Ghana (2005) | Malawi (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta, Western | 27 districts; Balaka, Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Likoma, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ntcheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Phalombe, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.1% (male 3,946,326/female 3,862,390)
15-64 years: 59.1% (male 6,203,035/female 6,235,107) 65 years and over: 3.7% (male 366,472/female 416,523) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 46.8% (male 2,748,058; female 2,698,052)
15-64 years: 50.5% (male 2,911,892; female 2,973,723) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 128,722; female 190,792) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, coffee, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber | tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; groundnuts, Macadamia nuts; cattle, goats |
Airports | 12 (2004 est.) | 43 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 6
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 37
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 22 (2002) |
Area | total: 239,460 sq km
land: 230,940 sq km water: 8,520 sq km |
total: 118,480 sq km
land: 94,080 sq km water: 24,400 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
Background | Formed from the merger of the British colony of the Gold Coast and the Togoland trust territory, Ghana in 1957 became the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence. A long series of coups resulted in the suspension of the constitution in 1981 and a ban on political parties. A new constitution, restoring multiparty politics, was approved in 1992. Lt. Jerry RAWLINGS, head of state since 1981, won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996, but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John KUFUOR, who defeated former Vice President Atta MILLS in a free and fair election, succeeded him. | Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule, the country held multiparty elections in 1994 under a provisional constitution, which took full effect the following year. National multiparty elections were held again in 1999. |
Birth rate | 23.97 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 44.7 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.17 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $490 million
expenditures: $523 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY 99/00 est.) |
Capital | Accra | Lilongwe |
Climate | tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north | sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) |
Coastline | 539 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | approved 28 April 1992 | 18 May 1994 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana former: Gold Coast |
conventional long form: Republic of Malawi
conventional short form: Malawi former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland |
Currency | - | Malawian kwacha (MWK) |
Death rate | 10.84 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 22.64 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.396 billion (2004 est.) | $2.9 billion (2002) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Carlin YATES
embassy: 6th and 10th Lanes, 798/1 Osu, Accra mailing address: P. O. Box 194, Accra telephone: [233] (21) 775-347, 775-348 FAX: [233] (21) 701-813 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Stephen BROWN
embassy: Area 40, Plot 24, Kenyatta Road mailing address: P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe 3, Malawi telephone: [265] (1) 773 166 FAX: [265] (1) 770 471 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Alan J. KYEREMATEN
chancery: 3512 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 686-4520 FAX: [1] (202) 686-4527 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission: Ambassador Paul Tony Steven KANDIERO
chancery: 2408 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-1007 FAX: [1] (202) 265-0976 |
Disputes - international | Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped rebel fighting in Cote d'Ivoire | dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and the meandering Songwe River remain dormant |
Economic aid - recipient | $6.9 billion (1999) | $540 million (1999) |
Economy - overview | Well endowed with natural resources, Ghana has roughly twice the per capita output of the poorer countries in West Africa. Even so, Ghana remains heavily dependent on international financial and technical assistance. Gold, timber, and cocoa production are major sources of foreign exchange. The domestic economy continues to revolve around subsistence agriculture, which accounts for 34% of GDP and employs 60% of the work force, mainly small landholders. Ghana opted for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) program in 2002. Priorities include tighter monetary and fiscal policies, accelerated privatization, and improvement of social services. Receipts from the gold sector helped sustain GDP growth in 2004. Inflation should ease, but remain a major internal problem. | Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world's least developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural, with about 90% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounted for nearly 40% of GDP and 88% of export revenues in 2001. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. In late 2000, Malawi was approved for relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. In November 2002 the World Bank approved a $50 million drought recovery package, which is to be used for famine relief. The government faces strong challenges, e.g., to fully develop a market economy, to improve educational facilities, to face up to environmental problems, to deal with the rapidly growing problem of HIV/AIDS, and to satisfy foreign donors that fiscal discipline is being tightened. The performance of the tobacco sector is key to short-term growth as tobacco accounts for over 50% of exports. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.137 billion kWh (2002) | 715.3 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 500 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 6.922 billion kWh (2002) | 769.2 million kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 3.3%
hydro: 96.7% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Afadjato 880 m |
lowest point: junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m
highest point: Sapitwa (Mount Mlanje) 3,002 m |
Environment - current issues | recurrent drought in north severely affects agricultural activities; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; poaching and habitat destruction threatens wildlife populations; water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water | deforestation; land degradation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | black African 98.5% (major tribes - Akan 44%, Moshi-Dagomba 16%, Ewe 13%, Ga 8%, Gurma 3%, Yoruba 1%), European and other 1.5% (1998) | Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuka, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European |
Exchange rates | cedis per US dollar - 9,004.6 (2004), 8,677.4 (2003), 7,932.7 (2002), 7,170.8 (2001), 5,455.1 (2000) | Malawian kwachas per US dollar - 76.69 (2002), 72.2 (2001), 59.54 (2000), 44.09 (1999), 31.07 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President John Agyekum KUFUOR (since 7 January 2001); Vice President Alhaji Aliu MAHAMA (since 7 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President John Agyekum KUFUOR (since 7 January 2001); Vice President Alhaji Aliu MAHAMA (since 7 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers; president nominates members subject to approval by Parliament elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008) election results: John Agyekum KUFUOR reelected president in election; percent of vote - John KUFUOR 53.4%, John Atta MILLS 43.7% |
chief of state: President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: 46-member Cabinet named by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Bakili MULUZI reelected president; percent of vote - Bakili MULUZI (UDF) 51.4%, Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA (MCP-AFORD) 44.3% |
Exports | NA | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds | tobacco 60%, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products, apparel |
Exports - partners | Mexico 69.8%, Netherlands 3.7%, UK 3% (2004) | US 17.3%, Germany 13.6%, South Africa 10.2%, Egypt 6.2%, Japan 6%, Netherlands 5.5%, Russia 4.8%, UK 4.3% (2002) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), yellow, and green with a large black five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia; similar to the flag of Bolivia, which has a coat of arms centered in the yellow band | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $6.811 billion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 34.3%
industry: 24.2% services: 41.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 37%
industry: 16% services: 47% (2001 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $600 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.4% (2004 est.) | 1.7% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 N, 2 00 W | 13 30 S, 34 00 E |
Geography - note | Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake | landlocked; Lake Nyasa, some 580 km long, is the country's most prominent physical feature |
Government - note | - | the executive exerts considerable influence over the legislature |
Highways | total: 46,176 km
paved: 8,496 km unpaved: 37,679 km (1999 est.) |
total: 28,400 km
paved: 5,254 km unpaved: 23,146 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.1% (1999) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | illicit producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; major transit hub for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin and, to a lesser extent, South American cocaine destined for Europe and the US; widespread crime and money laundering problem, but the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center | - |
Imports | NA | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs | food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment |
Imports - partners | Nigeria 12.6%, China 11.4%, UK 6.6%, US 6.4%, France 4.9%, Netherlands 4.2% (2004) | South Africa 44.4%, Zambia 12.7%, US 5.6%, India 4.2% (2002) |
Independence | 6 March 1957 (from UK) | 6 July 1964 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | -0.8% (2002 est.) |
Industries | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building | tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods |
Infant mortality rate | total: 51.43 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 54.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.53 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 105.15 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 109.36 deaths/1,000 live births female: 100.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 13% (2004 est.) | 27.4% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 3 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1998 est.) | 280 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court of Appeal; High Court (chief justice appointed by the president, puisne judges appointed on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission); magistrate's courts |
Labor force | 10.24 million (2004 est.) | 4.5 million (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 60%, industry 15%, services 25% (1999 est.) | agriculture 86% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,094 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 549 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km, Togo 877 km |
total: 2,881 km
border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.26%
permanent crops: 9.67% other: 74.07% (2001) |
arable land: 19.93%
permanent crops: 1.33% other: 78.74% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), African languages (including Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga) | English (official), Chichewa (official), other languages important regionally |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament (230 seats; note - increased from 200 seats in last election; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held December 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPP 128, NDC 92, other 10 |
unicameral National Assembly (193 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - UDF 48%, MCP 34%, AFORD 15%, others 3%; seats by party - UDF 96, MCP 61, AFORD 30, others 6 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 58.47 years
male: 57.7 years female: 59.26 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 37.98 years
male: 37.57 years female: 38.39 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 74.8% male: 82.7% female: 67.1% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 62.7% male: 76.1% female: 49.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Cote d'Ivoire and Togo | Southern Africa, east of Zambia |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 4 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 19,086 GRT/26,185 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 3 foreign-owned: 1 (Brazil 1) (2005) |
- |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Army (including Air Wing and Naval Detachment), Police (including paramilitary Mobile Force Unit) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $49.2 million (2004) | $13.01 million (FY02) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2004) | 0.7% (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 2,625,495 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 1,347,248 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 March (1957) | Independence Day (Republic Day), 6 July (1964) |
Nationality | noun: Ghanaian(s)
adjective: Ghanaian |
noun: Malawian(s)
adjective: Malawian |
Natural hazards | dry, dusty, northeastern harmattan winds occur from January to March; droughts | NA |
Natural resources | gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone | limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite |
Net migration rate | -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | refined products 74 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Convention People's Party or CPP [Nii Noi DOWUONA, general secretary]; Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere or EGLE [Owuraku AMOFA, chairman]; Great Consolidated Popular Party or GCPP [Dan LARTY]; National Convention Party or NCP [Sarpong KUMA-KUMA]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [Dr. Huudu YAHAYA, general secretary]; New Patriotic Party or NPP [Samuel Arthur ODOI-SYKES]; People's Convention Party or PCP [P. K. DONKOH-AYIFI, acting chairman]; People's Heritage Party or PHP [Emmanuel Alexander ERSKINE]; People's National Convention or PNC [Edward MAHAMA]; Reform Party [Kyeretwie OPUKU, general secretary] | Alliance for Democracy or AFORD [Chakufwa CHIHANA]; Malawi Congress Party or MCP [John TEMBO, president; Gwanda CHAKUAMBA, vice president]; Malawi Democratic Party or MDP [Kampelo KALUA]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Bakili MULUZI] - governing party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | National Democratic Alliance [Brown MPINGANJIRA] |
Population | 21,029,853
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2005 est.) |
11,651,239
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 31.4% (1992 est.) | 54% (FY 90/91 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.25% (2005 est.) | 2.21% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Takoradi, Tema | Chipoka, Monkey Bay, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 49, shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 9, FM 5 (plus 15 repeater stations), shortwave 2 (plus a third station held in standby status) (2001) |
Railways | total: 953 km
narrow gauge: 953 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) |
total: 797 km
narrow gauge: 797 km 1.067-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Christian 63%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 21% | Protestant 55%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs 3%, other 2% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: poor to fair system; Internet accessible; many rural communities not yet connected; expansion of services is underway
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay; wireless local loop has been installed international: country code - 233; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); microwave radio relay link to Panaftel system connects Ghana to its neighbors; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
general assessment: NA
domestic: system employs open-wire lines, microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 302,300 (2003) | 45,000 (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 799,900 (2003) | 49,000 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (2001) | 1 (2001) |
Terrain | mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area | narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 6.1 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (1997 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 1,293 km
note: 168 km for launches and lighters on Volta, Ankobra, and Tano rivers; 1,125 km of arterial and feeder waterways on Lake Volta (2003) |
144 km
note: on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire Riverall |