Ghana is well on the way to meeting the Millennium Development Goal target of eradicating extreme poverty and hunger by 2015, according to a study by Britain's Overseas Development Institute.

The study forms part of a series of profiles on countries around the world that, in the words of the institute, are "bringing to light key lessons to inform development work leading up to 2015."

It said in its study: "With agricultural growth averaging more than five percent a year during the past 25 years, Ghana is ranked among the top five performers in the world. This has contributed to major reductions in poverty and malnutrition ..."

The first Millennium Development Goal, that of eradicating extreme poverty, includes three target areas:

To reduce by half the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day;

To achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all, including women and young people; and

To reduce by half the proportion of people who suffer from hunger.

The report goes on to say that Ghana is largely self-sufficient with in staple foods.

"Food supply has grown faster than the population has... At the same time, the real price of food has fallen. More accessible food meant that undernourishment went down to eight percent by 2003, from 34 percent in 1991. Child malnutrition has also declined, with the proportion of infants underweight falling from 30 percent in 1988 to 17 percent in 2008."

According to the study, some challenges, such as production efficiency and making agriculture environmentally sustainable, still remain.

The Overseas Development Institute is an independent think tank on development and humanitarian issues which says it "aims to inspire and inform policy and practice which lead to the reduction of poverty, the alleviation of suffering and the achievement of sustainable livelihoods in developing countries."