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No fewer than 6 people have died during a stampede at a military recruitment event held in a sports arena in Ghana.

The midweek "devastating" incident appeared to have been triggered by "a sudden rush of applicants who overcame security measures and rushed into the gates," stated a statement from the nation's military.

Twenty-two others were injured, among them five who remain in serious state.

A large crowd had turned up at the El-Wak sports venue, in the main city, the capital, with the hope of joining the military.

The country has a youth unemployment rate of approximately thirty-two percent, the latest official data show, and such enlistment drives normally draw large crowds and frequently result in disorderly situations.

The deadline to apply for this event was extended by a week to allow for more applicants, as a number had experienced difficulties in the application procedure.

Military representative Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin said the stampede occurred ahead of the planned commencement time of 6:20 AM Greenwich Mean Time.

Ghana's President President John Mahama has gone to see the wounded in hospital.

Order has been reestablished, and the recruitment exercise has since begun.