Ghana, formally the Republic of Ghana, is a country situated in the sub-region of West Africa along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean. A surface area of 238,535 km2Ghana is bordered on the west by the Ivory Coast, north by Burkina Faso, east by Togo, and south by the Guinean Gulf and the Atlantic Ocean. Ghana in the Soninke language means "Warrior King."

The first permanent state dates back to the 11th century in the region of present-day Ghana. Over the ages, several kingdoms and empires arose, the most powerful of which was the Ashanti Kingdom. Starting in the 15th century, the region for trade rights was disputed by various European powers, with the British eventually gaining control of the coast by the late 19th century. After more than a century of native resistance, the present borders of Ghana were formed as the British Gold Coast in the 1900s. On 6 March 1957, it became independent from the United Kingdom.

Approximately 30 million people in Ghana comprise a number of racial, linguistic and religious groups. According to the 2010 census, 71.2% of the population was Christian17.6% Muslim and 5.2% mainstream religious practice. The geographical and ecological diversity varies from coastal savannahs to tropical rain forests.

Ghana is a unitary democratic constitution headed by a president who is both head of state and head of government. Ghana's growing economic prosperity and democratic political system has made it a Western African regional power. It is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, the African Union, the Western African States Economic Community (ECOWAS), the 24th Region, and the Commonwealth of Nations.