This study replaces Ghana: A Country Study, which was completed in 1971 during the second effort to establish republican government in Ghana under Kofi A. Busia. Since then, Ghana has experienced four military governments and a third attempt at representative democracy before the inauguration of the Fourth Republic in January 1993. Since the early 1980s, the dominant developments in Ghana have been the adoption of an economic structural adjustment program backed by international lending agencies and a prolonged transition to a new form of elective government, both presided over by a military government headed by Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings. Rawlings continues to dominate political life, having been elected president in national elections in November 1992, one of the crucial steps in the latest attempt at representative government. This edition of Ghana: A Country Study examines the record of the military government after 1981 and of the first two years of the Fourth Republic, 1992- 94. Subsequent events are discussed in the Introduction.

This study is an attempt to treat in a concise and objective manner the dominant historical, social, economic, political, and national security aspects of contemporary Ghana. Sources of information used in preparing this volume include scholarly books, journals, and monographs; official reports of governments and international organizations; Ghanaian newspapers; the authors' previous research and observations; and numerous periodicals. Chapter bibliographies appear at the end of the book; brief comments on some of the more valuable sources recommended for further reading appear at the end of each chapter.

Place-names follow the system adopted by the United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN). The authors have followed current and more accurate usage by using the term Asante rather than Ashanti in referring to one of the most prominent of Ghana's peoples and indigenous states. The term Ashanti, which was generally employed during the pre-independence period, does, however, still appear in some geographic and commercial contexts.

The body of the text reflects information available as of November 1994. Certain other portions of the text, however, have been updated. The Introduction discusses significant events that have occurred since the completion of research; the Bibliography lists published sources thought to be particularly helpful to the reader

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Source: U.S. Library of Congress