Ghana Month: Sixty-seven Interesting Facts About Ghana

As Ghana celebrates its 67th Independence Day on Wednesday, 6th March, 2024, under the theme, “Our Democracy, Our Pride,” I have put together these 67 interesting facts about the country to help the citizens and foreign nationals know the country better.

These facts are:

Asamoah Gyan is the all-time leading goal scorer of Ghana’s national team, with 51 goals.
Ghana has fifteen (15) public universities, ten (10) technical universities and thirty-eight (38) teacher-training colleges.
The largest market in West Africa is the Kejetia Market, located in Ghana. It was commissioned in 2015 and built by President John Mahama. In the colonial days, the market used to be called Prince of Wales Park. In July 2015, the current UK’s Prince of Wales visited the place to review its progress. It was a beautiful ceremony.
Ghana has eleven (11) written indigenous languages taught in schools- Akuapem Twi, Asanti Twi, Fanti, Nzema, Dagaare, Dagbane, Ewe, Dangme, Ga, Gonja, and Kasem but the official/national language is English.
The Akan people of Ghana make up about 47% of the nation’s population. They speak four of the eleven (11) languages- Akuapem Twi, Asanti Twi, Fanti and Nzema.
Ghana was the first country in Africa to gain independence from colonial rule, declaring independence on 6th March, 1957.
The word ‘Ghana’ means ‘Warrior King’. It’s a Soninke language of the people of Mali. It was the title of the Kings of Wagadu. It is believed they used to win a lot of wars, hence, when the Gold Coast won the ‘war’ of independence, it made sense to name the country after the Kings.
The day Ghana declared independence, that is, 6th March 1957, was a Wednesday.
J.J Rawlings is the longest serving president of Ghana. He served as president from 1981 to 2000.
President Nii Armah Ollennu is the shortest serving president of Ghana. He served from August 7 to 30, 1970. He is the only president in Ghana’s history who did not serve for more than one month.
The West African Examination Council (WAEC) has its Headquarters situated in Ghana.
The first radio station in Ghana was Radio ZOY. It was established in 1935. It would later become the Gold Coast Broadcasting Service (GCBS) in 1954.
The oldest secondary school in Ghana is the Mfantsipim school in Cape Coast. It was established on April 3, 1876. It’s first headmaster was James Picot, he was only 18 years old when he was appointed the headmaster.
Mfantsipim means ‘mfantsefo apem’, which literally translates ‘thousand Fantes’. Clearly, formal high school education in Ghana started with the Fantes.
The largest man-made lake in the world is the Lake Volta. It is located in Ghana. It covers 3.6% of the country’s land surface area.
Ferdie Ato Adoboe is the first Ghanaian to have set a world record in the Guinness Book of Records. He successfully ran 100 meters backwards in 13 seconds. He did it on 25th July 1991, at the Smith College, Massachusetts, USA.
Afua Asantewaa Aduonum is the first Ghanaian to officially attempt a world record in the Guiness Book of Records and fail. She attempted longest singing marathon (sing-a-thon) in 2023. She sang for 126 hours, 52 minutes.
Ghana is the second most populated country in West Africa. Nigeria is first.
Edward Akufo-Addo is the only president of Ghana whose son has also become the president of the country. He was president from August, 1970 to January, 1972. His son, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, became president from 2017 to 2024.
Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang is the first female vice chancellor of a public university in Ghana. She was the vice chancellor of the University of Cape Coast from 2008 to 2012. She would later go on to become the Minister for Education from 2013 to 2017.
Michael Owusu, known as Sarkodie, is the most awarded musician in the country’s history. He is the only Ghanaian artiste to have won both new artiste of the year and overall artiste of the year at the Ghana Music Awards in the same year, 2010. He won five (5) awards that day. He has won about 150 awards, both locally and internationally.
The Church of Pentecost is the biggest Christian denomination in the country, occupying 10% of the country’s population. It is the only international denomination in the country with its global Headquarters situated in Ghana.
The Cape Coast Castle and Elmina Castle located in Ghana are UNESCO World Heritage Sites and were major hubs for the transatlantic slave trade.
Ghana has only one natural lake- Lake Bosomtwi. The lake is seen and treated as a sacred lake. Bosomtwi, literally translates ‘bosom )twe’ which means ‘the antelope god’. It is believed that in 1648, a hunter called Akora Bompe shot at an antelope who ran into a small pond. Discovering that the pond had a lot of fishes, the hunter, though couldn’t get the antelope back, settled around the pond and started fishing there. The small pond would later magnify to become a lake.
Nigeria is the closest English-speaking neighbouring country of Ghana.
Ghana is a member of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Monica Amekoafia is the first to win the Miss Ghana competition. She won it in 1957 at the age of 22. She represented the Trans-Volta Togoland, now Volta region. She would later grow to become a mother of six children- four with her husband Henry Marrah, a diplomat under Kwame Nkrumah, and two from previous relationships. She died at age 55 from asthma attack in 1990. Her statue is mounted at Hohoe.
Accra became the capital city of Ghana in 1877. Before that, the capital city was Cape Coast.

Ghana has a rich literary tradition, with authors such as Ayi Kwei Armah, Ama Ata Aidoo, and Kofi Awoonor gaining international acclaim.

The ‘Ghana Black Star’ is the name of country’s national football team, and football is the most popular sport in the country. The Under 23 national team is ‘Black Meteors’, Under 20 is ‘Black Satellites’ and Under 17 is ‘Black Starlets. The national women team is the ‘Black Queens’, the Under 20 women team is ‘Black Princesses’ and the Under 17 women is ‘Black Maidens’

The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) was the first political party formed in Ghana in August 1947. Kwame Nkrumah was its secretary and he was paid 250 Pounds (present day about 4,000 cedis). The second party was the Convention People’s Party (CPP) which was formed in June, 1949 by Kwame Nkrumah who broke away from the UGCC. Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president, proceeded to secure independence for Ghana in 1957.

Ghana is the first country in Africa to have won the Under 17 and Under 20 FIFA World Cup tournaments. The U-17 was won in Italy 1991, and the U-20 was won in Egypt 2009.

The Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra is the first hospital established in Ghana. It was established on 9th October, 1923 under the administration of Sir Gordon Guggisberg who was the governor of the country then. Korle Bu means ‘valley of the Korley lagoon’.

The University of Ghana, located in Legon Accra, is the first, oldest and largest university in the country established in 1948.

The second university established in the country is the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), established in 1951. It was called Kumasi College of Technology until 1961 when it was renamed to KNUST.

Ghana’s currency is called the Cedi.

Ghana have had five (5) coup d’etats in history. The first was staged by Gen. JA Ankrah in 1966 to overthrow Kwame Nkrumah and the last was staged by JJ Rawlings in 1981 to overthrow Hilla Limann.

Traditional healers, who use herbs and leaves, play a large role in Ghana’s health system. According to the World Health Organisation, traditional medicine is used by up to 70% of patients in Ghana.

Ghana’s national football team has qualified for the FIFA World Cup four times- 2006, 2010, 2014 and 2022.

The country has two climate seasons- dry season and wet season.

Ghana is bordered by Ivory Coast to the West, Burkina Faso to the North, and Togo to the East. All are French speaking countries. It is bordered to the South by the Atlantic Ocean.

The Kakum National Park located in Ghana is home to over 600 species of butterfly.

Ghana have had five (5) constitutions since its independence- the 1957 constitution, 1960 constitution, 1969 constitution, 1979 constitution and the 1992 constitution. The 1992 constitution is the longest and current serving constitution of the country. It was officially approved on 28th April, 1992.

2,330,893 school children, representing 40% of pupils in the country’s public basic schools sit on the bare floor in the classroom to receive tuition, as of 2024.

Rita Marley, the wife of the late global reggae icon, Bob Marley, is a Ghanaian citizen. She relocated from Jamaica to Ghana in the 1990s, and later applied for, and obtained, Ghanaian citizenship in 2013. She lives at Aburi with the name Nana Afua Adobea.

The third longest river in Africa is located in Ghana. It is called the Volta River. Rivers Nile and Congo are the first and second longest respectively.

The first presidential election of the country was held on 27th April, 1960. The two major candidates were Kwame Nkrumah, representing the CPP and J.B Danquah, representing the United Party (The UGCC had transformed to UP). The voter turn out was 2,098,651. Dr. Kwame Nkrumah won the election with 1,140,699 votes (89.07%) while J.B Danquah lost with 124,623 votes (10.93%).

Ghana’s national football team has won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) four times- 1963, 1965, 1978 and 1982.

The country has a rich history of traditional dance forms, including Adowa, Kpanlogo, and Agbadza.

The oldest surviving football team in Ghana is the Accra Hearts of Oak. It was formed in 1911. Its rival, the Kumasi Asante Kotoko, was formed in 1935. The national football team of Ghana, the Black Stars, was formed in 1950.

The country celebrates several festivals including the Homowo, Hogbetsotso, Akwambo and Aboakyir festivals.

Ghana has sixteen (16) regions. The regions and their capital cities are Ahafo (Goaso), Ashanti (Kumasi), Bono East (Techiman), Brong Ahafo (Sunyani), Central (Cape Coast), Eastern (Koforidua), Greater Accra (Accra), North East (Nalerigu), Northern (Tamale), Oti (Dambai), Savannah (Damongo), Upper East (Bolgatanga), Upper West (Wa), Western (Sekondi Takoradi), Western North (Sefwi Wiawso) and Volta (Ho).

The Ghanaian pre-tertiary education system follows a 6-3-4 structure (6 years of primary, 3 years of junior high, and 4 years of senior high).

DJ Switch (Erica Tandoh) is the youngest to have won the DJ of the year award at the Ghana DJ Award. She won it at age 10, in 2018.

J.B. Danquah was the first president of the Ghana Bar Association in 1962. He would later die in jail on 4th February, 1965 at the age of 69.

Ghana has a growing film industry, known as ‘Ghallywood’, which produces movies in English and local languages.

The country has a diverse religious landscape, with Christianity, Islam, and traditional African religions being practiced, with Christianity being the most dominated religion.

The national flag of Ghana consists of red, gold, green, and a black star.

Francisca Oteng Mensah is the youngest parliamentarian in the country’s history. She was elected Member of Parliament at the age of 23, entering parliament in January, 2017. She represented the Kwabre East constituency on NPP ticket. She secured 70,000 votes while her competitor got 15,000. At the time, she was a Law student at KNUST making her the first undergraduate university student to have entered parliament as well.

The black star on the Ghana flag represents African emancipation and unity.

The country hosts the Kakum National Park, known for its canopy walkway through the rainforest.

The Ghana legal system is based on the English common law.

The first president of the country, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, conducted a referendum to turn the country into a one-party state in 1964. The official result is of the referendum was 99.91% votes in support.

Ghana is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Ghana has thirteen (13) public holidays.

The country has a rich musical heritage, with diverse genres including Highlife, Hiplife, and Gospel music. Some fathers of highlife include E.T Mensah, Nana Kwame Ampadu, Osibisa, JA Adofo, Daddy Lumba, Nana Acheampong, Awurama Badu, CK Mann, Ebo Taylor, etc. In terms of Hiplife music, some legends are Reggie Rockstone (Godfather of Hiplife), Obrafour, Lord Kenya, Nkasie, Akyeame/Okyeame Kwame, Sarkodie. Some gospel legends are Elder Mireku, Yaw Sarpong, Bishop Osei Bonsu, Tagoe Sisters, Bernice Offei, Daughters of Glorious Jesus, Hannah Marfo, Stella Dugan, Esther Smith, Christiana Love, Diana Hamilton.

The Ashanti Region is the region with the most gold deposits in the country.

Thank you for reading today’s episode. Continue to follow the insightful articles I share on this page.

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Writer: Daniel Fenyi

The writer is a licensed counselor who guides the youth through his writings. He is a history enthusiast as well. If you have any concerns, reach him via email fenyigh@gmail.com

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