Ghana is a medium-sized state in western Africa. In the world, it is known as a major producer of cocoa beans and gold. Those who plan to visit it are useful to know the properties of the local currency. The monetary unit in Ghana is the cedi. Let's find out more about it.
History
The modern cedi is already the fourth currency of the country. Until 1901, the role of the monetary unit in Ghana was played by golden sand, foreign coins and cowrie shells. The latter are interesting in that they came from the Indian Ocean, and they were brought into the country by Arab trade caravans, probably from the XIV century.
In the colonial period, the Ghanaian monetary unit was the West African pound, which was printed for several British colonies.
After gaining independence in 1958, the country switched to its own pound, which was divided into 20 shillings, and they, in turn, were 12 pence each. Then coins of bronze (0.5 and 1 pence) or an alloy of copper and nickel (3 and 6 pence, 1 or 2 shillings) were used. On the reverse of the coin was a star from the flag of the country, and on the obverse - a profile of the country's first president.
10 shillings represented a banknote, as well as 1.5 and 1000 pounds. On the obverse was the building of the Bank of Ghana, and on the reverse - a star, cocoa, a ship and paintings. Pretty pretty, I must admit.
After a short period of use of the pound, Ghana became the monetary unit of Ghana since 1965. After the 2007 denomination, the so-called "third gray" is in use.
Appearance of notes
New coins on the obverse had no image of the first president. The drawings on banknotes became more diverse, they depicted the famous buildings of the country (Independence Arch) and the images of its residents of different ages and occupations (miner, fisherman, schoolgirl).
In the 2007 issue, banknotes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cedi and coins of 1 cedi and 1,5, 10, 20 and 50 songs were presented.
The reverse of the banknotes depicts various important objects of the country:
- Hydroelectric power station Akosombo.
- University and parliament buildings.
- Bank and Supreme Court.
- Arch of Independence.
- Kristianborg Castle, which was built in 1659 by the Danes.
The obverse is most often painted "The Big Six" (political figures of 1948). The exception is 2 cedi, which depicts Kwame Nkrumah.
Ghana's exchange rate and prices in the country
In the spring of 2019, the rate of cedi to the ruble is 12 to 1, and in 2007 it was 26 to 1.
It is not possible to exchange rubles for cedi directly, you need to go to Ghana with some more popular currency, for example, with the euro or the dollar.
Prices in Ghana are not cheap, despite the general poverty of the country, because many goods are not produced there, they are imported and something high-quality for a foreigner is more expensive than for local ones. This applies, for example, to food.
In the restaurant for two you can eat in the amount of 1000 cedi. In local eateries, food is many times cheaper, but the quality of the food can be poor. There is no Russian cuisine, but you can find establishments with Indian and Chinese dishes.
A visit to the pool will cost from 150 rubles per day. The price of a liter of gasoline is from 60 rubles and about the same for 1 kilometer by taxi.
In the capital, you can go shopping in such places:
- Shopping center Accra Mall.
- Shopping center A&C.
- Makola Market.
- Supermarket Koala.
Hotel accommodation costs from 2000 rubles, a cheap overnight stay for foreigners is not widespread: Accra is not a tourist center like Istanbul or Bangkok.