daily life

The daily life of the Ghanaian is characterised by hard work, enthusiasm and hope. The day starts at 5:00 am for most people in order to swerve the early morning traffic in the big cities. This includes women and men who work either on their own as business men and women or work for the government. Children start school at 7:30 am and closes at 2:00 pm. At the ministries and other government departments and agencies work starts at 8:30am and ends at 5pm.

The roads are mainly used by taxis, ‘trotro’, and buses. People visit the market every day, but there are two days set aside in the week as special market days. Beautiful African beads are sold on these market days. Buying and Selling in Ghana is normally based on bargaining. The people are very friendly, and hospitable. At weekends, friends and families attend social gatherings. At around 7 pm people retire into their homes and night life begins.