| Economy - overview: | Well endowed with natural resources, Ghana has roughly twice the per capita output of the poorer countries in West Africa. Even so, Ghana remains heavily dependent on international financial and technical assistance. Gold, timber, and cocoa production are major sources of foreign exchange. The domestic economy continues to revolve around subsistence agriculture, which accounts for 34% of GDP and employs 60% of the work force, mainly small landholders. Ghana opted for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) program in 2002, but was included in a G8 debt relief program decided upon at the Gleneagles Summit in July 2005. Priorities under its current $38 million PRGF include tighter monetary and fiscal policies, accelerated privatization, and improvement of social services. Receipts from the gold sector helped sustain GDP growth in 2005 along with record high prices for Ghana's largest cocoa crop to date. Inflation should ease, but remain a major internal problem. Ghana also remains a candidate country to benefit from Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) funding that could assist in transforming Ghana's agricultural export sector. A final decision on its MCC bid is expected for spring 2006. |
| GDP - per capita | $2,500 (2005 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate (%) | 4.3% (2005 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | cocoa, rice, coffee, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, corn, shea nuts, bananas; timber |
| GDP - composition by sector (%) | agriculture: 35.5%, industry: 25.6%, services: 39% (2005 est.) |
| Industries | mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, small commercial ship building |
| Economic aid - recipient | $6.9 billion (1999) |
| Debt - external | $7.084 billion (2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line (%) | 31.4% (1992 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation (%) | agriculture 60%, industry 15%, services 25% (1999 est.) |
Environment, Land use / Resources, Economy, Population / Demographics, Infrastructure, Health -- CIA World Factbook, 2005
