List of big towns in Ghana 2018
Ghana is beautiful country and the towns represent various aspects of Ghanaian culture, anyone living or visiting Ghana should know about these different towns. Each town is unique and each offers different experiences and is based on different aspects of the Ghanaian history. The different towns in Ghana also offer different recreational facilities; in this case, one town may have an amenity that another town lacks or places to visit that are unique to that particular town, such as national parks.
Accra
Accra, or the Accra Metropolitan District, is the capital city of Ghana. It is no surprise that it is among the towns of Ghana boasting of a large concentration of people, since it has a of over 2.29 million. Accra can therefore be said to be among the most populated towns in Ghana. Accra boasts of a history that can be traced back to the colonial rule. Accra acted as the capital city in the Gold Coast era for a total of 80 years from the year 1877 to the year 1957. Accra as it is currently positioned, has an area coverage of 86.78 square miles. Accra is situated within the Accra Metropolitan District which covers a total of 2.53 square miles. The Accra Metropolitan District is a combination of the city of Accra and two other districts, the La Dadekotopon Municipal District and the Ledzokuku-Krowor Municipal District.
Accra is also an education center since being the capital city, it plays host to a relatively large number of universities and colleges. Some of the universities and colleges in Accra include; Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, Valley View University, Ghana Technology University College, Regent University College of Science and Technology, African University College of Communications, Technical University, University of Professional Studies, Lancaster University, Ghana, Regional Maritime University, Institute of Technology, Pentecost University College, Methodist University College, Knutsford University College, Wisconsin International University College, Ghana Institute of Journalism, Zenith University College, Islamic University College, Ghana, BlueCrest College, Webster University Ghana, University College of Management Studies, Radford University College, Ghana Christian University College, Ghana Institute of Languages, Kings University College, Marshalls University College, Mountcrest University College, Dominion University College, West End University College, Jayee University College and the Advanced Business College
Apart from being an education hub, Accra is also a tourist hub. Apart from the cultural uniqueness of the town, it hosts a number of other tourist attractions and all the other amenities that come with being a tourist hosting town including hotels, restaurants and airports. Some of the tourist sites in Accra include the Accra Slavery Museum, The Cape Coast Castle, the Black Star Gate, Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, Independence Square and the Nubuke Foundation. When it comes to transport, and in particular air transport, Accra boasts of the Kotoka International Airport.
Being the capital city, it is no surprise that Accra is also an administrative hub; Accra has the Accra Metropolitan Assembly. The assembly is handed the mandate of governing the towns in Accra metropolitan district and it is headed by a Mayor who is appointed by the president of Ghana and the appointed individual is approved by the city council. The current Mayor of Accra is Mohammed Adjei Sowah who was appointed by the current Ghanaian president, Nana Akufo-Addo.
Accra’s growth can be attributed to the economic activities that fuel the economy. Accra’s economy is a mixture of the three sectors namely, primary, secondary and tertiary economic activities. The tertiary sector is the largest in the city; it includes supermarkets, shopping malls, hotels restaurants, real estate, education administration and social services among others.
Takoradi
You can call this a dual city. It is a combination of the two cities of Sekondi and the original Takoradi. For this reason it would go on to become the largest city in the entire region. Its size however does not reflect the population of the town which stands at 232,919 people. This is relatively low when you put to perspective the vast area the town covers.
Sekondi grew as a port town. Its history stretches back to the exploration of Africa as it provided a spot for the Dutch and English forts. The first one, the Dutch fort, was built in 1642 and the English one was thereafter built in 1682. It was later in 1946 that the two cities merged to form a single city now known as Sekondi-Takoradi. The English port (Port Orange) still stands and is a renowned tourist attraction site.
The population of the town is comprised of people from different religions. The religions are Christianity (which has the highest number of people standing at 35% of the total population of the town), Muslims (3.5% of the total population), Traditional African religion (0.2% of the total population) and the others who do not have a religion comprise of 3.2% of the total population of the town.
Takoradi is town that also offers different amenities for the people who live there. One of the essential amenities they offer is Education centers. Takoradi boasts of an assortment of institutions ranging from primary schools all the way to the tertiary institutions including Universities and colleges. Some of the institutions in Takoradi include;
- Takoradi polytechnic
- Teachers Training institutes(like the College of Education)
- Medical training schools like the Nurses and Midwifery Training College
It also has secondary schools including the Takoradi Secondary school, St. Mary Secondary School, Ghana Senior High Technical School, Ahantaman Senior High School and also St. John’s School among others.
And to top it all up, there are some institutions in Takoradi that offer specialized and modern education facilities like the fab lab that is at the Takoradi Technical Institute that is one of its kind in Africa.
The economy of Takoradi is fueled by the availability of the deep-water sea port and the various industries in the town including the timber, technological and the energy industries.
Takoradi is also home to an airport, the Takoradi Airport.
Cape Coast
The Cape Coast town is renowned as a fishing town. It is therefore no surprise that the crab is the city’s official mascot. Its vast fish reserves made Cape Coast a popular spot for Europeans and it was for this reason that the city had changed hands five times to five different European countries in the 16th century. However, it can be argued that the countries took over the town since it acted as a slave stop point before they were shipped to the various European countries. As it is currently constituted, the city is scarcely populated and it is reported to be having a population of close to 143,015 people.
When it comes to education in Cape Coast, the town is a host of different education institutions including the famous University of Cape Coast (UCC) which is renowned as the best university in Ghana when it comes to teaching and research. It is also host to the Cape Coast polytechnic which is ranked as one of the best polytechnics in the country. Apart from the various tertiary institutions, there are also other education institutions ranging from primary schools, junior high schools and also senior high schools. Some of the senior high schools include the Academy of Christ the King Senior High School, there are also international Senior High schools like the Cape Coast International Senior High School. Other special senior high schools include the University Practice Senior High School, St. Nicholas Seminary Senior High School, and Efutu Senior High Technical School.
The town is also a tourist destination with several attraction sites. The most notable and arguably the most renowned tourist attraction site is the statute that stands in the city Centre. The statue is that of a crab, the town’s official mascot. Other attractions come in the form of forts, the Fort William and the Fort Victoria and also the cape coast castle. There are also some religious landmarks that show the cultural aspect of the town. The most notable ones are the Asafo shrines. Some cultural activities, like the famous harvest festival (The Ougga Fetu Afahye) and the theater festivals (the Panafest Theatre Festival) that are held twice a year are also activities you can participate in while in the town for fun.
Tema
Tema is a town located close to the capital city of Ghana, Accra. Initially, Tema was just a small fishing village that very few people knew about. Its status as a village was changed after Nkwame Nkrumah commissioned the building of the harbor in the year 1962. The harbor saw the surrounding areas grow and the city was born. The planning and design of the Tema Metropolis was professionally done by a renowned Ghanaian Urban planner, and the town is approximately 25 kilometers from Accra. Tema's population is 160,000, making it number eleven in the list of the most populous towns in Ghana.
Tema is a city with a lot of unique features both natural and artificial. The most notable fact about Tema is the fact that the Greenwich Meridian passes through Tema. Apart from this, it boasts of a seaport that is the largest of all the seaports in Ghana. For this reason, Tema gained the title of a “Harbor Town”.
Tema is an industrial town with several industries including the steel processing companies, oil refineries, fish processing industry, aluminum industries just to mention a few. Some of the companies operating in Tema include Tema Oil Refinery, Nestle Ghana LTD among others. The commercial harbor is also an important aspect of the city as it is the largest income earner for the town. There is also a fishing harbor in Tema which is located at the very end of the commercial harbor. The fishing harbor was constructed with an aim of accommodating the relatively larger fishing vessels for example the deep-sea carriers and trawlers which can be almost forty meters long and have the capacity to accommodate almost 60 tons of fish.
There are also several education institutions in Tema including a number of high schools among them some international schools. Some of the international schools include the SOS Hermann Gmeiner International College and the Tema International School. There are also a number of public secondary schools which are either boarding schools or day schools and at times some schools offer both day and boarding services.
READ ALSO: Nzulezu Village Tourist Site Review
Koforidua
Koforidua is one of the capital towns in Ghana as it is the capital of the Eastern Region. It has a population totaling to 96,266. It is one of the important towns in the Eastern Region of Ghana as it is regarded as the economic stronghold in the region.
When it comes to education, Koforidua has not disappointed. The most notable and highly praised achievement in Koforidua is the satellite that was developed in the All Nations University that became the first ever satellite to be developed in Africa. Apart from the All Nations University, there are other educational institutions including High schools, junior schools and also a technical institution (Koforidua Technical University).
Koforidua boasts of natural features that act as catchy tourist attractions. Some of the attractions include the Obuo Tabri Mountain and also the Lake Volta which is considered as the largest ever man-made lake in the world. There are also waterfalls in the area including the Akka and the Boti Falls.
The city is also an economic hub. It is home to the oldest pharmaceutical manufacturing companies in the country. It is also home to several other industries including soap making industries and also alcoholic beverage industries. For a town with such economic activities, it is only proper that financial institutions will also want to set up shop in the town. It is home to several organizations that offer financial services including Universal banks, micro-financing and also rural banks.
Sunyani
Sunyani is a town in the Brong-Ahafo Region and it acts as the capital of the region. Sunyani has a population of more than 70, 299 people. It is a multi-cultural town but has a larger population of the people who are from the Ahafos tribe.
The main economic activity in the city is agriculture with an approximated 48% of the persons lining in Sunyani engage in farming. Apart from farming, the other economic activities in the industrial business that employs an estimated 13% of the population and the public sector that employs an estimated 24% of the population, the commerce sector employing an estimated 15% of the total population. Electricity in the region is also readily available as it is produced from river Volta. It boasts of, among other industries, the African Global Pharma Limited (AGP) an affiliate company of an international Canadian pharmaceuticals firm. The firm is the only pharmaceutical firm in Sunyani and the whole of the Northern part of Ghana.
There is a wide array of companies that offer financial services located in Sunyani. It has several “large” banks like a branch of the following ten banks; Bank of Ghana, Ghana Commercial Bank, Barclays Bank, SG-SSB Bank, Sahel Sahara bank, Zenith bank ,Agricultural Development Bank of Ghana ,Stanbic Bank, Ecobank Ghana and the National Investment Bank.
When it comes to health matters, Sunyani is a town that boasts of three hospitals including the Sunyani General Hospital which is an ultra-modern hospital. It also has a number of maternity hospitals and clinics spread out across the town.
The town is also a perfect vacation destination as it blossoms due to the natural beauty it possesses. In addition to this, there are also hotels and restaurants that are found in the town that would make good getaways and holiday destinations. It is also one of the tons in Ghana with an airport, the Sunyani Airport which connects passengers to the Takoradi Airport and also the Kumasi Airport.
The country is also an education hub as it plays host to several schools including the Catholic University College of Ghana, the Sunyan Polytechnic and the University of Energy and Natural Resources. In terms of high schools, Sunyani hosts a number of senior high schools including the Sunyani Senior High school.
Obuasi
Obuasi is a town that is famous for the mining activities that take place in the town, and it is one of the towns in Kumasi Ghana. It is approximately a one hour drive from Kumasi to Obuasi by train. Obuasi is also home to other transport activities having an airstrip and also an airport that service the people and products from Obuasi. It has a population of 137,856 people.
The most famous landmark of Obuasi the Obuasi Gold Mine. The gold mine is famous for its abundance of gold as it is said to possess the 9th richest bullion gold bar gold mining/mine on earth. Apart from the gold mine, Obuasi is home to several other interesting sites including a golf course. The golf course is used mostly by members of the Ashanti Gold Sporting Club which is a pro golfing club based in the town. With regards to education, Obuasi is host to a senior high school, the Obuasi Senior High School.
Wa
Wa is a town located in the Wa Municipal District. It’s part of the towns in Ghana that occupy the northern part of Ghana, specifically the Upper West Region. it is a town with a population of 78,107people. The population in Wa as is constituted now consists of people of different religious beliefs. The two dominant religions in Wa are the Islam and Christianity.
Despite the town being a modern town, the people who occupy to rely on agriculture as the main economic activity. The number of farmers doing small scale farming in Wa is relatively high. The main fruit crop that is planted in Wa is the mango. There are other cash crops that are popular in the region and they are; yams, corn, okra millet and groundnuts.
When it comes to education, Wa plays host to some of the leading schools in Ghana. Wa is the town that hosts the Wa Senior High School which is the largest senior high school in the Upper West Region. It is also the place where the St. Francis Xavier junior seminary is located. The seminary has over the years produced students who have become prominent figures in the community. It also hosts the University of Development Studies wing that hosts three faculties namely; Integrated Development Studies, Planning and Land Management and the Education, Law and Business Studies faculties. Wa also has an annual festival that is held in September. The festival is dubbed the Damba festival.
READ ALSO: Top 10 Tourist Sites in Accra 2018
Ashaiman
Ashaiman is one of the towns in greater Accra region .This is a significantly large town that is located the south of Ghana. It is the capital of the Ashaiman Municipal District and has an estimated population of around 298,841 people. However, there are some people that believe the population of the town is way above this number and may total to over one million inhabitants. Ashaiman plays host to the Ashaiman Senior High School.
Techiman
Techiman is a town located in the Brong Ahfo Region and it is the capital of the Techiman Municipal. It is a modern town that has the reputation as the leading market town in all of Ghana. Techiman had a population of about 104,212 people, as at 2013.
In matters of transport, a survey was conducted and the research showed that most Techiman residents prefer to use taxis as a means of transport. The town is not serviced by a railway line but it has a road that links it to Sunyani where one can get access to the Sunyani Airport.
Bolgatanga
Bolgatanga is among the list of towns in Ghana and it located in the upper east region and is the capital of the Bolgatanga municipal District. With a population of 66,685 people, it is among one of the small towns in Ghana due to the small number of people living there.
The town is located at the Red Volta River which is famous for the fact that elephants use the route while they are migrating. It is also an important cultural town as it hosts the Naa gbwewaa shrine.
Source: YEN.com.gh
