Two Schools

The dry season continues with a vengeance. There are more frequent grass and forest fires, which means lots of ash in the air, to add to the dust from the Sahara.






The positive side of the dry season is that temperatures are much cooler. We still find it hot during the day, but some Ghanaians are wearing woolly hats and keep commenting on the cold! At night it really is cool and we occasionally need a blanket on the bed. On some mornings, one of us boils a kettle of water to add to our bucket showers. It is noticeable that there are clearly more hungry people about. We sometimes get asked for food or water, and this didn’t happen at all last term.

Another feature of our lives is that we are increasingly becoming medical experts in the eyes of local people. They are coming to us for various forms of advice about medical conditions that are bothering them. For example, last weekend we were approached in the market by a group of women who were concerned about their friend with toothache. We cycled home and got some treatment from our medical kit to give to her. On our next visit to the market, we were treated like members of the family - and given extra vegetables.

Two people have stopped us in the street as they were concerned that their doctor had told them that they had "brain trouble", and their "neurones were not working properly". They both asked, “what does this mean?” A short conversation about balanced diet and healthy eating seemed to calm them down. We think they may both have been students, very anxious about passing their next set of examinations.

The lives of our neighbours and colleagues (and hence our activities) are currently revolving around football and the Africa Cup. Everyone was really shocked about the assassination of members of the Togo squad. They were devastated when Cote D’Ivoire beat Ghana last week. There was elation in the air when Ghana beat Burkina Faso on Tuesday night - so Wednesday was a good day for us to get loads of co-operation and support for what we wanted to do! Next week’s activities will depend on the outcome of today’s (Sunday) match against Angola. Even Linda is learning to have football conversations.

We continue to work closely with a number of schools. The following is about 2 of them.

Wa Methodist School for the Blind.

This school was originally established by Methodist missionaries and it is one of only 2 schools for the blind in Ghana; the other school is in the South of the country. All students are resident at the school and their ages range from 3 to 19 years. Some of the teachers are also blind. The terrible thing is that in many cases, blindness has been caused by a range of preventable diseases such as measles.

The teachers also live on the school site and many of them keep goats, which wander around the school throughout the day

Each school day begins with “inspection”. The students line up outside and they are checked to ensure that they have washed and dressed properly. Then there is the whole school assembly, which is always conducted by the students themselves.

Students follow a similar curriculum to other primary and secondary schools, with a greater emphasis on the development of practical and vocational skills. As a special school, it is well supported by a range of international charities. For example, a Dutch charity organisation has built a fantastic computer lab, which enables students to use talking books and carry out a range of other activities. All resources and exam papers have to be translated into Braille. The students below are going over their marked exam papers, reading the teachers comments.




These students are producing essays in braille. During our work with the school, we have managed to learn a few letters and a few numbers in Braille.






Students are incredibly supportive of each other, always helping others to move around the school site.



At mid-morning there is a break, when all students are given “porridge” to eat. Again, students take responsibility by organising the hall, serving the food etc.





Lunch is cooked on the school premises by the women below. They are making a traditional Ghanaian food called kenkey. This is a dough made from ground corn, which is wrapped in banana leaves and cooked. It is served with an okra stew.





We have been working closely with 4 teachers. One of these is Priscilla, a newly qualified teacher, with considerable potential. She is really keen to learn and improve, and to take risks by trying out new strategies. The students really love her. Unfortunately for the education service, she wants to eventually be a TV presenter – on the BBC if possible!







Amadyiia Junior Secondary School


This is an Islamic School, taking students from a range of different religions and backgrounds. Like most schools in Ghana, the day starts with an assembly - prayers, followed by singing the national anthem and reciting the Ghanaian pledge.




Then, to the beating of drums, students march to their classrooms, singing one of their school songs.




Like all secondary schools, the students study: English, maths, science, IT, social studies, technical studies, Dagaare (a local language) and PE. There is no electricity in the school and IT has to be taught and examined. When we had our first meeting with all the teachers, they asked if we could show them a computer, so that they could see and feel one at first hand, in order to explain IT better to the students. Students learn IT from the blackboard and textbooks. We took our 2 laptops into the school, each with an hour’s supply of battery, so that the teachers could take it in turns to try out the keyboard and open a couple of programmes.




Linda has been working closely with Faustina, an excellent social studies teacher. Teachers who have very young children take them along to school and the staff take turns in looking after them during the day. Faustina has 3 children, and the picture shows her with her youngest child, Bonga.



We have established very good relationships with a number of the students at this school. These students are always keen to talk with us about a wide range of issues. They are knowledgeable, ambitious and committed to studying hard. Each student in the picture below aims to be a doctor, teacher or lawyer. However, only a small proportion of students at junior secondary schools gain entry to senior high schools. In addition to achieving sufficient marks in the entry examinations, school fees have to be paid. (Education is only free until the end of junior high school)

Housing

This week has been a very busy one, preparing for training sessions with headteachers. We have amended the UK’s National Standards for headteachers into Ghana Speak, so that heads can carry out a self-evaluation to identify areas they in which they want further development. The Open University has produced some really good resources to support learning and teaching in Sub-Saharan Africa. Thanks to money raised by our families in the UK, we will be able to provide all headteachers at our workshops with a copy of these materials.

During our 6 month stint, our main task at the Education Offices is to conduct an organisational assessment, so that the Director and her colleagues can identify the priorities for improvement. During this week, we have been working closely with the Deputy Director of education, in advance of a meeting to be held next week with a group of education officers. The outcomes of the assessment should help the organisation to seek and obtain support and finance to be used on relevant priorities.

Our recent travels around Ghana have enabled us to see how parts of the country differ. It is really interesting to see the wide range of house styles and living conditions throughout the country. In the major towns and cities there are some very large, expensive dwellings made of brick and concrete, with beautiful gardens. However, this is not typical. In the villages and small towns, it is much more usual to see houses constructed of locally available materials. For example, in the south and central areas of the country, houses are typically constructed of a wooden frame that is then covered in mud or filled with mud bricks. The stems of local cereal crops and grasses are then used to construct a thatched roof. Many of these houses are oblong in shape.



Heading further north, the houses have a similar structure, but they are typically round in shape, and groups of 5 or 6 houses are grouped together within the village. Most of these villages have no electricity supply, and the women and children often have to walk long distances each day to fetch water.




Some villages have their own specific traditions in house building. For example, in the village of Paga, the walls of the houses are made of a mixture of mud and cow dung. For centuries, the women have then painted pictures on the outside of the houses. The house below is over 2 hundred years old and is not currently inhabited.




The Paga house in the picture below is the same age and is still used for women to give birth. The woman will remain in the house for about a week after the birth, during which time she is fed and entertained with drumming and dancing by members of the village.




In Paga, the walls of houses are still made with mud and cow dung, but they now tend to have roofs made of corrugated iron. The villagers told us that they prefer the older style thatched houses, because they are much cooler.

In the most northern, hotter regions, the people generally live in compounds that are made totally of mud, with flat mud roofs. The roofs are used for drying grain and fruit, and for erecting shrines to the ancestors and lesser gods. They are also used as somewhere to sleep, when the weather is particularly hot. These compounds vary in size and they house between 12 and 70 people from the same extended family. All are made of mud in one of 2 types of construction. Sometimes, round balls of mud are kneaded together to make the walls. This takes rather a long time, because only a few layers can be built at a time. These layers have to be left to dry out, before the next few layers can be added. Alternatively, mud bricks, made in moulds, are used. These are more expensive to produce, but compounds can be constructed more quickly, as there is no need to leave the bricks to dry out. Therefore labour costs are lower. The compounds are constructed by “master builders”, working with volunteers from the village. It is expected that master builders will be paid, usually with tobacco, alcohol, kola nuts etc. It is expected that the volunteers will be fed. Once constructed, the walls are covered with a plaster that is made of about 3 layers of fine silt/gravel and cow dung.



In the northern village of Sirigu, the people also live in compounds, and there is a centuries old tradition of painting the compounds. Many of the designs have cultural and historical significance. Once the walls are constructed, women carry out the painting, using the colours of red, black and white, made from local rocks. Specialist painters are employed, supported by volunteers from the village community. In more recent times, modern designs have become incorporated into the painting, including Christian symbolism e.g. angels and crosses. When the painting is complete, it is covered with a protective gloss, which also makes the colour brighter and shiny. This layer is made of various leaves and tree bark that is boiled in water. All painting is done with feathers. Villagers report that the painting is done in order to protect the walls, and as a way of enabling the women of the village to express themselves.




In Sirigu, each compound has a fairly consistent structure. There is a reception area outside the compound, usually a shelter made of wood and straw. Logs are also placed in this area to act as seating. On entry to the compound, the first place to encounter is the animal courtyard. Goats and cows are kept here at night, and they act as a warning if anyone tries to enter the compound. Houses for chickens are built into the mud of the walls. Grain is also stored in this area in silos of a mud construction. Each silo has a removable thatched roof. Grain storage is vital to families, because virtually no crops can be grown and harvested in the dry season. It is necessary to step over a low mud wall into the next courtyard. Some compounds will have 1 courtyard; others will have 6 or 7. All the living accommodation is off the courtyard(s). The best room goes to the oldest man in the compound, followed by the oldest woman. Polygamy is common, and each wife is entitled to her own room for herself and her children. When a woman marries, she moves to her husband’s compound. Most living/cooking etc. is done outdoors in the courtyards. We visited the compound of the Sirigu Chief, who has 6 wives. Custom therefore dictates that no man in the village can have more than 5 wives.



In Wa, as in other towns, the majority of houses are made of mud bricks, with metal roofs. The development of the infrastructure has not kept pace with the growth of the town, and open sewers run amongst the houses. This means that people live amongst goats, chickens, rubbish and raw sewage. It is amazing to us how the local people keep themselves, their clothing and their cooking utensils so clean. The morning routine in every household involves sweeping the rooms and the courtyard, a chore that continues at school for young people.




The house below is most untypical of Wa, but a few of this type do exist in the major towns.



On the lighter side, living in Ghana requires us to be adaptable and inventive. When the only internet signal available is obtained by sitting at a specific angle in the garden, facing the wall, then that’s what you do:


When the gas cylinder runs out and there is no electricity and you are in the middle of cooking, then you get out the charcoal and a neighbour’s “coal pot” and cook outside, sitting on the floor like a true Ghanaian.




Hope all UK readers are coming safely and comfortably out of that cold spell that we missed!!

Back to Wa

We are now back in Wa and revived, ready for a fairly hectic term. If we do achieve all we have set out to do, we shall be very pleased indeed. Over the last week we have continued our travels around Ghana and some of the highlights are outlined below:

Owabe Nature Reserve
This small reserve is situated just outside Kumasi and it is a beautiful, peaceful place with a huge variety of bird life. The Jacana was one of the many species that we observed..

Kintampo Falls

The road north took us to the Kintampo falls. Water flows here all year round and the whole setting is spectacular. It is within very easy reach of the main road, requiring only a short walk through tropical rain forest

Mole National Park

This is Ghana’s main nature reserve. It covers a large area of the country and is home to a wide variety of animals. It is not fenced in any way and various animals, including carnivores like lions and leopards are present, but in very small numbers. In contrast to the reserves of East and South Africa, where visitors are transported in vehicles, at Mole, visitors are taken on guided walks with an armed guide. This guide makes it clear that we have to follow instructions precisely, including to run, if we are told to run!

It was a magical experience getting so close to wild animals, whilst on foot. We increased our bird list to 64 different species since arriving in Ghana. We also saw elephants, bushbuck, waterbuck, kob antelopes, Nile crocodiles, baboons, green monkeys, warthogs, and a huge variety of agama lizards.

Larabanga

At the entrance to Mole National Park is the village of Larabanga, which has the oldest building in Ghana, dating from 1421. This historic mosque is of Sudanese architectural style, constructed of mud and sticks. Before viewing the mosque, all visitors are expected to pay their respects to the Chief Imam, pictured below

Bolgatanga

After a stop off in Tamale, the largest town of the north, we headed up the main road to Bolgatanga, the capital of the Upper East region. Here we met up with Anthony and Laura, volunteer friends. Anthony came out to Ghana with us. We also undertook our VSO training in Birmingham with him. It was good to catch up with the work he is doing in developing science teaching in the region. Laura is working as a vet, and she is the first non-Ghanaian to be officially registered as a vet in Ghana. Anthony and Laura already keep chickens, and they now have another unexpected addition to the family!

Paga

From Bolgatanga, we headed to the village of Paga, which is very close to Ghana’s northern border with Burkina Faso. Paga has a population of crocodiles, which are deemed to be sacred, because in previous times they helped to protect the people from their enemies. They are believed to hold the souls of the ancestors, and when a crocodile dies, someone in the village also dies. The crocodiles are well looked after in 2 designated crocodile ponds, and they are free to wander around the village. We were told that they lay their eggs around the village houses. These crocodiles are used to close contact with humans.

We were given a sample of crocodile dung to take away with us. Apparently, if you mix it with water, it will cure boils in less than 3 days. It’s always good to have a new addition to our medical kit!

Sirigu

Anthony and Laura joined us for a tour around the village of Sirigu. This whole area is very poor. One interesting development is the formation of SWOPA: Sirigu Women’s Organisation for Pottery and Art. Local women have been taught the skills of pottery making and painting, and they produce some beautiful work. The woman below is an expert pottery-maker.

Wa

The “main” road from Sirigu/Bolgatanga to Wa was one of the most challenging we have yet travelled. The pot holes and sand pits made us hugely relieved that we were travelling in a 4-wheel drive vehicle. We loved the whole 7-hour journey. However, the state of the main road between the 2 northern capitals serves as one illustration of the massive amount of work that is needed to develop the infrastructure in this area, before any significant improvement can take place in the lives of local people. The picture shows one of the few "good" sections of the road.

Travels over - back to work until the end of March. We’re really looking forward to the work.

Travels In Ghana

Over this last week, we have been travelling around and learning more about the history and culture of Ghana.

Ancient Ghana was originally situated near the current border between Mali and Mauritania, and it reached the height of its powers in the 9th and 10th centuries. When the Gold Coast gained its independence from Britain, Nkrumah chose the name Ghana for the country, in recognition of this ancient kingdom.

There is evidence of human habitation in Ghana, dating back 300,000 years. However Ghana, as a nation, was only created in the last century, during the European "scramble for Africa". There was little regard for the indigenous people and languages within its borders. Hence, around fifty distinct groups are to be found in modern Ghana, each with its own dialect, culture, history and traditions. This trip is certainly enabling us to gain a bit more of an understanding of the complexities of the country.

Some of the highlights of this week’s travels are outlined below.

Shai Hills Reserve

This reserve is close to Accra and is the homeland of the Shai people, who say that they originally came from Israel. They inhabited this area until 1892, when they were ejected by the British. There were 4 tribes who used the caves as palaces for the chiefs. We climbed to one of the caves, where we saw the chief’s stool (throne) carved into the rocks. Shai people now live in surrounding villages and all the employees of the reserve belong to the Shai community. Once a year, members of the community return to the caves to carry out various rituals, related to their traditional beliefs. The reserve supports a range of wildlife, including herds of Kop antelopes, numerous snakes, and 19 troops of baboons.

Torgome Village

This large fishing village of 8,000 people is situated on the eastern side of the Volta River, just south of Akosombo. Given its location, we were surprised to find just how much the village is cut off from most aspects of modern Ghanaian life. We were invited by the Paramount Chief, the elders and the villagers to take part in a traditional naming ceremony and we were both given African names. Linda, as a Monday born female, is called Adzowa, and was given the additional name of Xorla, i.e “redeemer”! Haydn, born on a Tuesday, is called Kwabla, and was also named Nunya, meaning wisdom.

The ceremony consisted of a Christian prayer, followed by a traditional prayer. This was to ensure that the Christian God, as well as the lesser gods and spirits of the ancestors would all be present for the ceremony. There was then a libation (ritual pouring of a drink onto the ground for the gods and ancestors). This was followed by a wonderful display of singing, dancing and drumming. Then there were speeches, including on-the-spot speeches from each of us, as this was clearly expected. We were presented with traditional bracelets and 2 clay pots made in the village – and were then made to dance with the villagers. (This naming ceremony is usually carried out when a child is 8 days old. If a child dies before this, then the child is not mourned, as s/he did not have a name and therefore did not exist.)

We were invited to look around the health and educational facilities of the village, meeting a wonderful nurse who has been working at the village’s clinic for 13 years. Apparently, malaria is still the biggest health issue, even though this is largely preventable. Unlike a number of the northern villages, Torgome has electricity and a water supply, although the health and educational facilities are absolutely basic. Some images of the naming ceremony are shown below.

Akosombo Dam and Lake Volta

The earth dam at Akosombo was built in the 1960’s and has created the world’s largest artificial lake. The hydro-electric power station provides the major part of Ghana’s electricity. Once Nkrumah realised the Americans were keen on the project, so that they could extract and profit from the bauxite (aluminium ore) in the excavations, he tried to take more control of the project for Ghana. According to local historians, the CIA then backed the coup d’etat that removed Nkrumah from power in 1966. Things don’t change, do they!

Wli waterfalls

Whilst in the Volta region, we went up country to the border with Togo. This area of the country was part of German Togoland until 1919. Whilst there, we visited Wli Falls, the highest waterfall in West Africa - and the water was flowing!

Tafi Atome Monkey reserve

We paid a delightful visit to the village of Tafi Atome, where the sacred monkeys have a sanctuary in the local forest. Our guide, John, took some bananas and, as we approached a particular area, he started to call the monkeys... and lo and behold they appeared.

He introduced us to the King of the Mona monkey troop and then we used the bananas to get them feeding from our hands. He explained the tradition surrounding the monkeys. The people of the area originally came from the West of Ghana. As they travelled they prayed to their gods, and the monkeys escorted them all the way to Tafi Atome. This led the people to believe that the monkeys were the messengers of the gods, protecting them. There are currently shrines to the gods in the forest, and rituals are still carried out by the traditional believers. However, most people in the area have become Christians, and they started to destroy the forest and kill the monkeys during the 1980s. The reserve was set up in 1996 to protect the forest and monkeys, and to ensure that all income from the reserve goes to the local community and is also used to maintain the reserve.

The Du Bois Memorial

From the Volta Region, we travelled south again. In Accra we visited the W.E.B. du Bois Memorial Centre and Mausoleum. This guy was a key founder of Pan Africanism, being the first black person to gain a PhD from Harvard University. In the 1940s, he brought Nkrumah, Kenyatta and others together, in order to plan for the independence of all African countries. Du Bois was brought to live in Ghana in his 90’s, after independence, and was eventually buried in Accra. He clearly had a huge influence on Nkrumah and, like a number of leaders in the 40s – 60s, he was deemed to be a dangerous communist by the CIA.

Kakum National Park

This is a magnificent piece of tropical rain forest, with a spectacular canopy walk that Haydn relished. These amazing wood and rope bridges enable people to walk amongst the tree tops, at 30 – 40 metres above the ground. For those who know Linda’s fear of heights, it will not surprise you to know that she settled for the nature walk.

Slave Castles

We have spent some time exploring the slave castles of Cape Coast and Elmina. Obviously we have learned much about the slave trade over the years. We have seen exhibitions, memorials and remnants of the slave trade in Liverpool/Bristol and in Jamaica/USA. Now, to complete the "triangle" on the West African coast is a great privilege. However, it isn't easy to stomach the injustice done to human beings over nearly 400 years. Approximately 25 million people from West Africa were taken to the Americas, and countless others died in slave raids, or in the slave castles or on the slave ships. To walk through the dungeons to the “door of no return”, through which enslaved African people passed onto the ships, is very moving.

It is good to see the reverse of the door now saying the “door of return”. Each year a Black American and Jamaican family are invited to bring the ashes of their ancestors back to Cape Coast for final burial in their ancestral homeland.

The beautiful setting of the castles is in sharp contrast to the horrors that went on within them.

This quote from the House of Ghanaian Chiefs is inscribed on a plaque on the wall of Cape Coast Castle:

In Everlasting memory of the anguish of our ancestors.
May those who died rest in peace.
May those who return find their roots.
May humanity never again perpetuate such injustice against humanity.
We, the living, vow to uphold this.