Accra sits on Ghana’s coast and is a major seaport as well as the country’s capital city. Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated with the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to the east. The Gulf of Guinea is a large gulf that forms part of the Atlantic Ocean on the west coast of Africa.
Ghana covers an area of 239,567 km2 (92,497 sq mi), spanning diverse ecologies, from coastal savannas to tropical rainforests. With 35 million inhabitants, Ghana is the second-most populous country in West Africa.
One of the Gulf of Guinea claims to fame is that it is home to the intersecting point between zero degrees of latitude and zero degrees of longitude, i.e.
Topography of Ghana
Historical Overview
Formed from the merger of distinct settlements around British Fort James, Dutch Fort Crêvecoeur (Ussher Fort), and Danish Fort Christiansborg as Jamestown, Usshertown, and Christiansborg respectively, Accra served as the capital of the British Gold Coast between 1877 and 1957 and has since transitioned into a modern metropolis.
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The name of Accra in the local Ga language is Ga or Gaga, the same name as that of the Ga people and a cognate with Nkran. The word is sometimes rendered with the nasalised vowels as Gã or Gãgã. Historian Carl Christian Reindorf confirmed this etymology, proposing a link between the martial qualities and migratory behaviour of the local ants and those of the Ga people. The link between the ethnonym and ants was explicitly reflected in the recognition of anthills as sacred places.
The main Ga group known as the Tumgwa Were led by Ayi Kushie arrived by sea. By 1646 the kingdom was a regional power, bolstered by European trade. Nevertheless, it depended on the goodwill of the rising Akwamu Kingdom, which controlled the trade routes in the interior. In 1677 Akwamuhene Ansa Sasraku, using the circumcision of a visiting Akwamu prince as pretext, attacked Accra. He sacked Ayawaso and beheaded the king, Okai Koi.
The king's son, Ofori, retreated to 'Small Accra', the town that had grown up under the walls of Fort Crèvecœur. Ansa Sasraku's attempts to finish off the Accrans were defeated by the guns of the Danish Fort Christianborg. Ofori and his people survived for a few years, until the Akwamu fomented a rebellion amongst the Danish garrison, and the fort was turned over to the Portuguese.
Britain gradually acquired the interests of all other countries beginning in 1851, when Denmark sold Christiansborg (which they had acquired from the Swedes) and their other forts to the British. The Netherlands was the last to sell out, in 1871. In 1873, after decades of tension between the British and Ashantis, the British captured Kumasi, destroying portions of the city. The British then captured Accra in 1874, and in 1877, at the end of the second Anglo-Asante War, Accra replaced Cape Coast as the capital of the British Gold Coast. This decision was made because Accra had a drier climate relative to Cape Coast.
As the newly established Gold Coast's administrative functions were moved to Accra (1877), an influx of British colonial administrators and European settlers grew around the Christiansborg (modern Osu, Ministries, Ridge, Labone, and Cantonments) began, and the city began to expand to accommodate the new residents. Victoriaborg was formed in the late 19th century as an exclusively European residential neighbourhood, located to the east of the city limits of the time. The boundaries of Accra were further stretched in 1908, after a bubonic plague epidemic.
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One of the most influential decisions in the history of the city was that of building the Accra-Kumasi railway in 1908. This was to connect Accra, the country's foremost port at that time, with Ghana's main cocoa-producing regions. Despite these regulations, European settlers in the Gold Coast were very hesitant to invest any large amount of money into the city to maintain its infrastructure or improve public works. This did not change until the governorship of Sir Frederick Gordon Guggisberg during which period the three separate settlements (Osu, La and Jamestown) merged to become modern Accra.
Among the achievements of Guggisberg was the building of a bridge across the Korle Lagoon in 1923, which increased settlement at Korle Bu, Korle Gonno and Chokor, to the west of the lagoon. Another area of Accra that took shape at this time was the central business district (CBD). More administrative buildings were built on High Street, forming a massive judicial/administrative complex.
In 1944, Accra's city planner Maxwell Fry devised a town plan, which was revised in 1958 by B.D.W. Treavallion and Alan Flood. In 1948, Ghana remained a colony of Great Britain following World War II. The chief of Osu Alata, Nii Kobina Bonney III, had set up a boycott of European goods across the country due to the rise of prices for essential commodities. Unarmed ex-servicemen organized a march on Christiansborg Castle, Accra, on 28 February 1948. Their plan was to hand a petition to the colonial governor demanding they receive their pay and benefits. Before reaching the castle, the veterans were fired upon, after being ordered by the colonial police chief to disperse.
In the Fry/Treavallion plan, a reorganization of the CBD was called for, as well as the development of the coastal region of the city. To the east of this newly organized CBD, the planners hoped to preserve a broad, open space for a restaurant, country club, and polo and cricket fields. Additionally, the British planners intended to build large numbers of public squares, fountains, and ornamental pools and statues throughout the city, as well as a vast Parliament Complex in the city centre.
Rather than creating ornamental fountains and a large Parliament complex, Nkrumah decided to build landmarks such as Independence Square, the State House, and the Organisation of African Unity building, and to refurbish Christianborg Castle.
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Climate
Owing to its location in the Dahomey Gap, where the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean coast runs parallel to the prevailing moist monsoonal winds, Accra features a very marginal tropical wet and dry climate (Köppen climate classification: Aw) that borders on a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSh). The average annual rainfall is about 730 mm (29 in), which falls primarily during Ghana's two rainy seasons. The chief rainy season begins in April and ends in mid-July, whilst a weaker second rainy season occurs in October.
Very little variation in temperature occurs throughout the year. The mean monthly temperature ranges from 25.9 °C (78.6 °F) in August (the coolest) to 29.6 °C (85.3 °F) in March (the hottest), with an annual average of 27.6 °C (81.7 °F). The "cooler" months, which are summer months, tend to be more humid than the warmer months, which are winter and spring months.
As a coastal city, Accra is vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and sea level rise, with population growth putting increasing pressure on the coastal areas. Drainage infrastructure is particularly at risk, which has profound implications for people's livelihoods, especially in informal settlements.
As Accra is close to the equator, the daylight hours are practically uniform throughout the year. Relative humidity is generally high, varying from 65% in the midafternoon to 95% at night. The predominant wind direction in Accra is from the WSW to NNE sectors. Wind speeds normally range between 8 and 16 km/h. The maximum wind speed record in Accra is 107.4 km/h (66.7 mph). Strong winds associated with thunderstorm activity often cause property damage by removing roofing material.
Several areas of Accra experience microclimatic effects. Air is often trapped in pockets over the city, and an insulating effect can give rise to a local increase in air temperature of several degrees.
Accra Skyline
Administration and Districts
The administration of Accra occurs at two levels. The former territory of the Accra Metropolitan District, 199.4 km2 (77.0 sq mi), as it existed before 2008, is now divided into 13 separate local government districts, all governed as municipal assemblies with their own town hall and a municipal executive appointed by the president of the republic. Each municipal assembly is responsible for most local services, such as local planning and refuse collection.
The Accra Metropolitan District is one of the 13 local government districts that contains the historic centre and the primary central business district (CBD) of Accra. The Accra Metropolitan Assembly, which governs the City of Accra within the boundaries of the Accra Metropolitan District, is led by a Metropolitan Chief Executive who is appointed by the President of the Republic of Ghana. The Ashiedu Keteke sub-metropolitan district covers the Central Business District (CBD) and as such the hub of major commercial activities within the Metropolis. Major markets include Makola, Agbogbloshie, and Kwasiodwaso.
Some of the communities within the Korley Klottey Municipal District include Osu, Ringway Estates, Asylum Down, North Ridge, West Ridge, Ministries, Gold Coast City, North Adabraka, and Tudu. Northern Accra is a residential and business district. Geographically, the areas north of Ring Road West and Central, east of Winneba/Graphic Road, west of Liberation Road, and the districts just north and south of the Kwame Nkrumah motorway are regarded as Northern Accra. Western Accra is largely a residential and business area.
Demographics
The period between 1960 and 1970 saw rapid industrialization and expansion in Accra's manufacturing and commercial sectors. This contributed to high rural-urban migration to the city, and consequently a high population growth rate. The stagnation of the Ghanaian economy during the 1970s slowed the growth of Accra's population, as shown by the falling growth rate of the 1970-1984 intercensal years.
Later, however, the decline in agriculture in rural communities in Ghana and rising industrialization in urban regions, coupled with the late-1980s boom in the service sector, once again propelled immigration to Accra. The gross density of population for the Accra Metropolitan Area in 2000 was 10.03 persons per hectare, compared to 6.23 per hectare in 1970. The highest densities were recorded in the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, with an overall average of 69.3 persons per hectare.
Accra's population is a very youthful one, with 56% of the population being under 24 years of age. This predominance of young people is not expected to decline in the foreseeable future. Fifty-one percent (51%) of the population are females, and the remaining 49% males. This gives a males-to-females ratio of 1:1.04.
Housing
Decentralization is expected to reduce the migration rates in Accra. Parts of Central Accra comprise a mixture of very low-density development with under-used service infrastructure on the one hand, high-density development and overstretched infrastructure services on the other. The growth of Accra has led to the neglect of some of the old settlements, whilst efforts are being made to provide the newly developing suburban areas with services and infrastructure to cater for the needs of the middle-income earners.
Peripheral residential development in Accra barely has sufficient infrastructure to support it. There are also large numbers of uncompleted houses, interspersed with pockets of undeveloped land, which are often subject of litigation, due to the inability of organisations and individuals who own them to complete or develop them due to lack of funds.
Housing can be grouped into three broad categories: the low-income, middle-income and high-income areas. The low-income housing areas comprise Osu, Jamestown, Adedenkpo, Chorkor, La, Teshie, Nungua, Sukura, Kwashieman, Odorkor, Bubiashie, Abeka, Nima, Maamobi and Chorkor. Altogether, these areas accommodate about 58% of Accra's total population. Almost all low-income areas are built up with little room for expansion. This is particularly so in the areas of the inner city.
The middle-income areas of Accra are predominantly populated by Ghanaian citizens and business, administrative and professional families. Much of the housing in these areas has been provided by state, parastatal and private sector organisations and individuals. The middle-income areas include Dansoman Estates, North Kaneshie Estates, Asylum Down, Kanda Estates, Abelempke, Achimota, Adenta and Tesano. Usually, these areas, unlike the low-income areas, are planned developments, but are in need of infrastructure services. Building materials and general housing conditions are of better quality.
The high-income areas provide housing for the remaining 10% of the population of which Ghanaian citizens also make up. These areas are all planned and have well-developed infrastructure with spacious and landscaped ground in sharp contrast with, particularly, the low-income areas. There are also high-income peripheral areas like Haatso, Kwabenya, Pokuase, Adenta, Taifa, Mallam, where development of engineering infrastructure is not yet complete.
In total, 84.4% of all houses in the Accra Metropolitan Area have their outside walls made up of cement.
Economy
Accra is a centre for manufacturing, marketing, finance, insurance, and transportation. Ghana possesses industrial minerals, hydrocarbons and precious metals. It is an emerging designated digital economy with mixed economy hybridisation and an emerging market. It has an economic plan target known as the "Ghana Vision 2020". Ghana's economy has ties to the Chinese yuan renminbi along with Ghana's vast gold reserves.
Ghana's economy is characterized by a growing manufacturing sector and the export of digital technology products. The country is also engaged in the assembly and export of automobiles and ships. Additionally, Ghana's economy benefits from a diverse range of resource-rich exports, including industrial minerals and agricultural products, with cocoa being a primary commodity.
Ghana produces and exports hydrocarbons such as sweet crude oil and natural gas. The 100%-state-owned filling station company, Ghana Oil Company, is the number one petroleum and gas filling station, and the 100%-state-owned state oil company Ghana National Petroleum Corporation oversees hydrocarbon exploration and production of petroleum and natural gas reserves. Ghana aims to further increase the output of oil to 2.2 million barrels (350,000 m3) per day and gas to 34,000,000 cubic metres (1.2×109 cu ft) per day.
The Jubilee Oil Field, which contains up to 3 billion barrels (480,000,000 m3) of sweet crude oil, was discovered in 2007. Ghana is believed to have up to 5 billion barrels (790,000,000 m3) to 7 billion barrels (1.1×109 m3) of petroleum in reserves, which is the fifth-largest in Africa and the 21st-to-25th-largest proven reserves in the world.
The judicial system of Ghana deals with corruption, economic malpractice and lack of economic transparency. Ghana launched a cellular mobile network in 1992. The Ghana Space Science and Technology Centre (GSSTC) and Ghana Space Agency (GhsA) oversee space exploration and space programmes. GSSTC and GhsA worked to have a national security observational satellite launched into orbit in 2015. Ghana's annual space exploration expenditure has been 1% of its GDP, to support research in science and technology.
A Tourist Guide in Accra | Travel Africa: Visit Ghana’s Capital
Tourism
In 2011, tourists visiting Ghana numbered 1,087,000, with arrivals including South Americans, Asians, Europeans, and North Americans. Among the attractions and tourist destinations are waterfalls such as Kintampo waterfalls and the ...
Accra Tourism
Ghana's Key Statistics
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Area | 239,567 km2 (92,497 sq mi) |
| Population | 35 million |
| Climate | Tropical wet and dry / Hot semi-arid |
| Average Annual Rainfall | 730 mm (29 in) |
