Military personnel in Ghana

Ghana: Military personnel was 16,000 people in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)
16,000 people
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
105th
of 194 countries
All-time high
40,000 people
in 1972
All-time low
2,000 people
in 1957
Years of data
66
1957–2022

Military personnel in Ghana, 1957–2022

010.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k195719892022

Source: Correlates of War - National Material Capabilities Version 7.0 (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

Ghana recorded 16,000 people for military personnel in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, military personnel in Ghana peaked at 40,000 people in 1972 and was at its lowest, 2,000 people, in 1957.

That places Ghana 105th out of 194 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 2,000 people 2,000 people 2,000 people 3
1960s 22,300 people 5,000 people 35,000 people 10
1970s 27,700 people 15,000 people 40,000 people 10
1980s 12,200 people 8,000 people 16,000 people 10
1990s 7,400 people 7,000 people 9,000 people 10
2000s 9,100 people 7,000 people 14,000 people 10
2010s 15,600 people 12,000 people 16,000 people 10
2020s 16,000 people 16,000 people 16,000 people 3

Countries ranked near Ghana

  1. 103 Croatia 17,000 people compare
  2. 103 Qatar 17,000 people compare
  3. 105 Mauritania 16,000 people compare
  4. 107 Denmark 15,000 people compare
  5. 107 Honduras 15,000 people compare
  6. 107 Sweden 15,000 people compare
  7. 107 Zambia 15,000 people compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More reference data data for Ghana

All data for Ghana →

Frequently asked questions

What is military personnel in Ghana?
Military personnel in Ghana was 16,000 people in 2022, according to Correlates of War - National Material Capabilities Version 7.0 (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest military personnel recorded in Ghana?
The highest recorded value was 40,000 people in 1972.
What is the lowest military personnel recorded in Ghana?
The lowest recorded value was 2,000 people in 1957.
How does Ghana rank for military personnel?
Ghana ranks 105th out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is military personnel rising or falling in Ghana?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Ghana data come from?
The figures come from Correlates of War - National Material Capabilities Version 7.0 (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Military personnel. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

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About this data

Indicator
Military personnel
Unit
people
Source
Correlates of War - National Material Capabilities Version 7.0 (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
194 places, 15,765 data points, 1816–2022
Last refreshed

Troops under the command of the national government, intended for use against foreign adversaries, and held ready for combat as of January 1 of the given year.