West Africa Ivory Coast, and a succession of military coups in Ghana and Burkina Faso. Since the end of colonialism, the region has been the stage for some brutal conflicts, including: The Economic Community of West African States, established in May 1975, has defined the region of West Africa since 1999 as including the following 15 states: Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Western Africa includes the preceding states with the addition of Mauritania (which withdrew from ECOWAS in 1999), comprising an area of approximately 6.1 million square km. The UN region also includes the island of Saint Helena, a British overseas
Gold Coast (region) more territory inland in the late 19th century after the Anglo-Ashanti wars. In 1957, the territory of Gold Coast was granted independence as Ghana. Gold Coast (region) The Gold Coast was the name for a region on the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa that was rich in gold and also in petroleum, sweet crude oil and natural gas. It now forms the country of Ghana. The Gold Coast, Slave Coast, Pepper Coast (or Grain Coast) were named after the main export resources there. Early uses of the term Gold Coast refer literally to the coast and not the interior.