Five things that make Ghana better than some African countries

Regarded as a third-world continent, Africa remains one of the most underdeveloped out of the seven blocks of global divisions.

However over the past few decades, several African countries have strived to achieve accelerated growth through various policy pursuits.

But for its recent economic downturn, Ghana was regarded as the poster boy of development on the continent.

Despite the recent economic challenge which has threatened to erode the many headways made by Ghana in terms of development and growth, there still remain several achievements chalked by the West African country which makes the country an envy of other countries even beyond the continent.

Democracy

Having gone through three different republics after its independence in 1957, Ghana has enjoyed political stability under its fourth and current democratic dispensation.

Under the 1992 constitution of Ghana, the country has successfully conducted 8 elections.

Ghana’s multi-party democracy albeit dominated by two main political parties puts the country ahead of several African countries.

As a fundamental framework for Ghana’s government, the constitution shares power between the three arms of state: the executive; the judiciary; and the legislature.

With oversight responsibility amongst themselves, the three arms of government contribute to the democratic growth of the state of Ghana.

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) Democracy Index for 2021, Ghana ranked 6th in Africa and 56th globally.

Only Mauritius, Botswana, Cape Varde, South Africa and Namibia rank ahead of Ghana in terms of democratic practice on the continent.

Security

There have been several activities and incidents within the African continent posing threats to the security of countries.

The continent has not been spared from the activities of extremism and other issues that has the potential to destabilise development.

However, with a vibrant police service and strong military intelligence to fight off external threats, the sense of being free from danger or threat is very high in Ghana.

The judicial system of Ghana has always been instrumental in delivering justice that inures to the security of the country.

The 2022 Global Peace Index placed Ghana as the second most peaceful country in Africa and 38 globally.

Peace

With the advantage of safety comes peace, and Ghana over the years has benefited from having a safe environment for its citizens and foreigners visiting the country.

Ghana over the last two decades has been ranked as one of the most peaceful countries globally.

The country on a larger scale has a minimal crime rate and has been spared of the activities of bandits and extremists suffered by some African countries.

Compared to common crimes such as pickpocketing and petty theft witnessed in Ghana, other African countries ranking low on the GPI suffer crimes such as terrorism and armed robbery.

Tourism

Ranked as the 11th most friendly country in the world by Forbes Magazine in 2011, Ghana has capitalised on its peace, stability and abundant tourist attractions to become one of the biggest tourism destinations on the continent.

Ghana boasts of waterfalls such as Kintampo Waterfalls and the largest waterfall in West Africa, the Tagbo Falls, Ghana's palm-lined sandy beaches, caves, mountains, rivers, and meteorite impact crater.

Other attractions include reservoirs and lakes such as Lake Bosomtwi or Bosomtwi meteorite crater and the largest man-made lake in the world by surface area, Lake Volta.

Ghana also has dozens of castles and forts, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, nature reserves and national parks.

In recent times, the government of Ghana through its Year of Return and Beyond the Return policy has made the country the ultimate destination for foreign revellers during Christmas.

With an estimated 4.3 million annual tourist arrivals, Ghana is expected to make annual revenues of about US$8.3 billion from the tourism sector per year by the year 2027.

Stable power supply

Between 2015 and 2016, Ghana went through a period of erratic power supply which affected industrial and domestic activities.

Through various policy pursuits by various governments, Ghana has enjoyed a stable power supply over the period.

With about 85.9% access to power supply, Ghana ranks 6th across the continent with an electricity mix dominated by hydropower energy, thermal energy and gas.

Beyond the high rate of access, Ghana holds the enviable position of the country with the most stable power supply on the continent of Africa.

This puts Ghana in an advantaged position ahead of countries like South Africa which despite its high access to power supply have to deal with issues of stability in terms of supply.



GA/ESA