Some final thoughts from Ghana

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The experiences I have had thus far are probably not what would first come to mind when you talk about working in Africa. As a result, my view of Africa is one that doesn’t often get related back home. It’s one where people are trying to make a living in the same way we are in North America. People still want to live in the city and make money. They want to watch movies, and have a social life. Teenagers want to fall in love and live the fairytale love story just as much here in Africa as I did growing up. They go to school, earn their way to pay for their education if they can and try to get jobs when they graduate. They care about fashion and trends, being stylish shows a level of education and wealth in an even bigger way then in North America. It’s also a game too, because people don’t always need to have money to look smart. Things like cellphones and nice clothes are the first things people buy when they have money because the visual appearance is often judged prior to the inner level of knowledge. It’s like dressing smart for an important interview except that the interview happens everyday. I’ve seen more men dressed in suits coming out of shacks that I can count. It amazes me! To me in part it’s a certain effect of the west bringing our fancy cloths and technology where it shouldn’t necessarily have been yet. I remember thinking when I first arrived that Ghana has skipped steps in development. They go from no phone to cell-phone and completely remove the need for a house phone.

Because of the importance of fashion and taking care of your physical appearance that exists here I had to go out and buy some nice dress clothes because I felt out of place at work and when I was going to the various interviews for the plastic waste research. This is very different then the Lindsay who was planning on coming to Africa and not cutting her hair..it didn’t matter what it looked like..I’m in Africa! Another thing different is the number of baths that Ghanaians take. You need to bath in the morning, and wash down in the evening and if you don’t, heaven forbid. I had a conversation with a good friend of mine and we were discussing the racism that exists in the world. He was talking about a world where he walks past white people and they move away and plug their nose in reference to a smelly black person. He could never understand it because from his experience whites don’t mind going 3 days without bathing, whereas black men are bathing twice a day. The sad part is that he is right. We as whites, have a built in ideology that we are better somehow. That whatever is different then the way we live is somehow less valid. I know I’m generalizing but it exists and I’ve seen it here. To be honest I prefer spending time with the Ghanaians, rather then whites in Ghana. They are honest, realistic and not ashamed or too proud of who they are. I’ll share a small story. Through a colleague from work I met a German man who was helping do some maintenance on some wind turbines that were installed prior to my arrival. He has been living in Ghana for 4 years and even spent some of his childhood in Togo. He invited me out for a drink one evening and I thought it would be interesting to hear his perspective on life in Ghana. The evening we had planned I was spending time with a few Ghanaian friends and he came to meet me there. I introduced him to my friends and we chatted for awhile before he suggested we go. The conversation was about my friend and his dad, who manages a hotel in Ghana. I don’t know exactly why, but I felt very very uncomfortable, and when we had to leave I was ashamed to be seen leaving with him. If I could have changed the situation I would have stayed with my Ghanaian friends. What made it worse, was on the way leaving in the car he started making comments about things my friend said, putting them down in a strange and irritating way. The hardest part is that my friend is one of the more educated people in Ghana. He is going to university and so are his friends. Some of them studied in the states and have traveled enough to have a broader perspective on the world. However, this man seemed content to put them all in a class of uneducated, unimportant lowlifes. Okay…so again I’m generalizing. He didn’t say that but it’s the impression that he gave in the way he was acting and things he was saying. I was so embarrassed that the next time I saw my friend I had to apologize. The worst part was that my friend actually felt that he was being looked down upon but that he was used to it. USED TO IT! Yikes..the whole thing just makes me feel sick.

The best way I can think of describing the situation in Ghana is what it must have been like to live in Canada about 100 years ago, with the difference that the rest of the world was 100 years in the future. Can you imagine our ancestors who were farmers and settlers trying to compete with the level of advanced technology of our current neighbours? This is one of the main problems I think Africa is having in development of its own countries. They no longer have the time or the ability to develop on their own and must receive “support” from the rest of the world. We in the West think that without our help they wouldn’t be able to develop at all. I wonder sometimes, if that’s actually the case. I think the reason we need to help is not because it is our moral responsibility as people who have received in abundance but rather that we are causing them just as many problems as we are helping to solve. For example, the power of the G8 countries is incredible. The decisions our leaders make affect millions of people living in Africa on a regular basis, and these people don’t really have a say in the matter. One case I find hard to handle is the subsidies that western countries place on exported goods. We do it to support our local people which is great, I’m all for helping support local economy. However, the effects of the way in which we are helping are more widespread then we realize. One example is tomatoes. Locally grown tomatoes will go rotten and need to be thrown out if they are not sold fresh because it’s too expensive to can them and compete against the subsidized Italian canned tomatoes. Another example, is American rice. Ghanaians grow local rice and then buy American white rice. Why, because it’s better quality for starters because of the level of processing but also because it’s cheap! The trouble is that without support from the west in changing some of their policies, Ghana is practically unable to make any positive changes on its own.

It’s the separation between classes that I find the hardest to deal with. The poor both urban and rural poor are a much much larger then the educated upper class. However, the educated upper class is the one who has control and who are able to make changes. Unfortunately often the changes that are made better themselves and their class rather then the country as a whole. I need to be careful here in making statements because I am generalizing a lot, and truth be told the same sort of inequality exists in North America as well. However, the majority of the Canadian population is not living below the poverty line.

I’ve decided that poverty is relative. In the field of development where everyone is concerned with how best to help the poor, I think it’s important to wonder what poor actually means. Is the farmer who is just making enough food to feed is family, who has some sort of basic shelter, no electricity and no running water but is healthy, has family and community, and doesn’t go hungry poor? Is the security guard who left his home and family to come and earn a living in the big city but is getting a very low salary, often doesn’t eat because he is trying to save all his money to take a computer course that he thinks will make all the difference in the world for his future but he doesn’t actually understand most of it because is English comprehension is quite low poor? Maybe both are living in poverty, but which one is worse? In development which person should we be helping and how? These are questions I often wonder as I sit in the air conditioned office working with educated Ghanaians who themselves are just trying to make a living. In a place where the West has a lot of power and where the people are quite dependant on this power, what should the role of the West be? What is the role of the OBRUNI? I’ve asked myself these questions but I’ve also asked some Ghanaians as well and I’ve had a variety of answers. Some say continued Aid is needed for poverty to be reduced in Africa. Some say that the money should be invested in setting up factories in Ghana so that Ghanaians can be employed. Some say that money should be invested in private companies that will properly use the funds rather then sending it through a corrupt government. Some say that Africa should try and help itself, that if they focused all their resources on themselves and stopped taking any support from outside they would be better off. In the sense that if they bought local tomatoes instead of canned tomatoes from Italy the farmers would be supported and both parties would be happy. It’s interesting to hear conversations between Ghanaians about the level of poverty and quality of life in Ghana. They are quite passionate about it and don’t hesitate in sharing their views. The most honest response I heard was that Ghanaians are selfish and only thinking of themselves. Until they stop that and start thinking about how their actions effect the rest of the country nothing will change. Someone has to decide that sacrificing their own desires might benefit the good of the entire country. Like for example, refusing to buy better quality American rice and supporting the local farmers in buying their rice. Some of the challenges of development that I’ve discovered since I’ve been here are listed below:
1) Funding - where the money for projects is coming from
2) Motivation of people involved in development
3) Reporting structure that limits the type of work done
4) Poor local structure set up to support any changes that are made
a. Corruption in Government
b. Politics in general as everyone tries to seek the best life for themselves
5) Low education of the majority of the population
6) Influence from the developed world
7) Too many NGO’s and individuals trying to develop Africa that end up competing against each other for resources
I am sure there are more since it depends on perspective and experience what you consider challenging.

So what do I think is the answer for Africa? I’m not going to pretend I have a direct solution but from my experiences here I’m beginning to think that a large portion of the answer lies in education. I often watch the woman carrying goods on their heads to sell at the side of the road and wonder what they are thinking. What motivates them to come day after day and sell a small amount of sachet water or fruits? What occupies their mind as they sit and wait for a customer? Do they ponder life’s big questions or do they concentrate solely on their daily survival? Do they wish that things were different? Do the make plans for the future? I often forget that my perspective on life and the world is very different then the average Ghanaian who has not left their place of birth or sometimes even their village. They haven’t taken classes in world history, or seen documentaries on various countries. Many don’t know about gravity or Newton or evolution and Darwin. Many don’t know that washing your hands with soap is important. I see signboards on the side of the road on a regular basis that say…for truly clean hands always wash with soap! The trouble is that it is in English and the people who most need to hear about washing with soap are those who haven’t been educated and therefore probably don’t understand English and probably don’t even read! Part of my conclusions about education being an important solution to poverty in Africa stems from the work I did on the plastic waste project. From the results of the survey we did it shows that a wide variety of people think that a major reason plastic waste is actually a problem is because of the attitudes of Ghanaians and the lack of education on proper disposal and recycling techniques. This attitude thing too I find is connected to education as well. People would say things like if they don’t throw their plastic waste on the ground then the street cleaners who work for the municipal government won’t have a job. So their littering is creating employment!! I think the only way to influence these types of attitude and perspectives is through education. I don’t think education alone is enough to reduce poverty but I think it’s an important ingredient in helping Ghanaians help themselves. Another thing too is that many Ghanaians see the west or developed world as their saviors. That they need their intelligence, money and support to help fight poverty in Africa because they can’t do it on their own. This attitude or mentality can be seen in the way people relate to Obrunis and I have definitely experienced it first hand. People expect the rich white person to give money! My least favorite part of being here is being approached my small children who call me Obruni and when I wave say..GIVE ME MONEY. Another way of describing this mentality is as a culture of dependency and is something we talk a lot about with Engineers without Borders and is in fact one of the main goals in sending summer students to work in various NGO’s. Hopefully, in working closely with local people in your NGO, and the community in which you stay you will be able to present a different picture of the OBRUNI and perhaps encourage them to believe in their own power to make a difference in their lives. Right now, many people feel that they are helpless to help themselves, that it is only with help from the western world that any positive changes will occur in their country. White people are seen as rich, powerful, intelligient..in fact I’ve even heard the Obruni quoted as being “a walking God” and Canada described as Heaven on Earth. Views that are a bit scary considering that most Canadians would die before spending eternity in a heaven where 5 months of the year you freeze your butt off in -30 C!!! Needless to say, it was shocking to hear these views come from a fellow co-worker who was talking about some of his relatives! The most obvious example of a strange perspective of the white people was a conversation I had with a local shop keeper Emma. I often stop to chat with her for awhile when I am walking past. She lives behind the shop with her Aunt and is currently trying to get the money to go back to school and finish her last year of high school. I don’t know how old she is but she is older then the normal age for high school for sure and I’m guessing is in my age bracket. One day I was walking past on the way home from a funeral and stopped to chat. She asked where I went and when I mentioned a funeral she asked if I cried. I explained that I didn’t really know the person who past away but rather was supporting my friend who lost his uncle. Then she said something about the fact that I must have found it interesting to go to a funeral since “your people don’t die”. Those are direct quotes from her mouth and no..she wasn’t joking. I tried to explain to her that we are both the same…black-white, African-Western. We are all human beings and our lives are both as precious. I don’t think she really believed me at first that Whites actually die, so she asked if I had every lost anyone in my family. I told her yes and that it was hard and that I definitely did cry. Oh sorry..was her reply! I still don’t know what to make of it. I’ve tried to figure out where this perception came from but I can’t make sense of it. I asked a friend of mine and he said maybe it’s that she hasn’t seen a white person die in Ghana so maybe she thinks whites don’t die at all. I don’t know, but for me it’s just another example of the importance of education in removing the dependency on and false perceptions of the West.

The west also has an important role to play in changing the views of Africa. The starving child, and uneducated lowlife view that hinders their growth. Let me just explain something. The view of Africa that gets represented is often from the negative perspective. How poor they are, what they need, etc. I’m not denying that this is the case. Africa is poor. People do go hungry, children starve and are malnourished, people suffer from illness without being able to receive proper medical treatment, access to clean water is a luxury rather a commodity, and education is gift for those who can afford it. Ghana still has a shorter lifespan and are listed 131 on the human development index. However, it’s not always as bad as what these sentences and BBC describes, especially in Ghana. For many, life can be quite comfortable even though more challenging then what our view of comfort might be. Many Ghanaians receive education, have running water, can afford to buy medicine and will go to the hospital at the first sign of pain or illness. Ghana is growing. The level of construction that occurs in Ghana is extremely encouraging. Because of the level of inflation, people spend their money as soon as they get it, so you can see many half finished structures that will eventually turn into residences, and these half finished buildings are everywhere! Step by step more construction will continue as the money is made available. This step by step view is one I think is important for Africa. Step by step things will change and we have to encourage them and think of them as capable of making their own changes rather then unable to do anything without our support. Many Ghanaians see themselves in the same way we see them because of the influence the developed countries have in Africa. If we think they are poor, the will see themselves as being poor regardless of what they actually have. I feel that if they entire world chose to think that Africans could help themselves, they probably would. In this sense, our attitudes and education are just as important as the Ghanaians. We also control a good portion of the funding that comes into Africa, therefore it is our responsibility to make sure the money is being used in a positive way. I’m of the opinion that freebies, especially given through the government, does not inflict the kind of change that needs to happen for the people. There is too much corruption and selfishness of the upper class at the moment and the people don’t have a large enough say, or don’t know how to have a say to make it any different. The world is a funny place right now. In the midst of tragedies like the Tsunami, and terrorism you have to stop and wonder what the world is coming too. Why are these things happening and can we do anything about it? I know these questions are incredibly complex and confusing. Really, there is no right answer..only opinions and I think opinions are really important. Don’t ignore what is happening in the world simply because you and your family are safe. I often wonder why I was blessed to be born in Canada, to a safe and loving family where all my needs were take care of and most of my wants as well, whereas my friends here where born into a place where they had to suffer and overcome a lot of obstacles even just to survive. I’ve realized that I don’t appreciate my life enough. I don’t appreciate my family, my friends, my education and even my health. I really don’t have much to complain about and so I hope now not to. I think the difference between Canada and Africa, is not in the people but the place that people live. Yes we are white, they are black, we are Canadian and they are African; however, we are still all people trying to survive on this planet. I feel it’s that the place we are trying to survive and the circumstances that are necessary to be overcome that create differences. Would a child born in Ghana tomorrow be the same child if they had been born in Canada instead? I hesitate to share these thoughts because I don’t want to breed a sense that everything is circumstantial and that circumstances can’t be changed, because I don’t believe that; I just want to share the sameness of the world and its people. One thing Ghana has taught me, is that if me..a true-born Canadian girl who grew up in a nice family, went to church on Sundays, had three meals if not more a day, went to a good school and did well and had no previous experience with Africa, can come to Ghana and truly connect with the people here regardless of their status level, how different can we be?

It will be interesting to see how much my perspective changes again once I return to Canada which is happening very soon! I expect that I will suffer from what they call “reverse culture shock” although perhaps not as severely as if I’d spent 4 months in a village. Accra has shown me a different view of Africa but it’s one that is much closer to our Canadian society then we’d imagine. However, as one friend of mine told me…Africa is still Africa. I’ve been challenged in ways I wasn’t expecting since I’ve been here, but the biggest is in my own personal views on the world and of myself. I’ve learned a lot about myself in large part due to the complete and direct honesty and straightforwardness of Ghanaians. Some Ghanaians will argue that Africans aren’t honest and will lie and cheat and stab you in the back. However, the majority of people will tell you exactly what they think about you and what they notice. For example, if your weight changes they tell you, if you have a pimple on your face they will ask you about it. Is that a pimple?? Please…just let me forget that I have a red dot on my face okay! It’s taught me incredible lessons about honesty. If you had asked me 4 months okay if I would have considered myself an honest person I would have answered yes. But looking back I good part of me wasn’t. Not that I lied, but rather I just simply didn’t tell all of the truth. I’m not saying we should all go around acknowledging pimples but there is a certain level of freedom that comes from not being ashamed. These lessons are ones that have changed me, and I hope I remember the lessons as I come back to Canada in two weeks time.

There is still a lot to be done here before I go. People to say goodbye to, and last minute experiences to undertake. I will be sad to leave, but I think I’m ready. People don’t want me to leave and tell me that I am a nice Obruni who should marry a Ghanaian and settle here instead of returning to Canada. They all ask me when I will be coming back. Too be honest I don’t know what the future holds for me and so my response is, we will have to wait and see. Could I come back to Ghana? Yes of course I would love to come and see everyone I’ve met. Could I live for a long period of time here? I don’t know. As much as I have integrated into the culture, I still don’t belong. I will still always remain white and no matter how hard I try to erase the perspective of the white people..it will take a long time and a huge attitude shift before people stop looking up to me, the Obruni, and see me on the same level. At times I felt I could work and live here for awhile, but I wonder if that’s what Africa needs. Do they need the white people to come and work here? To keep helping them in a way that is only continuing to show that they know less and we know more? Can we work in a way that supports their own development, rather then leads it? Is this an area where I feel I want to work once I graduate? There are many questions to ask myself and my mind has been contemplating a lot of them as I do certain things for the last time. When I return to Canada next Sunday we will have a few meetings with the other Canadian volunteers who spent the same amount of time in Ghana as I have. Discussions in how to deal with reverse culture shock and what lessons we have learned will be important in changing the experiences in Africa into something valuable both on an individual level but also for North America in general. It will be interesting to see what all the other students are thinking and the experiences they went through.

Sorry this update was so long. I hope you made it through okay and understood all I was trying to say. I’m just hoping to present a picture of things I’ve seen in the short while I’ve been here.

This might be my last update from Africa. I will be finishing work with EnterpriseWorks this week and then I will travel to a local village to stay with a family for the last week. I haven’t had the opportunity to stay for a period of time in the village so I’m looking forward to this experience. I will come back to Accra around the 26th of August and then I fly back to Canada on the 28th. It’s hard to believe that my time here is coming to an end. This won’t be the last time you hear from me as I will probably write an update once I return to Canada just to share my final conclusions and thoughts. Thank you all for your encouragement, thoughts and support and I hope this finds you well!

Last take care from Ghana,

Lindsay

Note: I have received a few comments from people asking for information or wanting to get in touch with me. Unfortunately when you add a comment I have no way of replying as it does not provide any contact information. So if you were looking to get in touch with me there is a small icon on the side of the comments that says get in touch with Lindsay and that send me an e-mail and will provide your e-mail in return. Sorry to those who were waiting to hear and have not!!

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Photos

Road Side Fish Market
I went to a fishing village to a funeral of my friends uncle and we stopped to by some fresh fish from the side of the road.

Funeral dance
This is the typical dance that happens at funeral. A funeral is a weekend event and often involves food and dancing rather then tears and mourning although both happen as well.

Cooking banku
Auntie Esther is cooking banku...my favorites Ghanaian dish. Is made from corn and cassava flour.

Eating Banku
Here I am eating the prepared banku from Auntie Esther on the day of the funeral. It's night and there is no electricity. The only light comes from a few kerosene lamps.

My Seamstress
Cynthia is my seamstress and is making my African dress you'll see in an upcoming dress.

Vida, Me and Nana
I'm sitting with my colleague Mina's daughter, Nana. We were at the reception for Seth and Vida's wedding.

Kumasi Market
This is the main market in Kumasi where I went to do some work on the other stove project EnterpriseWorks is working on.

market view
This is a closer view of the market, you'll find this is te yam and tomato section.

Goods Display
Typical shop keeper display of goods by the street. Check out the american, and asian rice!

Gyapa Woodstove Training
Here I am supervising (?) the training of the stove manufacturers in Kumasi.

Clay Liner Mold
Ken and I are putting together a mold for the maching to make the clay liners for the Gyapa woodstove in Kumasi.

Treadle Pump Repair
For those who knew about the treadle pump project I was initially supposed to work on, this repair work we are doing is about the extent of my work in that area!

Me & Gil
Me and my very protective security guard and friend, Gilbert!

The East Legon Locals
My local shopkeeper friends.

Similar Pic in Colour
My local shopkeeper friends in colour this time. Thought the different from black and white was interesting to see. Emma it the one in the pink!