Ghana Assessment

In this West African nation of 23 million people (including a labor force of more than 9 million), at least 55% of the working population derives its living from the agriculture sector, most often as small farmers. Of the country's gross domestic product (GDP)- $14.6 billion in 2007 - more than 35% comes from agriculture. Cocoa, of course, is the agricultural commodity at the heart of Ghana's economy, accounting for around two-thirds of the total value of Ghana's agricultural exports and at least one-third of all Ghanaian exports. "Ghana is Cocoa and Cocoa is Ghana" is the motto pronounced by Ghana's powerful and ably run

Cocoa Board, which oversees the production, control of quality, and purchase of all cocoa grown by more than 1.5 million farmers. Along with gold and timber, cocoa is one of the Ghana's three celebrated "traditional exports." Ghana's other major agriculture products for export include pineapples and refined sugar, which have both quadrupled in their export value during this decade, as well as palm oil, bananas, shea nuts, cashews, coffee, peanuts, and coconuts.