Ghana’s urban population has increased to approximately 19.8 million, representing 58.7 per cent of the country’s total population in 2025, as the country continues to grapple with housing shortages and disparities in access to basic services.
The figures are contained in the Ghana in Numbers, 2025, a flagship publication by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), which provides key population, housing and basic-service indicators to support national and local development planning.
According to the report, Ghana’s urban population has grown steadily over the years, with the country becoming more urban than rural in 2010.
At the time, approximately 12.55 million people lived in urban areas, compared with 12.11 million in rural communities.
The trend continued in 2021, when the urban population increased to 17.47 million, against 13.36 million in rural areas.
The latest 2025 projection puts the urban population at approximately 19.8 million, highlighting the growing demand for housing, roads, water systems, schools, healthcare facilities, transportation and waste management services.
Government Statistician, Dr. Alhassan Iddrisu, has called for development decisions to be guided by local-level data rather than relying solely on national averages.
“Use local figures, not national averages, to decide where the next cedi goes, because averages hide differences,” he said.
On housing, the report indicates that Ghana had approximately 10 million dwelling units as captured in the 2021 Population and Housing Census.
The GSS estimates the country’s housing deficit at about 1.8 million units in 2021, representing a reduction from approximately 2.8 million units recorded in 2010.
However, the report clarifies that the housing deficit is an estimate based on the number of houses required relative to available housing stock and does not necessarily reflect housing quality, affordability or the number of vacant properties.
It also identifies a decline in average household size to 3.6 people, the lowest level recorded, noting that smaller household sizes could increase demand for housing even when population growth slows.
Meanwhile, access to basic services has improved significantly over the years, although substantial gaps remain.
The proportion of households with access to electricity increased from 43.8 per cent in 2000 to 86.3 per cent in 2021.
Access to improved drinking water also rose from 60.7 per cent to 92 per cent over the same period, while access to improved sanitation increased from 44.8 per cent in 2010 to 69 per cent in 2022.
Despite these improvements, the report reveals that 30.8 per cent of Ghana’s urban population lives in slums or informal settlements.
It further indicates that approximately one in seven households still lacks electricity, while almost one in three households does not have access to an improved toilet facility.
The GSS says the figures underscore the need to address disparities in living conditions and ensure that improvements in national service coverage translate into better conditions for households and communities.
The report further emphasises the importance of district-level data in identifying communities with the greatest housing and infrastructure needs.
Dr. Iddrisu said population statistics should guide decisions on the distribution of essential infrastructure, including schools, clinics and housing, to ensure that development interventions respond to the actual needs of communities.
The Ghana in Numbers, 2025 publication is expected to serve as a common reference for tracking urban growth, housing shortages, settlement conditions and access to essential services.
The publication and its accompanying district-level data are available through the Ghana Statistical Service website, StatsBank, the Ghana in Numbers web portal and the GSS Stats App.
