Access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana
Ghana: Access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas was 98.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana, 1993–2024
Source: SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of urban population.
Analysis
In 2024, access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana stood at 98.6%. That is the highest value across all 32 years on record.
The figure is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 8.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana peaked at 98.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 72.8%, in 2010.
Ghana ranks 155th of 212 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana, year by year
| Year | % of urban population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 74.6% | — |
| 1994 | 74.7% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 75.3% | +0.9% |
| 1996 | 76.0% | +0.9% |
| 1997 | 76.6% | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 82.4% | +7.5% |
| 1999 | 77.9% | -5.5% |
| 2000 | 80.5% | +3.4% |
| 2001 | 78.9% | -2.0% |
| 2002 | 79.5% | +0.8% |
| 2003 | 76.9% | -3.3% |
| 2004 | 80.7% | +4.9% |
| 2005 | 78.4% | -2.9% |
| 2006 | 80.7% | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 82.7% | +2.5% |
| 2008 | 84.8% | +2.5% |
| 2009 | 84.2% | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 72.8% | -13.5% |
| 2011 | 85.0% | +16.8% |
| 2012 | 86.8% | +2.1% |
| 2013 | 88.5% | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 90.8% | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 88.4% | -2.6% |
| 2016 | 89.8% | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 90.0% | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 89.9% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 93.8% | +4.3% |
| 2020 | 94.6% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 95.2% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 95.0% | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 97.5% | +2.6% |
| 2024 | 98.6% | +1.1% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 98.6% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 97.0%, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 98.6% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 85.3%, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 76.8% | 74.6% | 82.4% | 7 |
| 2000s | 80.7% | 76.9% | 84.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 87.6% | 72.8% | 93.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 96.2% | 94.6% | 98.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More energy & mining data for Ghana
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate 5.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Fuel imports 32.1% (2023)
- Ores and metals imports 1.1% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana?
- Access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas in Ghana was 98.6% in 2024, according to SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 98.6% in 2024.
- What is the lowest access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 72.8% in 2010.
- How does Ghana rank for access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas?
- Ghana ranks 155th out of 212 countries with data for 2024.
- Is access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Access to electricity in urban vs. rural areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The definition used in international statistics adopts a very low cutoff for what it means to ‘have access to electricity’. It is defined as having an electricity source that can provide very basic lighting, and charge a phone or power a radio for 4 hours per day.