Country · Africa
Ghana
Republic of Ghana
Ghana is a country in Western Africa. About 29.8 million people live there, in an area of 238 533 square kilometres. Its capital city is Accra.
Picture credit: Erik Kristensen (CC BY 2.0) · Els holmes (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Treysam (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Goldenwabbit (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Matti Blume (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Ghana?
Ghana lies in Western Africa, on the continent of Africa.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 891 km from the equator.
Its coastline is about 539 km long.
It shares a border with 3 countries: Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast and Togo.
How big is Ghana?
Ghana covers 238 533 square kilometres.
That is about 5.8 times the size of Switzerland.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 80th largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 124.8 people on every square kilometre.
That is busier than the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in Ghana?
About 29.8 million people live in Ghana.
That is the 46th biggest population in the world.
People here speak English.
They pay with the Ghanaian cedi (₵).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 57 years.
The land of Ghana
The land of Ghana sits on average 190 metres above sea level, which makes it one of the flatter countries on Earth.
Its coast runs for about 539 km. Walking it end to end, at twenty kilometres a day, would take roughly 27 days.
It lies inside the tropics, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes Ghana different?
A dish the country is known for: Fufu.
Websites from here often end in .gh.
Ghana and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about 4 live in Ghana.
It takes up about 0.18 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Africa the country ranks 33rd of 54 by size, and 13th by population.
Ghana and its neighbours
The Ivory Coast, its largest neighbour, is about 1.4 times bigger.
More people live in Ghana than in the Ivory Coast — 29.8 million against 25.1 million.
Nature and animals
Of the animals on this site, 4 live wild in Ghana: Emperor scorpion, Warthog, American cockroach and Ball python. The highest mountain in the country is Mount Afadja, at 885 metres. The longest river in the country is the Volta. The largest lake in the country is Lake Bosumtwi.
Photographs from Wikimedia Commons under free licences — every credit is on the page itself and in the picture credits.
How big is Ghana compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 39 times as big as Ghana: 9 372 610 km² against 238 533 km². See both on one map
- The United Kingdom and Ghana are almost the same size: 242 900 km² against 238 533 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of Ghana?
The capital of Ghana is Accra. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in Ghana?
About 29.8 million people live in Ghana, which makes it the 46th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border Ghana?
Ghana borders Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast and Togo — 3 neighbours in total.
How big is Ghana?
Ghana covers 238 533 square kilometres, making it the 80th largest country in the world. That is about 5.8 times the size of Switzerland.
What is the highest mountain in Ghana?
The highest mountain in Ghana is Mount Afadja, 885 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in Ghana?
The longest river in Ghana is the Volta, about 1 600 kilometres long.
What is the largest lake in Ghana?
The largest lake in Ghana is Lake Bosumtwi. It covers about 49 km².
Which continent is Ghana in?
Ghana is in Africa, in the part called Western Africa.
Where these numbers come from
Borders and outlines: Natural Earth. Names, capitals, areas, languages and currencies: ISO 3166 data (world-countries). Population: World Bank, 2018. Every derived figure on this page (ranks, density, distance from the equator) is calculated from those values.
Last checked: · How these pages are made