Profil du Pays: Ghana

Ghana has been justifiably hailed as an oasis of peace and a role model for democratic governance in Africa. Despite a history of military coups, multi-party democracy has become increasingly consolidated. The evidence for this is that, over the past two decades, the country has experienced eight consecutive elections without slipping into nationwide violence or conflict. Following the attainment of political
independence in 1957, successive governments barely survived beyond three years without being overthrown in a coup d’état. With the return to multi-party elections in 1992, however, there has been sustained consensus that electoral competition is the only legitimate means to seeking political power. Between 1992 and 2020, there have been eight presidential and parliamentary elections. Three of these resulted
in the peaceful transfer of power between two dominant political parties, namely, the current ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Ghana is a highly heterogenous country that is home to a diverse set of groups, including numerous ethno-linguistic groups, multiple religions, migrant groups as well as a stark North–South developmental divide. There are over 90 ethnic groups in the country, further grouped into larger ethno-linguistic groups, such as Akan, Ewe, Mole-Dagbani, Guan and Ga-Dangbe. According to the 2021 Population and Housing Census, Akans are the single most populous ethnic group, making up 45.7 percent of the population. This is followed by Mole-Dagbani (18.5 percent), Ewe (12.8 percent) and Ga-Dangme (7.1 percent). The relationships between these groups have been punctuated by hostilities and warfare in the past, but they also have a long history of harmonious relations. Similarly, Ghana has enjoyed a long period of harmonious religious co-existence. In the late precolonial and early colonial periods, there were isolated cases of clashes between Christian converts and adherents of traditional religions, but over time, these conflicts have tapered off. However, there are increasingly isolated and rare instances of angry confrontations between charismatic Christians and Ga communities during the annual ban on drumming and noisemaking in Accra—Ghana’s capital city. There are virtually no violent clashes between Christians and Muslims.

The current constitutional dispensation in Ghana has created an environment that fosters pluralism by guaranteeing the rights of all groups to exist and fully express themselves.

Discrimination on the basis of sex, ethnicity, religion or race is prohibited, while social sentiments are broadly in favour of support for pluralistic values. In reality, however, discriminatory practices are not uncommon, and members of various social groups encounter discrimination in their interaction with others. In particular, women are victims of practices that limit their access to property rights, such as land, and limited representation in political and economic life. Ethnic minorities, especially those hailing from the Northern part of the country, confront obstacles in their quest for political inclusion and access to infrastructure and other social amenities. Significant levels of socio–economic inequalities persist, especially along a North–South divide in which the regions comprising Northern Ghana have historically remained poorer since colonial times.

Ghana plays an active role on the international stage, especially on the African continent. Ghana was one of the founding members of the Organisation of African Unity (now the African Union (AU)), and the country’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, was a champion of African liberation and Pan-Africanism. In 2007, Ghana’s president John Kufuor was elected AU chair in honour of the country’s 50th Independence anniversary celebrations. In West Africa, the current chair of the regional body is Ghana’s president, Nana Akufo-Addo.

There have been low-level intermittent disputes between Ghana and its neighbours over the issue of border closures during Ghana’s general elections.5 Following Ghana’s discovery of oil, there was a maritime boundary dispute between Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, which went to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea for settlement. Over the years, Ghana has also been engaged in diplomatic spats with Nigeria over the treatment of Nigerians in Ghana and vice versa. In the 1970s, there was a mass expulsion of Nigerians in Ghana, a gesture that was reciprocated by Nigeria in the early 1980s. In recent times, attempts by Ghanaian traders to prevent Nigerians from engaging in retail trade in markets across the country sometimes ignite diplomatic tensions between the two countries.

Ghana has very strong ties to the diaspora. Every year, it attracts thousands of African-American “pilgrims” in search of their ancestral roots. In 2019, Ghana launched a highly successful Year of Return to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first slaves in Virginia. The event brought over a million visitors to Ghana. As part of the year-long activities, the president granted citizenship to 126 Africans in the diaspora who had arrived in the country to commemorate the Year of Return.

This report assesses Ghana’s commitment to fostering inclusivity and pluralism, focussing specifically on issues of ethnicity, religion, gender and the North–South divide.