Demographics & population — Ghana
Population size, age structure, migration, ethnicity, language, education, and health indicators.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Demographics & population at a glance
Population size, age structure, migration, ethnicity, language, education, and health indicators. Key figure for Ghana: 29,340,248
Immigration rules and fees change frequently — confirm current requirements on official government or embassy websites.
Population overview
- Population
29,340,248
- Population - note
Note: Estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected
- Population Growth Rate
2.19%
- Urban Population
- Population in Major Urban Areas
ACCRA (capital) 2.573 million; Kumasi 2.019 million
Age & family
- Age Structure
- Median Age
- Birth Rate - births/1,000 population
32
- Death Rate - deaths/1,000 population
7.53
- Total Fertility Rate - children born/woman
4.12
- Contraceptive Prevalance Rate - female 12-49
23.5%
- Contraceptive Prevalence Rate - female 12-49
23.5%
- Mean Age for Mother's First Birth (age 25-49)
21.8
- Mother's mean age at first birth
21.8
- Sex Ratio at Birth - male/female
Migration
- Net Migration Rate - migrant(s)/1,000 population
-2.23
Ethnicity & language
- Ethnic Groups
Black African 98.5% (major tribes - Akan 44%, Moshi-Dagomba 16%, Ewe 13%, Ga 8%, Gurma 3%, Yoruba 1%), European and other 1.5%
- Language Note
The official language of Ghana is English. There are movements to make several local languages official as well. The Twi dialect of Akan is the language most commonly used on a daily basis to communicate between ethnic groups. Most Ghanaians are at least bilingual.
- Nationality Noun
Ghanaian(s)
Education
- Literacy - total population
57.9%
- Literacy - male
82.7%
- Literacy - female
67.1%
- Literacy Definition
Age 15 and over can read and write
- Education Expenditures - percent of GDP
8.1%
- Total School Life Expectancy - (primary to tertiary)
Health & living conditions
- Life Expectancy at Birth
- Infant Mortality Rate
- Infant Mortality Rate - total deaths/1,000 live births
- Maternal Mortality Rate - deaths/100,000 live births
350
- Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
.09
- Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
.9
- Health Expenditures - percent of GDP
4.8%
- Major Infectious Diseases - degree of risk
very high
- Obesity - adult prevalence rate
4.4%
- Drinking Water Source - percent of urban population improved
- Sanitation Facility Access - percent of urban population improved
- Underweight - percent of children under five years
14.3%