Before attaining its independence from British Colonial rule on March 6, 1957, Ghana was known as the Gold Coast, as it possess one of the world’s largest gold reserves. However, Ghana is now named after one of the most powerful empires in West African history, the ancient Kingdom of Ghana (that was located in present Sudan), that is famous for being the trading power in North and West Africa during the 11th and 12th centuries.
However, if we are to go back into the pre-colonial era, the first Europeans landed in Ghana in the late fifteenth century and quickly set up a system to help feed the incredibly profitable slave trade that had gripped the world at that time. Along the coast of Ghana, are various slave castles that remain intact and serve as a reminder of the unique and rich history that Ghana claims.
After independence in 1957, Ghana enjoyed a period of technological and infrastructural development that was unprecedented at the time. The completion of the world-famous Akosombo dam, with the Volta Lake (which was the world’s largest man-made lake at the time), and the building of the planned city of Tema (with its harbor) from scratch are both testaments to the prosperity that Ghana has enjoyed since independence.
After a long period of military rule, Ghana returned to democratic rule in 1991. Ghana has since enjoyed a remarkable peaceful way of life with firm democratic principles and inclinations.