Homicides in Ghana
Ghana: Homicides was 1,926 deaths in 2021. ▲ Rising
Homicides in Ghana, 2000–2021
Source: World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths.
Analysis
In 2021, homicides in Ghana stood at 1,926 deaths. That is the highest value across all 22 years on record.
The figure is up 1.9% on the previous year and up 18.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Ghana peaked at 1,926 deaths in 2021 and was at its lowest, 1,302 deaths, in 2000.
Ghana ranks 43rd of 194 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Homicides in Ghana, year by year
| Year | deaths | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 1,302 deaths | — |
| 2001 | 1,329 deaths | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 1,352 deaths | +1.7% |
| 2003 | 1,376 deaths | +1.8% |
| 2004 | 1,407 deaths | +2.2% |
| 2005 | 1,430 deaths | +1.6% |
| 2006 | 1,458 deaths | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 1,484 deaths | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 1,518 deaths | +2.3% |
| 2009 | 1,553 deaths | +2.3% |
| 2010 | 1,587 deaths | +2.2% |
| 2011 | 1,620 deaths | +2.1% |
| 2012 | 1,663 deaths | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 1,698 deaths | +2.1% |
| 2014 | 1,725 deaths | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 1,744 deaths | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 1,768 deaths | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 1,792 deaths | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 1,829 deaths | +2.1% |
| 2019 | 1,857 deaths | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 1,891 deaths | +1.8% |
| 2021 | 1,926 deaths | +1.9% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 1,926 deaths is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 743.83 deaths, 2.6× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 1,926 deaths is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 971.62 deaths, 2.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1,421 deaths | 1,302 deaths | 1,553 deaths | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,728 deaths | 1,587 deaths | 1,857 deaths | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,908 deaths | 1,891 deaths | 1,926 deaths | 2 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
- 40 Peru 2,058 deaths compare
- 41 Burkina Faso 2,039 deaths compare
- 42 Zimbabwe 1,954 deaths compare
- 44 Vietnam 1,890 deaths compare
- 45 Madagascar 1,778 deaths compare
- 46 South Sudan 1,693 deaths compare
More social development data for Ghana
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 21,050 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0005 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0006 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicides in Ghana?
- Homicides in Ghana was 1,926 deaths in 2021, according to World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 1,926 deaths in 2021.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,302 deaths in 2000.
- How does Ghana rank for homicides?
- Ghana ranks 43rd out of 194 countries with data for 2021.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated number of deaths from interpersonal violence in both sexes.