Ghana
Formerly under the rule of Britain, Ghana was the first sub-Saharan country in Africa to gain independence, and did so in March of 1957. After decades of political strive, a multi-party constitution was restored in 1992, with the current head of state, John Atta Mills being elected to power in 2009.
Ghana, a country just slightly smaller than the state of Oregon is bordered by Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, and Togo. In addition, Ghana shares the same time zone as that of the United Kingdom, and is therefore five hours ahead of Washington, DC. With a climate that is warm and equatorial, it reaches from the Atlantic Ocean all the way to the tip of Mount Afadjato at a towering 885 meters. As of 2011, Ghana is home to 24 million people, sixty percent of which are aged between 15 and 64 years. Just over half of the population lives in urban city centers, with a significant percentage of Ghana’s people remaining in rural and mostly poor areas. As a former British colony, English is an official government language, although only 37 percent of individuals can read and write English fluently. However, this likely underestimates the number of practicing English speakers, as literacy in general is estimated at 58 percent for the entire Ghanaian population. In 2009, the average number of years a Ghanaian spent in school was 10 years, as opposed to the American public school system which covers 12 years. Poverty, while down in numbers, still plagues 28.5 percent of the population, and the average income in 2010 was 2,500 USD per person. With increased economic output, Ghana has stabilized itself in the international market since 2007, and the average exchange rate is now 1.43 GHC (cedis) to 1 USD. | Country OfficesWe currently do not have offices in Ghana. For information about jobs and internships, please contact Kim Reuter.
Additional Resources: Ghana - Wikipedia, Ghana - United States CIA Fact Sheet, Ghana - Official Country Website |
