What color is the star on Ghana's national flag?

The star on Ghana’s national flag is black. It is a five-pointed star placed in the center of the gold stripe, touching the red and green bands.

Ghana adopted the flag on 6 March 1957, the date the country became independent from British colonial rule. Artist and teacher Theodosia Okoh designed it, using red, gold, and green—colors that became strongly associated with Pan-African identity. The central star added a distinctive political and historical symbol.

The black star is linked to African emancipation and unity. It was also inspired by the Black Star Line, the shipping company associated with Marcus Garvey’s Back-to-Africa movement. Ghana’s national football team consequently became known as the Black Stars.

One historical wrinkle can cause confusion: Ghana briefly replaced the gold stripe with white from 1964 to 1966 under Kwame Nkrumah’s government. The original red-gold-green flag was restored after the 1966 coup and remains the national design. The star, however, remained black in both versions.