# Ghana and Togo compared

Ghana and Togo side by side: 43 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 4 events their chronicles record of each other.

Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/gha-vs-tgo
Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates)

Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation.

## Formation

- Ghana: 6 March 1957 — The Gold Coast is proclaimed independent as Ghana
- Togo: 27 April 1960 — Independence of the Republic of Togo

## Economy

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $82 B | 2024 | $11 B | 2024 |
| GDP per capita | $2,391 | 2024 | $1,119 | 2024 |
| GDP growth | 5.6% | 2024 | 6.5% | 2024 |
| Inflation | 22.8% | 2024 | 2.9% | 2024 |
| Trade openness | 69.8% | 2024 | 61.6% | 2022 |

## Society

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 34 m | 2024 | 9.5 m | 2024 |
| Life expectancy | 65.7 yrs | 2024 | 62.9 yrs | 2024 |
| Urban population | 58.4% | 2024 | 43.8% | 2024 |
| Fertility rate | 3.3 | 2024 | 4.1 | 2024 |

## Governance

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voice & accountability | 60.4 | 2024 | 39.8 | 2024 |
| Political stability | 66.1 | 2024 | 52.1 | 2024 |
| Government effectiveness | 52.5 | 2024 | 35.8 | 2024 |
| Regulatory quality | 53.4 | 2024 | 48.4 | 2024 |
| Rule of law | 57.9 | 2024 | 46.1 | 2024 |
| Control of corruption | 43.9 | 2024 | 34.4 | 2024 |

## Health

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health spending | 2.9% | 2023 | 6.1% | 2023 |
| Physicians | 0.27 | 2023 | 0.08 | 2022 |
| Under-5 mortality | 35.9 | 2024 | 56.1 | 2024 |
| Measles immunisation | 90.0% | 2024 | 81.0% | 2024 |
| Safe drinking water | 42.9% | 2024 | 20.5% | 2024 |

## Education

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult literacy | 76.5% | 2021 | 72.6% | 2022 |
| Education spending | 2.9% | 2022 | 4.1% | 2023 |
| Primary enrolment | 101.0% | 2024 | 114.3% | 2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 75.7% | 2024 | 63.4% | 2023 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 21.3% | 2024 | 14.9% | 2020 |

## Technology

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&D spending | 0.4% | 2010 | 0.2% | 2024 |
| Researchers (per million) | 87 | 2015 | 58 | 2024 |
| Internet users | 72.2% | 2024 | 39.5% | 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 114 | 2024 | 81 | 2024 |
| High-tech exports | 2.1% | 2023 | 0.7% | 2024 |

## Geography

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land area | 227,533 km² | 2023 | 54,390 km² | 2023 |
| Forest area | 35.2% | 2023 | 22.1% | 2023 |
| Agricultural land | 55.4% | 2023 | 70.2% | 2023 |
| CO₂ per capita (t) | 0.7 | 2024 | 0.3 | 2024 |
| Renewable energy | 39.0% | 2021 | 75.1% | 2021 |

## Resources

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resource rents | 13.3% | 2021 | 7.9% | 2021 |
| Oil rents | 4.1% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 |
| Mineral rents | 5.2% | 2021 | 4.9% | 2021 |
| Forest rents | 3.8% | 2021 | 3.0% | 2021 |
| Electricity access | 89.5% | 2023 | 59.2% | 2023 |
| Gold (mined) | 150 t | 2025 | — | — |
| Phosphate rock | — | — | 1.6 Mt | 2025 |

## Military

| Metric | Ghana | Observed | Togo | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Military burden | 0.4% | 2024 | 2.0% | 2024 |
| Defense spending | $269 M | 2024 | $195 M | 2024 |
| Armed forces | 16,000 | 2020 | 10,000 | 2020 |

Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/<metric>.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/GHA.md and https://terralore.co/country/TGO.md.

## Entangled histories (4 events)

Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources.

- by the 13th century: **Ewe ancestors present in the region** — By oral tradition and scholarly reconstruction, the ancestors of the Ewe had moved into the Togo–Ghana region from the east, settling around Tado and later the town of Notsé before their dispersal. (from the Togo chronicle; sources: Exodus of the Ewe from Notsé; Togo (country overview and history); Togo)
- c. 15th–17th centuries: **The Ewe exodus from Notsé** — Ewe tradition tells of escape from the walled town of Notsé and the tyranny of King Agokoli, after which the people dispersed westward and southward — a foundational narrative of Ewe identity across Ghana, Togo and Benin. (from the Togo chronicle; sources: Exodus of the Ewe from Notsé; Togo (country overview and history))
- late 17th century: **Founding of Aného (Petit-Popo)** — Ane settlers fleeing conflict around Elmina in present-day Ghana founded Aného on the Togolese coast; it grew into the region's chief commercial and slaving port and would later briefly serve as a colonial capital. (from the Togo chronicle; sources: Aného; Togo (country overview and history))
- 9 May 1956: **British Togoland votes to join Ghana** — In a UN-supervised plebiscite, about 58 per cent of British Togoland's voters chose union with the Gold Coast; the territory was integrated into Ghana, which became independent in 1957. (from the Togo chronicle; sources: 1956 British Togoland status plebiscite; British Togoland; History of Togo)

## Sources

- World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org
- Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators
- Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho
- Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org
- R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org
- ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — U.S. Geological Survey · Public domain (U.S. Government work) · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center
- Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex

Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/GHA/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/TGO/chronicle.md.

Citation template: Terralore, "Ghana and Togo compared", terralore.co/compare/gha-vs-tgo, retrieved <YYYY-MM-DD>.