Ghana, formerly known as the Gold Coast, is the first sub-Saharan African nation to gain independence in 1957 from Britain. Ghana, meaning “Warrior King”, is named after the first and one of the most powerful empires to ever exist in West Africa, and has continued to be at the forefront of excellence in Africa.
Once a leading force in establishing the trans-Saharan trade routes to (modern day) Arabia and Asia, the kingdom of Ghana was far-reaching and influential in the creation of a central government that taxed goods and trading activities brought through its territory. The ancient kingdom of Ghana also had influence on the establishment and promotion of literacy; it gave rise to the gold trading empires of Mali and Songhai, both of which would continue in the establishment of trade with the east.
Present-day Ghana is bordered on the west by the Ivory Coast (Cote d’ Ivoire), Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south. The country’s primary language is English and has a democratic government where they just completed their 4th democratic election, transferring power to an elected President and demonstrating the stability of its democratic governance.
Ghana is one of Africa’s economic rising stars and has been on the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) top ten fastest-growing economies list for the last five years. The discovery of more than 600 million barrels of light crude oil and natural gas in 2007 is expected to bring in over $1 billion annually. In addition, oil continues to be discovered in commercial quantities in new wells which makes the country ripe with opportunities in the improvement of its infrastructure and positive future growth of its economy.
Still a developing country, Ghana is planning its infrastructure to accommodate the significant economic development in the tourism sector that will accrue to the country with the development of the Ghana National Museum on Slavery and Freedom (GNMoSaF) project in the City of Cape Coast. This rapid growth will be fueled by the current ongoing extraction industries that continue to create thousands of jobs including those that the museum project is expected to generate. A complete urban redevelopment plan will be required for a project of this scale which will virtually transform the City of Cape Coast and serve as a buffer zone of entertainment and preferred tourist destination between the oil city of Takoradi and the Capital City, Accra.
For additional information about Ghana and its history please visit the following links and resources page on this website.