Ghana ranked 11th most polluted country in Africa

Ghana has been ranked the 11th most polluted country in Africa, according to IQ 2025 World Air Quality Report, recording an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 21.3 µg/m³.

Experts say while this is the lowest reading for Ghana in five years, it remains more than four times the World Health Organisation (WHO) safe limit of 5 µg/m³, meaning the air most Ghanaians breathe daily still poses a health risk.

According to the report, Chad reported the worst air quality, followed by DR Congo, Uganda, Egypt and Rwanda.

Completing the top ten were the Gambia, Burkina Faso, Nigeria , Niger and Senegal, respectively, with Ghana ranking 11th.

One of the report's critical findings was the challenge of monitoring pollution. It said without robust monitoring, governments cannot track or act on pollution.

Also, most monitoring networks are concentrated in urban centers such as Nairobi, Addis Ababa, and Kigali, which have the region’s most comprehensive public data systems.

About Air Pollution

According to the WHO, Air pollution is contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment by any chemical, physical or biological agent that modifies the natural characteristics of the atmosphere.

Household combustion devices, motor vehicles, industrial facilities and forest fires are common sources of air pollution.

Pollutants of major public health concern include particulate matter, carbon monoxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide.

Air pollution becomes leading cause of deaths in Ghana – Report

Outdoor and indoor air pollution cause respiratory and other diseases and are key causes of morbidity and mortality.

WHO data shows that almost all of the global population (99%) breathe air that exceeds WHO guideline limits and contains high levels of pollutants, with low- and middle-income countries suffering from the highest exposures.

Air quality is closely linked to the earth’s climate and ecosystems globally.

Many of the drivers of air pollution (combustion of fossil fuels) are also sources of greenhouse gas emissions.

Globally, air pollution remains the greatest external threat to human health, surpassing smoking, alcohol, traffic injuries, and HIV/AIDS.

People living in polluted areas lose an average of 2.7 years of life compared to those in cleaner environments.

See the ranking below:



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