📜 A long story
Ghana, 1800 → today
Ghana grew from 2.02 million in 1800 to 33.8 million; a newborn can expect 37.5 more years of life than in 1921, and output per person is 4.1× its 1885 level, adjusted for inflation.
Told with long-run reconstructions, not the yearly series used elsewhere on the site: each chapter names its source. Scroll to move through the years.
☺ Chapter 1 · Population
How many people live there?
1800
In 1800, about 2.02 million people lived in Ghana.
1900
2.72 million people.
1.3× the 1800 level
1950
5.08 million people.
1.9× the 1900 level
Reached twice the 1800 level in 1937.
2023
33.8 million people, the latest year in this series.
6.7× the 1950 level
Reached 5 times the 1800 level in 1975.
Reached 10 times the 1800 level in 2001.
Long-run series: before 1950, reconstructions by HYDE and Gapminder, filled in between benchmark years by those sources. Log scale: equal steps up mean equal growth rates.
✚ Chapter 2 · Life expectancy
How long do people live?
1921
In 1921, a newborn in Ghana could expect to live 28 years, on average.
1950
43.1 years.
+15 years since 1921
Passed 40 years in 1950 (no data between 1921 and 1950, so it may have happened earlier).
2023
65.5 years, the latest year in this series.
+22 years since 1950
Passed 50 years in 1977.
Passed 60 years in 2006.
Long-run series: before 1950, historical estimates (Riley, Clio Infra, Human Mortality Database), only for years they cover. Dashed stretches are years without data.
◎ Chapter 3 · GDP per person (PPP)
How much is produced per person?
1885
In 1885, Ghana produced about Int$1,040 per person, in 2011 prices.
1950
Int$1,790.
1.7× the 1885 level
2022
Int$4,240, the latest year in this series.
2.4× the 1950 level
Reached twice the 1885 level in 1954.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 28% between 1974 and 1982 (Int$2,320 → Int$1,660).
Long-run series (Maddison Project) in 2011 international dollars: adjusted for inflation, so not the same unit as today’s PPP figure. Log scale: equal steps up mean equal growth rates. Dashed stretches are years without data.
❦ Chapter 4 · CO₂ per person
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
1950
In 1950, fossil fuels and industry in Ghana emitted about 0.1 t of CO₂ per person.
2024
0.6 t, the latest year in this series.
4.9× the 1950 level
Reached twice the 1950 level in 1970.
Reached 5 times the 1950 level in 2021.
The sharpest fall in the data: down 32% between 1983 and 1984 (0.3 t → 0.2 t).
Long-run series: fossil CO₂ emitted within each country’s borders (Global Carbon Budget); early estimates are less certain. Log scale: equal steps up mean equal growth rates.
☕ Chapter 5 · Years of schooling
How long do people go to school?
1870
In 1870, people aged 15–64 in Ghana had spent 0.01 years in school, on average.
1900
0.1 years.
about the same as 1870
1950
0.7 years.
+0.65 years since 1900
2015
7.7 years, the latest year in this series.
+7 years since 1950
Passed 2 years in 1965.
Passed 4 years in 1975.
Passed 6 years in 1990.
Long-run series (Lee & Lee, Barro & Lee) for people aged 15–64, every 5 years until 2015: a different age group than today’s figure (25 and older).