Every country, and indeed even ethnic groups, provinces and cities, are represented by a flag. When Ghana gained independence, it was crucial for the new country to assert its independence with a new flag, which is still in use today.
Symbolism of Ghana’s Flag
Ghana’s flag consists of three, equal horizontal stripes (red, gold and green) and a five-pointed black star.
The red represents the blood shed by the ancestors in the fight for independence. Gold represents the abundant gold and mineral resources of the country. And the green represents the agricultural bounty. The black star comes from the Black Star Shipping Line, a company founded by Marcus Garvey.
The colors were inspired by the colors used in the Ethiopian flag, a country that had eluded colonization.
The Creator of Ghana’s Flag
The flag was designed by Theodosia Okoh as part of the preparations for independence.
Theodosia worked as a teacher and artist throughout her life. She was also a champion for field hockey in Ghana, and under her chairmanship of the Ghana Hocky Federation, Ghana qualified for the Olympics.
She died in 2015 at the age of 92. As an aside and fun fact, her grandson is an animator for the show “Steven Universe” and he based the character Nanefua Pizza on her.
Other Ghana Flags
While the current flag was adopted upon independence, from 1962 to 1966, different versions of the flag were flown.
As a pan-Africanist, Ghana’s first president Kwame Nkrumah envisioned a singular African nation. During his tenure, he made some steps towards this goal by forming the Union of African States, with Guinea and Mali. As each country was added another star was added to flag. The Union of African States fell apart in 1964.
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After that, Nkrumah reverted back to a single black star on the flag, however changed the gold to white. Red, white and green are the colors for his political party, the Convention People’s Party. When he was overthrown in a coup d’etat, the original flag was once again reinstated.