Ghana after Live Aid

Ghana is an independent republic which lies on the Gulf of Guinea, forming part of the West African Region. It was the first place in sub-Saharan Africa where Europeans arrived to trade - first in gold, later in slaves. Despite being rich in mineral resources, and endowed with a good education system and efficient civil service, Ghana fell victim to corruption and mismanagement soon after independence from Britain in 1957. The country’s economy is growing ahead of the average for the Africa region, prompted by strong cocoa production, construction and transport, continued increased gold output and the commercialization of oil. The country currently suffers from shortages in clean drinking water. As a result, the rate of water-borne diseases, such as cholera and typhoid, is high.

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Time Line

• 1957 Ghana becomes the first black African nation in the region to become independent from a colonial power, with Kwame Nkrumah as prime minister. However, the country soon falls victim to corruption and mismanagement.

• 1960 Ghana proclaimed a republic; Nkrumah elected president.

• 1971 SOS Children opens its first community in Ghana in Tema.

• 1983 Rawlings adopts conservative economic policies, abolishing subsidies and price controls, privatising many state enterprises and devaluing the currency.

• 1990- SOS Children opens an International School in Tema. Offering International GCSE's and the International Baccalaureate, it educates students from all over Africa.

• 1992 SOS Children opens its second village in the country, Children's Village Asiakwa. The village also operates a Nursery and a Medical Centre.
  

• 1993 Rawlings elected president.

• 1994 One thousand people are killed and a further 150,000 are displaced in the Northern Region following ethnic clashes between the Konkomba and the Nanumba over land ownership.

• 2001 Debt relief for Ghana is provided by a scheme from the World Bank and IMF. National day of mourning after football stadium stampede leaves 126 dead. Inquiry blames police for overreacting to crowd trouble. Floods hit Accra, causing 10 deaths and forcing 100,000 to flee their homes.
  

• 2002 State of emergency is declared in the north after a tribal chief and more than 30 others are killed in clan violence. State of emergency is lifted in August 2004.

• 2007 The worst floods for more than 30 years cause widespread devastation, destroying much of the annual harvest.

• 2009 John Atta Mills is inaugurated as president. The country secures a 600 million dollar three-year loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), amid concerns about the impact of the global recession on poorer countries. SOS Children's Village Kumasi opens, providing family based care for vulnerable children and young people as well as supporting the local community with a Nursery and Medical Centre.
  

• 2010 The maternal death rate is recorded as being 350 deaths per 100,000 live births, 32nd worst in the world. 14% of the population are still without an improved water source. SOS Children open a fourth community in the country; Children's Village Tamale.
  

• 2012 John Mahama wins presidential election. GDP growth is estimated to be 7.1% thanks to oil revenues, the service sector and strong export figures for gold and cocoa. 

• 2013 SOS Children is continuing its work with the victims of HIV/ AIDS in the country via its AIDS Orphan Projects in four locations; Somanya, Agomenya, Tema and Accra.