Map

Background

Ghana is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by the Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Togo, as well as the Gulf of Guinea to the south.
Formerly a British colony, in 1957, Ghana was the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence. Ghana is the second largest cocoa producer in the world, and one of the world’s largest gold producers. It is also home to Lake Volta, the largest artificial lake in the world by surface area.

Economy

During the last quarter of century, Ghana’s economy has been supported by a competitive business environment, good management and continued decline in poverty levels. The country is well-endowed with natural resources. The production of gold and cocoa, as well as individual remittances, are major sources of foreign exchange.
Agriculture accounts for approximately a quarter of the country’s GDP and employs more than half of Ghana’s workforce. Offshore oil production is expected to boost economic growth.

Health

Ghana has a universal health care system and most of the health care is provided by the government. For every 100,000 people, there are about 15 physicians and 93 nurses.
Urban facilities are usually well served; however, rural areas often have no modern health care. Patients in rural areas will either rely on traditional African medicine, or have to travel great distances to receive such health care.

Major infectious diseases:
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria
Water contact disease: schistosomiasis
Respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis

Malaria Status

About 25 million people (the entire population) are at risk of malaria, even though transmission rates are lower in some urban areas.
According to Ghana’s health facility data, malaria is the leading cause for morbidity, and accounts for 36% of hospital admissions and 33% of deaths in children under five years of age. Transmission occurs year round with seasonal variations. Around 3.1 and 3.5 million cases of clinical malaria are reported each year, with 900,000 of the cases being children under age five.