Ghana (2005) | Nicaragua (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta, Western | 15 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento) and 2 autonomous regions* (regiones autonomistas, singular - region autonomista); Atlantico Norte*, Atlantico Sur*, Boaco, Carazo, Chinandega, Chontales, Esteli, Granada, Jinotega, Leon, Madriz, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, Nueva Segovia, Rio San Juan, Rivas |
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: 37.2% (male 1,036,487/female 999,226)
15-64 years: 59.7% (male 1,623,065/female 1,638,017) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 73,935/female 94,370) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, coffee, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber | coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products |
Airports | 12 (2004 est.) | 176 (2004 est.) |
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: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 165
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 141 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 239,460 sq km
land: 230,940 sq km water: 8,520 sq km |
total: 129,494 sq km
land: 120,254 sq km water: 9,240 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly smaller than the state of New York |
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 Pacific Coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and again in 2001 saw the Sandinistas defeated. The country has slowly rebuilt its economy during the 1990s, but was hard hit by Hurricane Mitch in 1998. |
Birth rate | 23.97 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 24.88 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $2.17 billion
expenditures: $2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $725.5 million
expenditures: $1.039 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Accra | Managua |
Climate | tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north | tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands |
Coastline | 539 km | 910 km |
Constitution | approved 28 April 1992 | 9 January 1987; reforms in 1995 and 2000 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana former: Gold Coast |
conventional long form: Republic of Nicaragua
conventional short form: Nicaragua local long form: Republica de Nicaragua local short form: Nicaragua |
Death rate | 10.84 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 4.49 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.396 billion (2004 est.) | $4.573 billion (2004 est.) |
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 Barbara Calandra MOORE
embassy: Kilometer 4.5 Carretera Sur, Managua mailing address: APO AA 34021 telephone: [505] 266-6010 FAX: [505] 266-9074 |
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 Salvador STADTHAGEN (since 5 December 2003)
chancery: 1627 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6570, [1] (202) 939-6573 FAX: [1] (202) 939-6545 consulate(s) general: Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco |
Disputes - international | Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped rebel fighting in Cote d'Ivoire | Nicaragua filed a claim against Honduras in 1999 and against Colombia in 2001 at the ICJ over disputed maritime boundary involving 50,000 sq km in the Caribbean Sea, including the Archipelago de San Andres y Providencia and Quita Sueno Bank; the 1992 ICJ ruling for El Salvador and Honduras advised a tripartite resolution to establish a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca, which considers Honduran access to the Pacific; legal dispute over navigational rights of San Juan River on border with Costa Rica |
Economic aid - recipient | $6.9 billion (1999) | $541.8 million (2003) |
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. | Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest countries, faces low per capita income, massive unemployment, and huge external debt. Distribution of income is one of the most unequal on the globe. While the country has made progress toward macroeconomic stability over the past few years, GDP annual growth has been far too low to meet the country's needs. As a result of successful performance under its International Monetary Fund policy program and other efforts, Nicaragua qualified in early 2004 for some $4 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Even after this reduction, however, the government continues to bear a significant foreign and domestic debt burden. If ratified, the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) will provide an opportunity for Nicaragua to attract investment, create jobs, and deepen economic development. While President BOLANOS enjoys the support of the international financial bodies, his internal political base is meager. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.137 billion kWh (2002) | 2.318 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 500 million kWh (2002) | 6.8 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 200 million kWh (2002) | 15.3 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 6.922 billion kWh (2002) | 2.553 billion kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Afadjato 880 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mogoton 2,438 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; water pollution |
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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
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) | mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 69%, white 17%, black 9%, Amerindian 5% |
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) | gold cordobas per US dollar - 15.937 (2004), 15.105 (2003), 14.251 (2002), 13.372 (2001), 12.684 (2000) |
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 Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (since 10 January 2002); Vice President Jose RIZO Castellon (since 10 January 2002); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (since 10 January 2002); Vice President Jose RIZO Castellon (since 10 January 2002); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: Enrique BOLANOS Geyer (PLC) elected president - 56.3%, Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra (FSLN) 42.3%, Alberto SABORIO (PCN) 1.4%; Jose RIZO Castellon elected vice president |
Exports | NA | 738 bbl/day (2003) |
Exports - commodities | gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds | coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts |
Exports - partners | Mexico 69.8%, Netherlands 3.7%, UK 3% (2004) | US 64.8%, El Salvador 7%, Mexico 3.6% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
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 blue (top), white, and blue with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on the top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; similar to the flag of El Salvador, which features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern centered in the white band |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 34.3%
industry: 24.2% services: 41.4% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: 20.7%
industry: 24.7% services: 54.6% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.4% (2004 est.) | 4% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 8 00 N, 2 00 W | 13 00 N, 85 00 W |
Geography - note | Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake | largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua |
Highways | total: 46,176 km
paved: 8,496 km unpaved: 37,679 km (1999 est.) |
total: 18,712 km
paved: 2,126 km unpaved: 16,586 km (2002) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.1% (1999) |
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 45% (2001) |
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 | transshipment point for cocaine destined for the US and transshipment point for arms-for-drugs dealing |
Imports | NA | 27,950 bbl/day (2003) |
Imports - commodities | capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs | consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Nigeria 12.6%, China 11.4%, UK 6.6%, US 6.4%, France 4.9%, Netherlands 4.2% (2004) | US 22.6%, Costa Rica 8.5%, Venezuela 8.4%, Guatemala 6.8%, Mexico 5.8%, El Salvador 4.9%, South Korea 4.5% (2004) |
Independence | 6 March 1957 (from UK) | 15 September 1821 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | 4.4% (2000 est.) |
Industries | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building | food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood |
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: 29.11 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 32.6 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 13% (2004 est.) | 9.3% (2004 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 | BCIE, CACM, FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | 110 sq km (1998 est.) | 880 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court | Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (16 judges elected for five-year terms by the National Assembly) |
Labor force | 10.24 million (2004 est.) | 1.93 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 60%, industry 15%, services 25% (1999 est.) | agriculture 30.5%, industry 17.3%, services 52.2% (2003 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,094 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 549 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km, Togo 877 km |
total: 1,231 km
border countries: Costa Rica 309 km, Honduras 922 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.26%
permanent crops: 9.67% other: 74.07% (2001) |
arable land: 15.94%
permanent crops: 1.94% other: 82.12% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), African languages (including Akan, Moshi-Dagomba, Ewe, and Ga) | Spanish 97.5% (official), Miskito 1.7%, other 0.8% (1995 census)
note: English and indigenous languages on Atlantic coast |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | civil law system; Supreme Court may review administrative acts |
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 or Asamblea Nacional (92 seats; members are elected by proportional representation and party lists to serve five-year terms; one seat for previous President, one seat for runner-up in previous Presidential election
elections: last held 4 November 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Alliance (ruling party - includes PCCN, PLC, PALI, PLIUN, and PUCA) 46.03%, FSLN 36.55%, PCN 2.12%; seats by party - Liberal Alliance 53, FSLN 38, PCN 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 58.47 years
male: 57.7 years female: 59.26 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 70.33 years
male: 68.27 years female: 72.49 years (2005 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: 67.5% male: 67.2% female: 67.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Cote d'Ivoire and Togo | Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 200 nm
continental shelf: natural prolongation |
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) |
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Military branches | Army, Navy, Air Force | Army (includes Navy, Air Force) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $49.2 million (2004) | $32.8 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.6% (2004) | 0.7% (2004) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 March (1957) | Independence Day, 15 September (1821) |
Nationality | noun: Ghanaian(s)
adjective: Ghanaian |
noun: Nicaraguan(s)
adjective: Nicaraguan |
Natural hazards | dry, dusty, northeastern harmattan winds occur from January to March; droughts | destructive earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes |
Natural resources | gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone | gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish |
Net migration rate | -0.59 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -1.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | refined products 74 km (2004) | oil 54 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 the Republic or APRE [Miguel LOPEZ Baldizon, Oscar WENDOLYN Vargas, Karla WHITE]; Central American Unionist Party or PUCA [leader NA]; Christian Alternative Party or AC [Orlando TARDENCILLA Espinoza]; Conservative Party of Nicaragua or PCN [Mario RAPPACCIOLI]; Independent Liberal Party or PLI [Anibal MARTINEZ Nunez, Pedro REYES Vallejos]; Independent Liberal Party for National Unity or PLIUN [leader NA]; Liberal Constitutional Party or PLC [Jorge CASTILLO Quant]; Liberal Salvation Movement or MSL [Eliseo NUNEZ Hernandez]; New Liberal Party or PALI [leader NA]; Nicaraguan Party of the Christian Path or PCCN [Guillermo OSORNO Molina]; Nicaraguan Resistance Party or PRN [Salvador TALAVERA]; Sandinista National Liberation Front or FSLN [Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra]; Sandinista Renovation Movement or MRS [leader NA]; Unity Alliance or AU [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | National Workers Front or FNT is a Sandinista umbrella group of eight labor unions including - Farm Workers Association or ATC, Health Workers Federation or FETASALUD, Heroes and Martyrs Confederation of Professional Associations or CONAPRO, National Association of Educators of Nicaragua or ANDEN, National Union of Employees or UNE, National Union of Farmers and Ranchers or UNAG, Sandinista Workers Central or CST, and Union of Journalists of Nicaragua or UPN; Permanent Congress of Workers or CPT is an umbrella group of four non-Sandinista labor unions including - Autonomous Nicaraguan Workers Central or CTN-A, Confederation of Labor Unification or CUS, Independent General Confederation of Labor or CGT-I, and Labor Action and Unity Central or CAUS; Nicaraguan Workers' Central or CTN is an independent labor union; Superior Council of Private Enterprise or COSEP is a confederation of business groups |
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.) |
5,465,100 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 31.4% (1992 est.) | 50% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.25% (2005 est.) | 1.92% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Takoradi, Tema | Bluefields, Corinto, El Bluff |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 49, shortwave 3 (2001) | AM 63, FM 32, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | total: 953 km
narrow gauge: 953 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) |
total: 6 km
narrow gauge: 6 km 1.067-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Christian 63%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 21% | Roman Catholic 72.9%, Evangelical 15.1%, Moravian 1.5%, Episcopal 0.1%, other 1.9%, none 8.5% (1995 census) |
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: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 16 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: inadequate system being upgraded by foreign investment
domestic: low-capacity microwave radio relay and wire system being expanded; connected to Central American Microwave System international: country code - 505; satellite earth stations - 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 302,300 (2003) | 171,600 (2002) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 799,900 (2003) | 202,800 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 10 (2001) | 3 (plus seven low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area | extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes |
Total fertility rate | 3.02 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.81 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (1997 est.) | 7.8% plus underemployment of 46.5% (2003 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) |
2,220 km (including lakes Managua and Nicaragua) (1997) |