Economy - overview:

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.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$31.33 billion (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):

$14.86 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

6.4% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):

$1,400 (2007 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 37.3%
industry: 25.3%
services: 37.5% (2006 est.)

Labor force:

11.29 million (2007 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture: 56%
industry: 15%
services: 29% (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate:

11% (2000 est.)

Population below poverty line:

28.5% (2007 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 30.1% (1999)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:

39.4 (2005-06)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

9.6% (2007 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):

31.6% of GDP (2007 est.)

Budget:

revenues: $4.262 billion
expenditures: $5.481 billion (2007 est.)

Public debt:

48.4% of GDP (2007 est.)

Agriculture - products:

cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber

Industries:

mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building

Industrial production growth rate:

7.4% (2007 est.)

Electricity - production:

7.042 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - consumption:

6.906 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - exports:

256 million kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - imports:

461 million kWh (2007 est.)

Oil - production:

700 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - consumption:

47,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - exports:

8,041 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - imports:

45,010 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - proved reserves:

16.5 million bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

Natural gas - production:

0 cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:

0 cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas - exports:

0 cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas - imports:

0 cu m (2005)

Natural gas - proved reserves:

22.81 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Current account balance:

-$1.896 billion (2007 est.)

Exports:

$4.194 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities:

gold, cocoa, timber, tuna, bauxite, aluminum, manganese ore, diamonds, horticulture

Exports - partners:

Netherlands 11.1%, UK 8%, France 6.3%, US 6%, Germany 4.6%, Belgium 4.4% (2006)

Imports:

$8.073 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities:

capital equipment, petroleum, foodstuffs

Imports - partners:

Nigeria 15.3%, China 14.9%, UK 5.5%, US 5.1% (2006)

Economic aid - recipient:

$1.316 billion in loans and grants (2007)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$2.837 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external:

$4.898 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:

$NA

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:

$NA

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$13.01 billion (2007)

Currency (code):

Ghana cedi (GHC)

Exchange rates:

cedis per US dollar - 0.95 (2007), 9,174.8 (2006), 9,072.5 (2005), 9,004.6 (2004), 8,677.4 (2003)
note: in 2007 Ghana revalued its currency with 10,000 old cedis equal to 1 new cedis

Fiscal year:

calendar year