It's a small world

 

Working in Ghana, in development, is truly an international experience.

A one day strategy discussion, involving 14 people,  with VSO Ghana programme staff and volunteers working in collaboration across several disciplines  found me sharing ideas and debating with men and women from Ghana, the UK, Canada, the Philippines, Uganda, Kenya and Romania.

Later, stopping at the Tasty Food  café for a snack, I fell into conversation with a volunteer from Estonia, working with a small charity sponsoring individual children into education.

The multilingual abilities of colleagues from other countries continue to shame me, as I struggle to grasp the basics of Kusaal, the African language spoken locally in Zebilla.

 

A  treat to send home: while on a walk one evening, when rain was threatening, a beautiful rainbow peeped within a funnel shaped cloud.

Welcome to Zebilla 5

A short walk from the house. Plots of land are cultivated as subsistence or market garden produce. In the background, the hills of the Burkina Faso border.

Welcome to Zebilla 4

Homes are in clusters, and planning seems to be organic, related to streams and higher ground, with no grid system of streets or lanes. Initially this is confusing as everywhere “looks the same” but within a few days the inner compass takes control and small details become guiding landmarks.

 

Compound and swept yard opposite our house

 

A walk of a few minutes takes me onto the smaller back road of Zebilla, overlooking the town and the distant hills bordering Burkina Faso.

With minimal traffic, only motor bikes and occasional three wheeled vehicles pulling a cart, and all negotiating the dirt road, the pace is slow, passing company plentiful and greetings the universal custom.

As volunteers we are aware we are generously catered for, with a bedroom each, fresh tap water and electricity, an indoor bathroom with a shower (cold) and two fridges in the kitchen. The traditional homes have none of these facilities and large families occupying each compound.

Welcome to Zebilla 3

A view of our house from the pathway. It is currently the rainy season, so the vegetation is lush. Maize grows in the fore ground.

Welcome to Zebilla 2

Emma and Nicole, my housemates, waiting to start our meal. Keen students of etiquette will not the lace umbrella style cover over the bread-  lovely accessory left by previous volunteers.

Welcome to Zebilla: Gateway to the north

Welcome to Zebilla: Gateway to  Bawku in the north and from there to the borders with Burkina Faso and Togo- ie a town on the main road.

As the map in the VSO office shows, my placement is located in the far north east of Ghana, away from the main towns and more densely populated and developed south, and connected by a small network of partially made roads.

 

 

The house I share with fellow volunteers Emma, from Blackburn, Lancashire, and Nicole, from Ottawa, Canada is a concrete bungalow with a tin roof, typical of the modern style of construction. We live among a mix of similar structures and traditional compound style homes made from local materials, such as the extended family home directly opposite our kitchen window.

 

 

A HA 4

 

6 new volunteers, from the UK and Canada with four current volunteers with VSO Ghana.

The relative luxuries of a decent hotel, hot water showers, free wi fi and air conditioning were appreciated by all during the 6 days of training.

For Helen, Nicole and I, luxury did include a decent sized reclining seat each with adequate leg space for the 16 hour ride from Accra to Bolgatanga- about 300 miles along partly made roads. The benefits of generous seating space were somewhat diminished by ambitious amounts of luggage and cargo, including three office sized photocopiers placed in the underneath trunk, the entire aisle packed with boxes, parcels and suitcases while any smaller bags, including full sized rucksacks, were to be stowed around the passenger.

Although there were two designated stopping places, as the second sounded like a most uncomfortable “Comfort Break” (a wall, described as a urinal, unlit), for me there was only one.  The take-out meal of chicken and fried vegetable rice carried back to the bus and eaten out of a Styrofoam container was tasty and filling. And then, as the afternoon sun gave way to sudden darkness and gazing out at the African scenery was over for the day, the on -board entertainment began: two morality tale films, a Nigerian story of marital infidelity without the graphic details, a second from Ghana concerning an employee wrongly accused of stealing money were followed, inexplicably, by a Van Diesel gun-toting extravaganza. Then it was midnight- time for quiet, I wrongly thought. For the rest of the journey we had rousing gospel music.

A 4 am arrival at Bolga, several hours sleep at a volunteers house, then back in another taxi, arranged by Emma, our lovely house mate, for the last one hour drive, the car climbing over the many potholes in the road from Bolga to Zebilla.

 

A HA 3

Accra from the hotel balcony.

 

 

The first six days passed so quickly. Then it was time for “farewell” to newly found friends, as we separated with our VSO escorts, to begin the final parts of our journeys.  Thankfully, both safety and a reasonable degree of comfort dictate that tickets are bought for the luxury end of the coach market  and not Ghana’s version of the Megabus. 

A HA 2

Accra from the taxi window.

My name’s Alan Partridge-Knowing me, knowing you- A HA

Accra, the capital city of Ghana is pronounced AccRA- ( as in a HA), not ACCra- as in “sacre (bleue)”.

And so began  my first lesson of the week of In Country Training- or ICT- run by VSO for all new volunteers. The week’s emphasis was on learning and preparation, not sightseeing.  I am one of six arrivals, and coupled with four seasoned volunteers who hosted the week and ran some of the workshops, the collective team ‘s impressive range of skills and experiences in public, private and “third”/charity and voluntary sectors, plus previous volunteering roles made for a bracing mix of optimism and idealism blended with down to earth realism and plenty of good humour.

Staff from VSO Ghana and additional tutors ran other sessions, on the country’s history and politics, cultures and religions and VSO practices for working in development.

Although English is the official and widely used language, at least 46 African languages and 76 dialects are spoken.  Four tutors appeared for our language sessions.  Nicole and I, who are placed in Zebilla, near Bolgatanga in the Upper East region, were coached in Kusaal to engage in basic phrases of greeting and introduction.  Up to now I have managed to remember “Fu be be” which translates as “Good Morning”, responding “La fu be,” and “Mam yuri a Janice.”

 

 

Fellow volunteer, Nicole and me with our language tutor, Osman,

Down-town Accra was mostly seen through windows of taxis or the much cheaper “tro-tro” minibuses.  The vehicle would speed, or crawl, depending on traffic volume, down a three line carriageway carrying the main ring road over markets and settlements, then suddenly turn off onto an unmade red dirt track. An impression of smart offices, shops and occasional hotels  would be succeeded by small wooden trading booths, tended open fires roasting ground nuts, sweet corn, meat and other tasty snacks, and road-way traders,  walking along the carriageway whenever  traffic halted, elegantly balancing all manner of food, soft drinks, clothing and household items on heads and across arms.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gorgeous fabric

The first week in Ghana is taken up with necessary In Country training. This allows for some initial preparation for living and working in a completely new environment.

While it must be taken as a given that I will take all sessions seriously and use the time sensibly, during yesterday morning’s workshop I was slightly distracted by the beautiful dress worn by the trainer, a volunteer from the UK called Irene. She was wearing a locally made, tailored fitted knee length dress, cut in a “western” style but made from a fabulous African print fabric, and she looked great.

Happily, the later part of the afternoon was scheduled for a visit to the market. Irene urged the new volunteers to take the opportunity to browse the many fabric stalls and possibly choose some material. Clothes can be made up, by a tailor, using local patterns or a design printed off the internet.

After cutting through the chaos of the open market we found the quieter area of fabric stalls and garment making booths, and each of us made our purchase of gorgeous fabric.

(This picture shows a mother working at her sewing machine in one of the booths while her children look on.)

After cutting through the chaos of the open market we found the quieter, covered area of fabric stalls and garment making booths, and each of us made our purchase of gorgeous fabric.

 

Buying fabric in the indoor market.

We were somewhat amused by the comedy poster at a main public location, Circle Nkrumah. (Named after Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of independent Ghana)

 

 

In praise of good teachers

While preparing to leave for Ghana, where I will be supporting and training teachers, being on the receiving end comes as a refreshing reminder of the value, beyond price, of a good teacher.
A big thank you goes to Paul, my MOTAG motorcycle instructor based at the Crystal Palace Sports Centre.
After decades working with pupils who have various learning disabilities, struggling with the technicalities of handling a motorcycle put me firmly in the "special needs" category for this skill. But, blessed with an extremely patient and highly capable teacher I have managed to establish a foundation level of competence.
All that is needed now is lots and lots of practice- which has already been arranged with Emma, who will be my VSO house mate and fellow motor-cycling volunteer in Zebilla.