Syria (2003) | Ghana (2008) | |
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Administrative divisions | 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus | 10 regions; Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Central, Eastern, Greater Accra, Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Volta, Western |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 38.6% (male 3,494,473; female 3,290,699)
15-64 years: 58.2% (male 5,238,026; female 4,991,588) 65 years and over: 3.2% (male 274,744; female 296,010) (2003 est.) |
0-14 years: 38.2% (male 4,438,308/female 4,329,293)
15-64 years: 58.2% (male 6,661,512/female 6,687,738) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 380,495/female 433,953) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk | cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber |
Airports | 92 (2002) | 12 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 24
over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 16 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 7
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 68
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 55 (2002) |
total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2007) |
Area | total: 185,180 sq km
land: 184,050 sq km water: 1,130 sq km note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory |
total: 239,460 sq km
land: 230,940 sq km water: 8,520 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than North Dakota | slightly smaller than Oregon |
Background | Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. In recent years, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights. | 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. Ghana endured a long series of coups before Lt. Jerry RAWLINGS took power in 1981 and banned political parties. After approving a new constitution and restoring multiparty politics in 1992, RAWLINGS won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996, but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John KUFUOR succeeded him and was re-elected in 2004. Kufuor is constitutionally barred from running for a third term in upcoming Presidential elections, which are scheduled for December 2008. |
Birth rate | 29.54 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 29.85 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $6 billion
expenditures: $7 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6 billion (2002 est.) |
revenues: $4.347 billion
expenditures: $5.197 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | Damascus | name: Accra
geographic coordinates: 5 33 N, 0 13 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus | tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast; hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north |
Coastline | 193 km | 539 km |
Constitution | 13 March 1973 | approved 28 April 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic
conventional short form: Syria local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah local short form: Suriyah former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt) |
conventional long form: Republic of Ghana
conventional short form: Ghana former: Gold Coast |
Currency | Syrian pound (SYP) | - |
Death rate | 5.04 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 9.55 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $22 billion (2002 est.) | $3.387 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Theodore H. KATTOUF
embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansur Street, No. 2, Damascus mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342 FAX: [963] (11) 331-9678 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela E. BRIDGEWATER
embassy: 24 4th Circular Rd. Cantonments, Accra mailing address: P. O. Box 194, Accra telephone: [233] (21) 741-000 FAX: [233] (21) 741-389 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (acting) Imad MUSTAFA
chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313 FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Kwame BAWUAH-EDUSEI
chancery: 1156 15th St. NW #905, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 785-1379 FAX: [1] (202) 785-1430 consulate(s) general: New York |
Disputes - international | Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied; Lebanon claims Shaba'a farms in Golan Heights; Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon since October 1976; Syria protests Turkish hydrological projects regulating upper Euphrates waters; Turkey is quick to rebuff any perceived Syrian claim to Hatay province | Ghana struggles to accommodate returning nationals who worked in the cocoa plantations and escaped fighting in Cote d'Ivoire |
Economic aid - recipient | $199 million (1997 est.) | $1.316 billion in loans and grants (2007) |
Economy - overview | Syria's predominantly statist economy has been growing, on average, more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate, causing a persistent decline in per capita GDP. Recent legislation allows private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector will take years and further government cooperation to develop. External factors such as the international war on terrorism, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the war between the US-led coalition and Iraq probably will drive real annual GDP growth levels back below their 3.5% spike in 2002. A long-run economic constraint is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and increased water pollution. | Well endowed with natural resources, Ghana has roughly twice the per capita output of the poorest countries in West Africa. Even so, Ghana remains heavily dependent on international financial and technical assistance. Gold and cocoa production, and individual remittances, are major sources of foreign exchange. The domestic economy continues to revolve around agriculture, which accounts for about 35% of GDP and employs about 55% of the work force, mainly small landholders. Ghana opted for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) program in 2002, and is also benefiting from the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative that took effect in 2006. Thematic priorities under its current Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy, which also provides the framework for development partner assistance, are: macroeconomic stability; private sector competitiveness; human resource development; and good governance and civic responsibility. Sound macro-economic management along with high prices for gold and cocoa helped sustain GDP growth in 2007. Ghana signed a Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact in 2006, which aims to assist in transforming Ghana's agricultural sector. |
Electricity - consumption | 21.63 billion kWh (2001) | 6.906 billion kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 256 million kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 461 million kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - production | 23.26 billion kWh (2001) | 7.042 billion kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 57.6%
hydro: 42.4% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m
highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Afadjato 880 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
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 |
Ethnic groups | Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% | Akan 45.3%, Mole-Dagbon 15.2%, Ewe 11.7%, Ga-Dangme 7.3%, Guan 4%, Gurma 3.6%, Grusi 2.6%, Mande-Busanga 1%, other tribes 1.4%, other 7.8% (2000 census) |
Exchange rates | Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.23 (2002), 11.23 (2001), 11.23 (2000), 11.23 (1999), 11.23 (1998), (Free market rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999), 52 (1998) | cedis per US dollar - 0.95 (2007), 9,174.8 (2006), 9,072.5 (2005), 9,004.6 (2004), 8,677.4 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim ibn Said KHADDAM (since 11 March 1984) and Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984)
head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003), Deputy Prime Ministers Lt. Gen. Mustafa TALAS (since 11 March 1984), Farouk al-SHARA (since 13 December 2001), Dr. Muhammad al-HUSAYN (since 13 December 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; referendum/election last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafez al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held NA 2007); vice presidents appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29% note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June 2000, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June 2000 |
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) 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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held in December 2008) election results: John Agyekum KUFUOR reelected president in election; percent of vote - John KUFUOR 52.4%, John ATTA-MILLS 44.6% |
Exports | NA (2001) | 8,041 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil 70%, petroleum products 7%, fruits and vegetables 5%, cotton fiber 4%, clothing 3%, meat and live animals 2% (2000 est.) | gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds, horticulture |
Exports - partners | Germany 19.1%, Italy 17.5%, Turkey 7.8%, France 7.5%, Lebanon 5.2% (2002) | Netherlands 11.3%, UK 8.7%, US 6.7%, Spain 5.7%, Belgium 5.2%, France 4.4% (2006) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, with two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, and of Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $63.48 billion (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 27%
industry: 23% services: 50% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 37.3%
industry: 25.3% services: 37.5% (2006 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2002 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.6% (2002 est.) | 6.2% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 35 00 N, 38 00 E | 8 00 N, 2 00 W |
Geography - note | there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (February 2002 est.) | Lake Volta is the world's largest artificial lake |
Heliports | 7 (2002) | - |
Highways | total: 43,381 km
paved: 10,021 km (including 877 km of expressways) unpaved: 33,360 km (1999) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.1% (1999) |
Illicit drugs | a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets | 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; significant domestic cocaine and cannabis use |
Imports | NA (2001) | 45,010 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and transport equipment 21%, food and livestock 18%, metal and metal products 15%, chemicals and chemical products 10% (2000 est.) | capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs |
Imports - partners | Italy 8.3%, Germany 7.4%, China 5.7%, South Korea 4.8%, France 4.6%, US 4.4%, Turkey 4.1% (2002) | Nigeria 16.7%, China 13%, UK 5.7%, Belgium 4.7%, US 4.7%, South Africa 4.1%, France 4.1% (2006) |
Independence | 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) | 6 March 1957 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 7.4% (2007 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building |
Infant mortality rate | total: 31.67 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 31.89 deaths/1,000 live births female: 31.43 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
total: 53.56 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 58 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.9% (2002 est.) | 11% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WToO | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 12,130 sq km (1998 est.) | 310 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Constitutional Court (justices are appointed for four-year terms by the president); High Judicial Council; Court of Cassation; State Security Courts | Supreme Court |
Labor force | 5.2 million (2000 est.) | 11.29 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture, industry, services NA (2002) | agriculture: 56%
industry: 15% services: 29% (2005 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,253 km
border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km |
total: 2,094 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 549 km, Cote d'Ivoire 668 km, Togo 877 km |
Land use | arable land: 25.96%
permanent crops: 4.08% other: 69.96% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 17.54%
permanent crops: 9.22% other: 73.24% (2005) |
Languages | Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood | Asante 14.8%, Ewe 12.7%, Fante 9.9%, Boron (Brong) 4.6%, Dagomba 4.3%, Dangme 4.3%, Dagarte (Dagaba) 3.7%, Akyem 3.4%, Ga 3.4%, Akuapem 2.9%, other 36.1% (includes English (official)) (2000 census) |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law and customary law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 2-3 March 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats |
unicameral Parliament (230 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 December 2004 (next to be held December in 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NPP 128, NDC 94, PNC 4, CPP 3, independent 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 69.39 years
male: 68.18 years female: 70.67 years (2003 est.) |
total population: 59.12 years
male: 58.31 years female: 59.95 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 76.9% male: 89.7% female: 64% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 57.9% male: 66.4% female: 49.8% (2000 census) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Cote d'Ivoire and Togo |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone: 41 NM
territorial sea: 35 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total: 129 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 450,135 GRT/645,296 DWT
ships by type: bulk 13, cargo 109, container 2, livestock carrier 3, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Egypt 1, Greece 2, Italy 1, Lebanon 10 (2002 est.) |
total: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,032 GRT/7,282 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Brazil 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air Force (includes Air Defense Forces), Police and Security Force | Ghanaian Army, Ghanaian Navy, Ghanaian Air Force (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 5.9% (FY00) | 0.8% (2006 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 4,715,386 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 2,629,148 (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - military age | 19 years of age (2003 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 210,941 (2003 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 17 April (1946) | Independence Day, 6 March (1957) |
Nationality | noun: Syrian(s)
adjective: Syrian |
noun: Ghanaian(s)
adjective: Ghanaian |
Natural hazards | dust storms, sandstorms | dry, dusty, northeastern harmattan winds occur from January to March; droughts |
Natural resources | petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower | gold, timber, industrial diamonds, bauxite, manganese, fish, rubber, hydropower, petroleum, silver, salt, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 2,300 km; oil 2,183 km (2003) | oil 13 km; refined products 316 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party (governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general], Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Ahmad al ASAD], Syrian Communist Party [leader NA], Unionist Socialist Party [leader NA], Arab Socialist Party [Abd al-Ghani QANNUT], and Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Sami SUFAN]) [President Bashar al-ASAD, chairman]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party or SCP [Yusuf FAYSAL]; Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI] | Convention People's Party or CPP [Ladi NYLANDER]; Democratic Freedom Party or DFP [Alhaji Abudu Rahman ISSAKAH]; Every Ghanaian Living Everywhere or EGLE; Great Consolidated Popular Party or GCPP [Dan LARTEY]; National Democratic Congress or NDC [Dr. Kwabena ADJEI]; New Patriotic Party or NPP [Peter MAC-MANU]; People's National Convention or PNC [Alhaji Amed RAMADAN]; Reform Party [Kyeretwie OPUKU]; United Renaissance Party or URP [Charles WAYO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in Jordan and Yemen); non-Ba'th parties have little effective political influence | NA |
Population | 17,585,540 (July 2002 est.)
note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (February 2003 est.) (July 2003 est.) |
22,931,299
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 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 15%-25% | 28.5% (2007 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.45% (2003 est.) | 1.972% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, Tartus | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 0, FM 86, shortwave 3 (2007) |
Railways | total: 2,743 km
standard gauge: 2,425 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 318 km 1.050-m gauge (2002) |
total: 953 km
narrow gauge: 953 km 1.067-m gauge (2006) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) | Christian 68.8% (Pentecostal/Charismatic 24.1%, Protestant 18.6%, Catholic 15.1%, other 11%), Muslim 15.9%, traditional 8.5%, other 0.7%, none 6.1% (2000 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.025 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.996 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.877 male(s)/female total population: 1.003 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology
domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network international: satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel |
general assessment: fixed-line infrastructure outdated and unreliable; competition among multiple mobile-cellular providers has spurred growth with subscribership about 25 per 100 persons and rising
domestic: primarily microwave radio relay; wireless local loop has been installed international: country code - 233; landing point for the SAT-3/WASC fiber-optic submarine cable that provides connectivity to Europe and Asia; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); microwave radio relay link to Panaftel system connects Ghana to its neighbors |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.313 million (1997) | 356,400 (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 5.207 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) | 7 (2007) |
Terrain | primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west | mostly low plains with dissected plateau in south-central area |
Total fertility rate | 3.72 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 3.89 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 20% (2002 est.) | 11% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 870 km (minimal economic importance) | 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 (2007) |