Portal:Ghana/Intro

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The Republic of Ghana is a country located in West Africa.It shares borders with Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) to the west, Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta) to the north, the Republic of Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea or the Atlantic ocean to the south. Its population is estimated at 22,113,000 (in 2005) and it has an area of 238,534 km² (92,098 sq mi).

It was inhabited in pre-colonial times by a number of ancient kingdoms, including the Ga Adangbes and Ewe people and various Fante states along the coast and the Ashanti kingdom, Northern territories and others further inland. Trade with European states flourished after contact with the Portuguese in the 15th century. The British established a crown colony, Gold Coast, in 1874.

Ghana was formed from the merger of Gold Coast and the British Togoland trust territory by a UN sponsored plebiscite. It was the first black sub-Saharan country to obtain independence from colonial rule. Upon achieving independence from the United Kingdom on March 6, 1957, the name Ghana was chosen for the new nation to reflect the ancient Empire of Ghana that once roamed the west of Africa. After a period of frequent military interventions, Ghana has had a stable democracy and regular elections since 1992.