GEOGRAPHY
Ghana is located on West Africa's
Gulf of Guinea only a few degrees north of the Equator. Half of
the country lies less than 152 meters (500 ft.) above sea level,
and the highest point is 883 meters (2,900 ft.). The 537-kilometer
(334-mi.) coastline is mostly a low, sandy shore backed by plains
and scrub and intersected by several rivers and streams, most
of which are navigable only by canoe. A tropical rain forest belt,
broken by heavily forested hills and many streams and rivers,
extends northward from the shore, near the Cote d'Ivoire frontier.
This area, known as the "Ashanti," produces most of
the country's cocoa, minerals, and timber. North of this belt,
the country varies from 91 to 396 meters (300-1,300 ft.) above
sea level and is covered by low bush, park-like savanna, and grassy
plains.
The climate is tropical. The eastern
coastal belt is warm and comparatively dry; the southwest corner,
hot and humid; and the north, hot and dry. There are two distinct
rainy seasons in the south--May-June and August-September; in
the north, the rainy seasons tend to merge. A dry, northeasterly
wind, the Harmattan, blows in January and February. Annual rainfall
in the coastal zone averages 83 centimeters (33 in.).
Volta Lake, the largest man-made
lake in the world, extends from the Akosombo Dam in southeastern
Ghana to the town of Yapei, 520 kilometers (325 mi.) to the north.
The lake generates electricity, provides inland transportation,
and is a potentially valuable resource for irrigation and fish
farming.
Official
Name: Republic of Ghana
Area: 238,538 sq. km. (92,100 sq. mi.); about the size
of Illinois and Indiana combined.
Cities: Capital--Accra (metropolitan area pop. 3 million
est.). Other cities--Kumasi (1 million est.), Tema (250,000 est.),
Sekondi-Takoradi (200,000 est.).
Terrain: Plains and scrubland, rainforest, savanna.
Climate: Tropical.
