Bordered by the Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, Togo in the east and the Gulf of Guinea and Atlantic Ocean in the south, Ghana (which means "Warrior King") was the first African nation to declare independence from European colonisation, in 1957. Located only a few degrees north of the Equator, it is geographically closer to the "centre" of the Earth than any other country (the notional centre is located in Atlantic, at approximately 614km off the south-east coast of the country). It can be divided into four different geographical ecoregions. The coastline is mostly a low, sandy shore backed by plains and scrub and intersected by several rivers while its northern part features high plains. South-west and south-central is made up of a forested plateau region consisting of the Ashanti uplands and the Kwahu Plateau. The hilly Akwapim-Togo ranges are found along Ghana's eastern border. On its territory is the Lake Volta, the world's largest artificial lake.
Until the 10th century, the majority of modern Ghana's territorial area was uninhabited, but by the early of the 11th century the Akans were firmly established in the state called Bonoman. After two centuries, Akans created several states, mainly based on gold trading. The trade with European states began after contact with Portuguese in the 15th century, who first landed at a south coastal city, and named the place Elmina as the Portuguese Gold Coast's capital city. By 1598, the Dutch had joined the Portuguese in gold trading, establishing the Dutch Gold Coast. Other European traders had joined in gold trading by the mid-17th century, most notably the Swedish, establishing the Swedish Gold Coast, the Danish, establishing the Danish Gold Coast, and much later, the German, establishing the German Gold Coast.
In 1874 Great Britain established control over some parts of the country assigning these areas the status of British Gold Coast. Many military engagements occurred between the British colonial powers and the various Akan nation-states, and the Akan Kingdom of Ashanti defeated the British a few times in a warfare that lasted for 100 years, but eventually lost with the War of the Golden Stool in the early 1900s. Once the Asantehene and his council had been exiled, the British appointed a resident commissioner. Each Ashanti state was administered as a separate entity and was ultimately responsible to the governor of the Gold Coast. The Northern Territories were also proclaimed a British protectorate in 1902, and the three territories of the Gold Coast - the Colony (the coastal regions), Ashanti, and the Northern Territories - became a single political unit, or crown colony, known as the Gold Coast. The borders of present-day Ghana were realized in 1956, when the people of the Volta region, known as British Mandated Togoland, become part of the country.
In 1957 the former British colony of the Gold Coast became the independent state of Ghana, with Kwame Nkrumah as prime minister, and Queen Elizabeth II as monarch. This status of Ghana as a Commonwealth realm continued until 1960, when after a national referendum, it was declared a republic, with Nkrumah as its first president. In 1964, it officially became a single-party state, other parties being outlawed. In 1966 the National Liberation Council (NLC) overthrew the Convention People's Party (CPP) government in a military coup, and Nkrumah took up asylum in Guinea. Despite the vast political changes that followed, many problems remained, including ethnic and regional divisions, and the country's economic burdens. A series of alternating military and civilian governments from 1966 to 1981 ended with the ascension to power of Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings of the Provisional National Defense Council (NDC) in 1981.
Ghana is a significant petroleum and natural gas producer since December 2010, and one of the world's largest gold and diamond producers, and is projected to be the largest producer of cocoa in the world as of 2015. It has a beautiful array of wildlife that can be seen at zoos and national parks in the country, although populations have been drastically reduced by habitat loss and poaching. On the other hand, Ghana is used as a key narcotics industry transshipment point by traffickers, usually from South America as well as some from other African nations. It is a multiethnic country with 75 ethnic groups and over 100 linguistic groups, but the largest is the Akan people. As a result, Ghanaian culture is a diverse mixture of the practices and beliefs of all the different Ghanaian people groups.
About the stamp
The stamp is part of the series Fruits & Vegetables issued on February 28, 2012:
• Carica papaya (0.10 GHS)
• Ananas comosus (0.25 GHS)
• Citrus sinensis (0.27 GHS)
• Allium cepa (1.00 GHS)
• Lycopersicon lycopersicum (1.10 GHS)
• Allium cepa (1.20 GHS)
• Daucus carota sativus (1.30 GHS)
• Mangifera indica (1.40 GHS)
• Persea americana (3.00 GHS)
• Cocos nucifera (5.00 GHS)
References
Ghana - Wikipedia
Sender: ??? (direct swap)
Sent from ??? (Ghana), on 20.10.2014
Designed by Nanasei for a Safowaa
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