Ghana (2005) | New Zealand (2002) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta, Western | 16 regions; Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Canterbury, Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, Marlborough, Nelson, Northland, Otago, Southland, Taranaki, Tasman, Waikato, Manawatu-Wanganui, Wellington, West Coast |
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: 22.2% (male 443,921; female 422,804)
15-64 years: 66.3% (male 1,299,973; female 1,290,097) 65 years and over: 11.5% (male 196,640; female 254,602) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, coffee, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber | wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits, vegetables; wool, beef, dairy products; fish |
Airports | 12 (2004 est.) | 106 (2001) |
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: 46
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 67
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 26 under 914 m: 39 (2002) |
Area | total: 239,460 sq km
land: 230,940 sq km water: 8,520 sq km |
total: 268,680 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km note: includes Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | about the size of Colorado |
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. | The Polynesian Maoris reached New Zealand in about the 800 AD. The British proclaimed their sovereignty over the islands in 1840 and began settlement that same year. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both World Wars. New Zealand's full participation in number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances. |
Birth rate | 23.97 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 14.23 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.17 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $16.7 billion
expenditures: $16.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY00/01) |
Capital | Accra | Wellington |
Climate | tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north | temperate with sharp regional contrasts |
Coastline | 539 km | 15,134 km |
Constitution | approved 28 April 1992 | consists of a series of legal documents, including certain acts of the UK and New Zealand Parliaments and The Constitution Act 1986 which is the principal formal charter |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana former: Gold Coast |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: New Zealand abbreviation: NZ |
Currency | - | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Death rate | 10.84 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 7.55 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.396 billion (2004 est.) | $31.1 billion (2001 est.) |
Dependent areas | - | Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau |
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 Charles J. SWINDELLS
embassy: 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington mailing address: P. O. Box 1190, Wellington; PSC 467, Box 1, FPO AP 96531-1001 telephone: [64] (4) 462-6000 FAX: [64] (4) 478-1701 consulate(s) general: Auckland |
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 L. John WOOD
chancery: 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-4800 FAX: [1] (202) 667-5227 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York |
Disputes - international | Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped rebel fighting in Cote d'Ivoire | territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency) |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $99.7 million (FY00/01) |
Economic aid - recipient | $6.9 billion (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. | Since 1984 the government has accomplished major economic restructuring, transforming New Zealand from an agrarian economy dependent on concessionary British market access to a more industrialized, free market economy that can compete globally. This dynamic growth has boosted real incomes (but left behind many at the bottom of the ladder), broadened and deepened the technological capabilities of the industrial sector, and contained inflationary pressures. While per capita incomes have been rising, however, they remain below the level of the four largest EU economies, and there is some government concern that New Zealand is not closing the gap. New Zealand is heavily dependent on trade - particularly in agricultural products - to drive growth, and it has been affected by the global economic slowdown and the slump in commodity prices. Thus far the New Zealand economy has been relatively resilient, achieving about 3% growth in 2001, but the New Zealand business cycle tends to lag the US cycle by about six months, so the worst of the downturn may not hit until mid-2002. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.137 billion kWh (2002) | 33.315 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 500 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 6.922 billion kWh (2002) | 35.823 billion kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 27%
hydro: 66% nuclear: 0% other: 7% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Afadjato 880 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Cook 3,764 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; soil erosion; native flora and fauna hard-hit by species introduced from outside |
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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Antarctic Seals, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation |
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) | New Zealand European 74.5%, Maori 9.7%, other European 4.6%, Pacific Islander 3.8%, Asian and others 7.4% |
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) | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.3535 (January 2002), 2.3776 (2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8632 (1998), 1.5083 (1997) |
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001)
head of government: Prime Minister Helen CLARK (since 10 December 1999) and Deputy Prime Minister Michael CULLEN (since NA September 2002) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general |
Exports | NA | $14.2 billion (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds | dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish, machinery |
Exports - partners | Mexico 69.8%, Netherlands 3.7%, UK 3% (2004) | Australia 20.4%, US 14.5%, Japan 13.5%, UK 5.4%, South Korea, China (2000) |
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 | blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of the flag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $75.4 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 34.3%
industry: 24.2% services: 41.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 23% services: 69% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $19,500 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.4% (2004 est.) | 3.1% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 N, 2 00 W | 41 00 S, 174 00 E |
Geography - note | Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake | about 80% of the population lives in cities; Wellington is the southernmost national capital in the world |
Heliports | - | 1 (2002) |
Highways | total: 46,176 km
paved: 8,496 km unpaved: 37,679 km (1999 est.) |
total: 92,200 km
paved: 53,568 km (including at least 144 km of expressways) unpaved: 38,632 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.1% (1999) |
lowest 10%: 0%
highest 10%: 30% (1991 est.) |
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 | $12.5 billion (2001 est.) |
Imports - commodities | capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs | machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum, electronics, textiles, plastics |
Imports - partners | Nigeria 12.6%, China 11.4%, UK 6.6%, US 6.4%, France 4.9%, Netherlands 4.2% (2004) | Australia 22.5%, US 17.5%, Japan 11%, UK 4%, China, Germany (2000) |
Independence | 6 March 1957 (from UK) | 26 September 1907 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | 3% (2001 est.) |
Industries | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building | food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery, transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining |
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.) |
6.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 13% (2004 est.) | 2.6% (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 | ABEDA, ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August 1986), APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, C, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 36 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1998 est.) | 2,850 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | High Court; Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 10.24 million (2004 est.) | 1.92 million (2001 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 60%, industry 15%, services 25% (1999 est.) | services 65%, industry 25%, agriculture 10% (1995) (1995) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,094 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 549 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km, Togo 877 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.26%
permanent crops: 9.67% other: 74.07% (2001) |
arable land: 5.8%
permanent crops: 6.44% other: 87.76% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official), African languages (including Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga) | English (official), Maori (official) |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English law, with special land legislation and land courts for Maoris; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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 House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (120 seats; members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 27 July 2002 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NZLP 52, NP 27, NZFP 13, ACT New Zealand 9, Green Party 9, UF 8, other 2 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 58.47 years
male: 57.7 years female: 59.26 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 78.15 years
male: 75.17 years female: 81.27 years (2002 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: 99% (1980 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Cote d'Ivoire and Togo | Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of Australia |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
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) |
total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 68,427 GRT/106,627 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 1, container 1, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $49.2 million (2004) | $515.6 million (2002 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2004) | 1.2% (FY2001/02) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 1,010,316 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 850,185 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 20 years of age (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 26,480 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 March (1957) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun: Ghanaian(s)
adjective: Ghanaian |
noun: New Zealander(s)
adjective: New Zealand |
Natural hazards | dry, dusty, northeastern harmattan winds occur from January to March; droughts | earthquakes are common, though usually not severe; volcanic activity |
Natural resources | gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone | natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, limestone |
Net migration rate | -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | refined products 74 km (2004) | petroleum products 160 km; natural gas 1,000 km; liquefied petroleum gas or LPG 150 km |
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] | ACT New Zealand [Richard PREBBLE]; Alliance (a coalition of the New Labor Party, Democratic Party, New Zealand Liberal Party, and Mana Motuhake) [James (Jim) ANDERTON]; Green Party [Jeanette FITZSIMONS and Rod DONALD]; National Party or NP [William (Bill) English]; New Zealand First Party or NZFP [Winston PETERS]; New Zealand Labor Party or NZLP [Helen CLARK]; United Future or UF [leader NA]; United New Zealand or UNZ [Peter DUNNE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
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.) |
3,908,037 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 31.4% (1992 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.25% (2005 est.) | 1.12% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Takoradi, Tema | Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Tauranga, Wellington |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 49, shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 124, FM 290, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3.75 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 953 km
narrow gauge: 953 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) |
total: 3,908 km
narrow gauge: 3,908 km 1.067-m gauge (506 km electrified) (2001) |
Religions | Christian 63%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 21% | Anglican 24%, Presbyterian 18%, Roman Catholic 15%, Methodist 5%, Baptist 2%, other Protestant 3%, unspecified or none 33% (1986) |
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: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2002 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: excellent domestic and international systems
domestic: NA international: submarine cables to Australia and Fiji; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 302,300 (2003) | 1.92 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 799,900 (2003) | 2.2 million (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (2001) | 41 (plus 52 medium-power repeaters and over 650 low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area | predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 1.8 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (1997 est.) | 5.5% (2001 est.) |
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) |
1,609 km
note: of little importance in satisfying total transportation requirements |