Introduction
The Republic of Ghana is located in western part of Africa.The word Ghana means "Warrior King". In the olden day Ghana was known as *The Gold Coast*. Ghana achieved it independence from the United Kingdom in 1957, becoming the first sub-Saharan African nation obtain it indenpence. The name Ghana was chosen for the new nation to reflect the ancient Empire of Ghana, which once extended throughout much of west Africa. Ghana is a member of the South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Economic Community of West African States, the African Union, and an associate Member of La Francophonie. Ghana is the second largest producer of cocoa in the world and is also home to Lake Volta, the largest artificial lake in the world by surface area.
Etymology
The word Ghana means Warrior King and was the title accorded to the kings of the medieval West African Ghana Empire. Ghana was adopted as the legal name for the Gold Coast combined with British Togoland upon gaining autonomy on March 6, 1957. It was not until July 1, 1960, however, that Ghana asserted its complete independence from Britain and became known as the Republic of Ghana.
Regions and districts
Ghana is divided into 10 administrative regions, subdivided into a total of 138 districts. The regions are:
|
|
Population of major cities
| City | Population |
|---|---|
| Accra | 3,963,264 |
| Kumasi | 2,604,909 |
| Tamale | 360,579 |
| Takoradi | 360,651 |
| Tema | 229,106 |
| Teshie | 154,513 |
| Sekondi | 153,900 |
| Cape Coast | 200,204 |
| Obuasi | 147,613 |
| Dunkwa-On-Offin | 108,482 |
Government and politics
According to the 2009 Failed States Index, Ghana is ranked the 53rd least failed state in the world and the second least failed state in Africa after Mauritius. Ghana ranked 124th out of 177 countries on the index.Ghana also was placed 7th out of 48 sub-Saharan African countries in the 2008 Ibrahim Index of African Governance which was based on data from 2006. The Ibrahim Index is a comprehensive measure of African government, based on a number of different variables which reflect the success with which governments deliver essential political goods to its citizens.
Government
Ghana was created as a parliamentary democracy at independence in 1957, followed by alternating military and civilian governments. In January 1993, military government gave way to the Fourth Republic after presidential and parliamentary elections in late 1992. The 1992 constitution divides powers among a President, Parliament, Cabinet, Council of State, and an independent judiciary. The Government is elected by universal suffrage; however, the legislature is greatly malapportioned, with low-population districts receiving more representatives per person than those with high populations.
Culture and media
Ghana is an ethnically diverse country; thus, Ghanaian culture is a mixture of all its ethnic groups, the Ashanti, Fante, Akyem, Kwahu, Ga, Ewe,Mamprusi and Dagomba, among others. It is most evident in Ghanaian cuisine, the arts and clothing.
The celebration of festivals in Ghana is an essential part of Ghanaian culture and there are many of them such as the Homowo, Odwira, Aboakyer,Dodoleglime, Hogbetsotso, Tedudu, Deza (festival) and Sandema among others. Several rites and rituals are performed throughout the year in various parts of the country, including child-birth, rites of passage, puberty, marriage and death.
Football is the most popular Sport in Ghana. The national men's football team is known as the Black Stars, with the under-20 team known as the Black Satellites. Ghana has participated in many championships including the African Cup of Nations, the FIFA World Cup and the FIFA U-20 World Cup. In the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Ghana became the third African country to reach the quarter final stage of the World Cup after Cameroon in 1990 and Senegal in 2002.
Textiles are very important in Ghanaian culture. These cloths are used to make traditional and modern attire. Different symbols and different colors mean different things. The Kente is probably the most famous of all the Ghanaian cloths. Kente is an Ashanti ceremonial cloth hand-woven on a horizontal treadle loom.
Kwaku Ananse Stories
http://www.lehigh.edu/~tqr0/ghanaweb/anansetales.html
Information
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anansi
