Islam is a widely practiced religion in Ghana, with its inception dating back to the 10th century. In the 15th century Islam entered the northern lands of modern Ghana. Merchants and scholars from the Mandi and Wanjara tribes played a role in spreading Islam in these regions.
Total population: 28.000.000
Muslim population (2019): 4.920.000
Islam arrived in Ghana through the preachers who came from neighboring African countries. According to the Ghana Statistics Authority 2012 estimates, Muslims make up 17.6 percent of the country’ s population. The majority of Muslims reside in the northern regions of the country and in the capital, Accra, and the cities of Kumasi and Sekondi-Takoradi.
The Grand Imam or Grand Mufti is considered the of facto title of the highest Islamic religious authority in Ghana. He is not necessarily a leader of any Muslim community, but rather represents the Ghanaian Muslim community in national affairs and in building bridges with the rest of the religious groups in the country.
The country’ s constitution prohibits religious discrimination, and states that individuals are free to follow and practice their religion and does not specify a religion of the state. This also applies to Muslims in Ghana, who, according to the constitution and law, are free to practice their religious rites.
In the educational sphere, the Ministry of Education is keen to include compulsory religious and ethical education in public education curricula at the national level, which includes perspectives from both Islam and Christianity. The Ministry also has an Islamic education unit responsible for coordinating all public education activities for Muslim communities.
In the political sphere, a number of Muslims occupy positions in the current government as ministers or deputy ministers and a significant number have been elected as parliamentarians, especially from the northern regions where Muslims represent the majority of the population. The highest political position a Muslim occupies at the present time is that of the country’ s vice president.
Despite this, the issue of wearing the headscarf remains one of the most prominent issues that have worried the Muslim community in Ghana in recent years. The Muslim community has called on the government to intervene, confront and denounce the attempts of some institutions and individuals to prevent Muslim women from wearing headscarves.
