1)Population and Profile
-25,241,998
(July 2012 est.)
Age Groups
-0-14 years: 36.5% (male 4,568,273/female 4,468,939)
15-64 years: 60% (male 7,435,449/female 7,436,204)
65 years and over: 3.6% (male 399,737/female 482,471) (2011 est.)
Median Age total: 21.4 years
male: 21.1 years
female :21.6 years (2011 est.)
2) Birth/Death Rates
Birth Rate: 26.99 births/1,000 population (2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47
Death Rate: 8.57 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.)
country comparison to the world: 80
Life Expectancy
total population: 61.45 years
country comparison to the world: 187
male: 60.22 years
female: 62.73 years (2012 est.)
3)Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 57.9%
male: 66.4%
female:49.8% (2000 census)
4) Leading Causes of Death
-Diarrheal Diseases (23,516 deaths or12.53% of deaths in 2010)
-HIV/AIDS (18,465 or 9.84% of deaths in 2010)
5) Imports and Exports
Imports: capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs
Exports: gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds,
horticulture
6)Percentage below poverty line-28.5% (Census 2007)
7)Unemployment Rate- 11% (2000 est)
8) School Life Expectancy
total: 10 years
male: 11 years
female: 10 years (2009)
9)From modernghana.com: “ In Ghana, it is difficult to talk about
'average' house prices, because there is no central record of land and property
transitions which take place in this country - this lack of regulation in the
industry in fact one of the factors compounding the escalating-price problem. The
most common way of averaging house prices elsewhere is to take the median, that
is the middle, price – this way, the figure is less distorted by the top two or
so percent of particularly expensive properties.”
-However, the average household size is 4.6, the average rooms per household is 2.4, and the average room density is 2.0.
10) Prevalence of cell phone and Internet users
Cellular Phone Users
17.436
million (2010)
country comparison to the world: 48
Internet Hosts
60,282 (2011)
country comparison to the world: 91
Internet Users
1.297 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 93
Sources:
http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/country-health-profile/ghana
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gh.html
http://www.modernghana.com/news/122211/1/house-prices-in-accra-too-high.html
http://www.ghanadistricts.com/region/?r=1&sa=90
Analysis
1) Physical Geography: Ghana is very rich in natural resources, including gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone. This allows for different industries to flourish and for Ghana to utilize these souces as exports. Agriculture is also a substantive part of Ghana's economy and the rainy tropical climate of the south allows for fruits, vegetables and grains to grow. However, Ghana does face disadvantages in the dry, arid north which is susceptible to drought and famine. Additionally, the area is known to recieve dust storms in the earlier half of the year. Based on this information, it appears that the standard of living ranges between low and medium for most people. While statistics show that roughly 25% of people live below the poverty line, there are likely other people who profit from the lucrative opportunites related to natural resources and agriculture.
2) Government System: On a positive note, Ghana has been described by the United Nations as Africa's most successful democracy. There is a democratic system of government intact, where people vote in elections and have the opportunity to experience their grievances. Nonetheless, corruption is prevalent throughout the Ghanian government. Ghana is better off than many other African nations yet it still lacks an effective structure. Another hurdle in the government system is the lack of acceptance of women politicians. While the likes of Kwame Nkrumah's daughter are examples of Ghanian women in politics, women are for the most part looked down upon for speaking their mind.
3) Economic system: Ghana's economy is 28.3 % agriculture based, 21 % industry based, and 50.7% service based. The average annual per capita income is $3,100. Since this figure is conveyed in American dollars, it's difficult to assess the situation. While 3,100 dollars seems like very little money for most Americans, by Ghanian standards, this amount of money may be just enough to help someone get by. That's not to say that poverty doesn't exist--there's no doubt that it does exist to a great extent. However, it's possible that certain items are proportionally cheaper for Ghanians. I have noticed in my trips to India that one can get a decent sized meal for $2--something that doesn't happen often in the US. I imagine that in Ghana the situation is similar.
4) History: Ghana used to be known as the Gold Coast during the time of colonialism. The presence of gold attracted colonists from Portugal, France, and England. While the British were the primary colonizers of the region, there were traders from the other two aforememtioned regions. The Portuguese built the Elimina Slave Castles to transport slaves from Ghana to other parts of the world. After years of slavery and oppression by European governments, Kwame Nkrumah helped Ghana achieve independence in 1957. This was a collective effort, with the help of pan-African thinkers like W.E. Dubois and Marcus Garvey. He was the first leader of Ghana and set the stage for making Ghana arguable the most democratic of African nations. The history of Ghana relates to the current standard of living in many ways. First and foremost, the fact that Ghana is a democracy impacts the people in a positive way. On the same token, since Ghana is a relatively new country it still faces difficulties with oganization and eliminating corruption. The deep-rooted oppression faced by Ghanians over time has also contributed greatly to poverty. For one, the Europeans exploited the natural resources and didn't allow the Ghanians to profit from them. Additionally, the lack of infrastructure contributes to social and economic difficulties.
5) Culture: Ghana is an extremely diverse nation with roughly 60 ethnic groups, 52 major languages, and hundreds of dialects. Ghana's culture is rich with different forms of music, literature, and festivals. There are a couple of ways in which the culture impacts the standard of living. First of all, Ghana experiences its fair share of ethnic strife and conflict. Although its diversity is admirable, it has unfortunately caused controversy between different groups. The case is similar for religion. There are also clashes between different religious groups (Christians, Muslims, and indigenous faiths). Life is indisputably more difficult for Ghanians in that they have to keep in mind the possibility of ethnic and religious riots. Another area where culture intersects lifestyle is in the role of women. While many communities within Ghana are matrilineal, there is still a common expection that women should be bearers of children and be confined to household labor. As I mentioned earlier, this influences the literacy rate for women, the Ghanian economy's output, and the participation of women in the political process.
6) How this relates to Gender Empowerment: The information I've gathered today further emphasizes the need for alleviating the status of women. Whether it's the average level of education attained, the literacy rate, or the number of jobs held, there is definitely a gap between men and women. For many years, the focus for women has primarily been taking care of the family. Although modern attitudes about educating and empowering women exist, change is occuring at a slow pace. While my Gender Empowerment group may not be able to make a huge dent in Ghanian society and attitudes, it is my hope that we will be able to convey messages of self-determination and economic empowerment for the women we work with.
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