Ghana is one of West Africa's most linguistically diverse nations, with approximately 80 indigenous languages spoken across its 16 regions. The most widely spoken are Akan (including the Twi and Fante dialects, spoken by approximately 47% of the population), Ewe (in the Volta Region), Ga (in Greater Accra), Dagbani (in the Northern Region), and Hausa (widely used as a lingua franca among Muslim communities). Eleven languages have official government-sponsored status and are supported by the Bureau of Ghana Languages (BGL), established in 1951 to publish materials in indigenous Ghanaian languages.
Despite this extraordinary linguistic diversity, English is the sole official language of the Republic of Ghana, and all government-issued documents — from birth certificates to university degrees — are produced in English. This means that the primary translation demand for Ghanaian documents is converting English-language originals into other languages for use in non-English-speaking countries, particularly France, Germany, the Gulf states, and other destinations where the Ghanaian diaspora is growing. The reverse flow — translating foreign-language documents into English for use in Ghana — serves foreign nationals working, studying, or investing in the country.
While indigenous Ghanaian languages do not typically appear on government-issued documents, they may be encountered in customary court records, traditional authority documents such as chieftaincy certificates and land allocation letters, and religious certificates from Islamic institutions. Akan (Twi) documents are sometimes found in traditional court proceedings in the Ashanti Region, while Ewe may appear in customary records in the Volta Region. DoVisa maintains a network of translators proficient in Ghana's major indigenous languages for these specialized document types.








