History
Prior to colonization, the area of present-day Ghana was made up of a several independent kingdoms, including Gonja and Dagomba in the north, Ashanti in the interior, and the Fanti states along the coast. As one of the richest sources of gold and a major supplier of kola nuts and ivory, the region that is now modern Ghana played an important role in the trade routes of the early centuries.

In 1482, the Portuguese established the first European fort at Elmina, trading mostly in gold and slaves and sparking intense competition among many European nations for trading advantages. As the slave trade declined in the 19th century, only the British, Danes, and Dutch maintained forts on the Gold Coast. The Danes (1850) and Dutch (1872) withdrew in the face of expansionist activities by the Ashanti kingdom; the British, however, remained and allied themselves with the Fanti states against Ashanti.

In 1874 the British defeated the Ashanti kingdom and organized the coastal region as the colony of the Gold Coast. After more fighting, the British added the Ashanti kingdom as part of the colony in 1901. After World War I, part of the German colony of Togoland was mandated to the British, who linked it administratively with the Gold Coast colony.

The state of Ghana became an independent country within the Commonwealth of Nations on March 6, 1957, and the people of British Togoland chose to become part of Ghana. In 1960, Ghanaian nationalist Kwame Nkrumah Nkrumah transformed the country into a republic, declaring himself president for life. But falling cocoa prices and poorly financed large development projects led to chaotic economic conditions, and, in 1966, Nkrumah was overthrown, as were subsequent governments throughout the 1970s. In 1979, Flight Lt. J. J. Rawlings overthrew the government and purged the country of opposition, then turned the government over to an elected president. But poor economic conditions, restrictions on the press, and allegations of corruption led to popular discontent.

Rawlings took power again in 1981 and tightened his political control throughout the decade, despite several coup attempts and strikes and protest. The years following saw large-scale paring of the civil service, privatization of several state assets and significant growth in Ghana's economy - a result of the massive devaluation of the cedi. In 1992, the government drafted a new constitution and lifted the ban on opposition parties. The constitution divides powers among a president, parliament, cabinet, Council of State, and an independent judiciary. Government elected by universal suffrage.

Since the early '90s, Ghana has experienced many positive developments on the economic as well as the political front, including increased political freedom and the re-emergence of a free press. Despite a sluggish economy and a nearly double-digit inflation rate, Ghana's more than 10 years of substantial economic growth since the 1980s make it one of the most promising economic prospects in Africa.

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