A Trip of Firsts

• First trip to la Côte d'Ivoire
• First ride in a police car
• First time being deported

One of our classes this semester is ‘Regional Integration’ where we learn about the integration processes of African countries, particularly the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). ECOWAS is supposed to enable free movement of goods, services and people in West Africa, so we decided to cross the border to la Côte d’Ivoire (CI) to see how this process occurs. In addition, CI had a post-election crisis in 2010 which resulted in a war between supporters of the winning President Outtara and the previous President Gbagbo.  Some of us are taking a course in ‘Conflict Resolution’ so the trip would also allow those of us taking that course to see a country in its post-crisis stages and meet some of those affected.

The trip started on Thursday when we left Accra to see some sites in Ghana before heading to Abidjan in CI. We stopped in Cape Coast to see one of the largest forts on the West African coast where slaves were shipped to the Americas. We travelled on to the birthplace of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president at the time of independence. On Friday we went to an Ivorian refugee camp where supporters of Gbagbo have been forced to flee to. It was an incredibly sad place with approx. 7000 people living and schooling under UNHCR tents and surviving off of WFP food donations of rice, oil, and beans.  The president of the camp was previously a lawyer in CI, lost all his possessions including his law certificates and was forced to abandon his comfortable life in CI to live under a tent with a dirt floor in a refugee camp in Ghana.  Another man arrived at the camp only to see the person who killed his daughter, which obviously created a lot of challenges in the camp.

From the camp we went to the Ivorian border, which is where all the trouble began. The Ghanaian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (where 15 of our classmates have come from as part of their training before being posted abroad) arranged the bus for our travel and provided us with a letter and invitation to give to the Ivorian authorities whenever we met them. Because of this letter, I was told I wouldn’t need a visa to enter. Apparently this was not the opinion of the Ivorian border agents who said I needed a visa and it was passed the time that I could buy one at the border. As such, they put me in a police car and deported me back to Ghana. I was even recorded in their official book of deportation. This was even after multiple calls with senior staff at Ghana’s mission in CI. Fortunately our classmate who is from CI called her father who is a General in the Ivorian army who was able to call the head of the border staff and instructed that they let me enter. Although I was already in Ghana, they told me to come back where the police picked me up, this time bringing me back to my waiting classmates and our bus in CI. Shortly after we were off to Abidjan.

Côte d’Ivoire is quite different from Ghana, though many of their ethnic groups and local dialects are the same.  A series of civil wars has really affected the country, and this is quite clear by the mannerisms of many of the security officials we met. After every few kilometres there is a police or military checkpoint. At each of these stops we were met with hostility by the officials who were quite apprehensive about ‘foreigners’ (even the Ghanaians) travelling in CI. It was explained to me that much of the gendarmerie is comprised of illiterate ‘rebels’ who were absorbed into police or military forces during the reconciliation process. Sadly, those who were not brought on board still roam about, bringing sporadic disturbances and violence with them.

Abidjan is an interesting place. It is better than Accra in that it has closed gutters, making sanitation in that respect quite a bit better. It is said that Ghana has a trash problem – but in CI it is even worse. There are a number of waterways that separate parts of Abidjan from others. Large boats ply many routes, taking people to various parts of the city which I expect reduces a lot of traffic on the roads. There are some magnificent buildings like the national theatre, but at the same time there are many impressive structures that have not been maintained (even in the city centre) - probably another result of constant political turmoil. The food (probably my favourite part about travelling) uses the same ingredients as Ghanaian food, but prepared in completely different ways. For example, one of their main local dishes, Attiéké, is prepared from cassava and looks a lot like couscous. It is eaten with onion and tomato stew, hot pepper, and one of the tastiest fish I have ever eaten. Plus they have French baguettes and croissants which were a great change from what is available in Ghana.

On the whole the trip was a good one. We went for educational purposes and I really learnt a lot - especially to listen to my own advice and always get a visa before travelling to another country.

                                                         Ivorian Food: Attiéké

Car Wash Fundraiser

This past weekend I decided to bring the Canadian "classic" car wash fundraiser to Ghana. With a few of my friends from LECIAD, we got out our soap, buckets and rags and washed cars to raise funds for the computer lab project I'm working on in Bobikuma. On Friday we started at a campus 'lecturer hang-out/drinking spot' and announced the project and asked if we could wash their cars. Most were quite supportive, and a number even gave us money without us washing their cars. That was the best.

Saturday we continued the car wash at one of the graduate student hostels, despite staying up late the night before dancing and eating kebabs at the GRASAG (grad students association) 'bonfire' (there was no fire, so I'm not sure why it was called that...or maybe I got the name wrong). We weren't as financially successful with the students, resorting to washing some cars by force in some cases, but we did make enough cash to contribute to the project.

The computer lab is nearly finished - we are basically left to build the desks and put in the computers. The computers are arrived and in the Rotary Centre warehouse in Tema. I should be able to pick them up in the next couple of weeks after a short 'handing over' ceremony.  Will post pics of that soon!

Off to Côte d'Ivoire for a LECIAD class trip this weekend...and the following month marks my last month of classes. While I'm enjoying my classes for the most part, I'm really looking forward to focussing more of my time on my dissertation work which has, unfortunately, fallen to the wayside a bit lately. I'm sure if Becky and Lindsey read this they'll be chuckling, knowing it never fell and instead hardly took off ;-)

56th Independence Day in Ghana

Independence Day

Yesterday marked Ghana’s 56^th year of independence from colonial rule.  As such, I asked two Ghanaians a few questions about Ghana and Independence Day. Here is what they had to say.

1.    When you were in grade school, what did you do for Independence Day?

M: We went to march at the stadium to commemorate the event. We competed against other schools and the best marchers were given a special reception.

F: We were in the house, mostly I sat at home and watched TV. We didn’t do anything. It was only once that I went to watch the marching.

2.    Now that you’re grown how do you celebrate Independence Day? It seems like a lot of people go to the beach – do you also join those excursions?

M: It’s a holiday so we relax, sleep, watch T.V.  I don’t think I’ve been to the beach on 6 March before. Most of my Independence Days have been in places where there’s no beach. This year I don’t have money so I won’t go to the beach.

F: We don’t have a beach in Tamale so I just stay at home and watch T.V.  Once I went to watch the parade at a school programme. 

3.    What does Ghana’s independence mean to you?

M: We are ruling our own country.

F: It means freedom.

4.    How has Ghana improved since independence?

M: People who lived through the system are the best to answer and they even think their days were better than ours. Early days of independence, people were attending school for free and being fed so they feel they had the best at their time. Our population now has gone up so you can’t be looking at the 60s and 70s.  We have moved from the Castle to Flagstaff House which is good because we have moved passed the colonial legacy of being in the  [Osu] Castle.

(Osu Castle was a previous British administration fort and a fort for exporting slaves, located on the coast of Accra. During Kuffuor’s administration Flagstaff House was built to be the new centre for government to move Ghana away from some if its colonial legacies. There was some debate over its construction when the late President Mills took power, so it was not until the recent election of December 2012 when President Mahama came into power that Flagstaff House became the new centre for government, as well as his residence.)

F: Have we improved? We have elections, democracy has improved since independence. We have free press. We used to have curfew and we have freedom of movement. You can now be on radio and insult the president and nobody will arrest you. But we can still do better.

5.    Some people say the British should have stayed longer and that if they had, Ghana would have developed more. What do you think?

M: It’s not true. The British were not saying here and even the places they claimed they developed were purely for commercial interests. If they would have been here Ghana would have been worse off because they would have exploited our resources to their own benefit.

F: They should have stayed longer. There were two schools fighting for independence – Nkrumah wanted it in the shortest possible time and the others wanted in gradually. We could have waited a little bit and maybe we would have been better off. If they would have stayed a bit longer more people could have been educated and learned how to better manage the system at our independence. As it was, very few were literate and even semi-literates were made Ministers…and you know what happened because of that.

6.    Some people think Africa should be compensated for colonialism. Should there be some form of reparation or ‘colonial debt repayment’?

M: I don’t even see why we should need a visa to go to the UK because that country belongs to us.  Our raw materials were used to build their industries. They should give us money not in the form of aid because everyone, even the US who hasn’t colonized us, gets aid. Like the Jews were compensated for the Holocaust, we should be compensated for colonialism. 

F: Who do you pay to? Is it Africans or the Blacks in America? An apology is okay. If they decide to, the money should come to us for Africa’s development

7.    What makes you proud to be a Ghanaian?

M: We are peaceful – we don’t fight.  We were the first country to attain independence in ‘black Africa’.

F: A lot of things – through the dark days we are still one people. We have been through thick and thin together and even though we have disagreements, no matter where you meet a Ghanaian they forget about which part of Ghana you are from and they just acknowledge you as a brother or sister.  We could have done better in 56 years, but we have a leadership problem. But Ghanaians should start being more patriotic and teaching their kids patriotism and we will move forward. There’s still hope.  Long live Ghana, long live Africa.