Strike- Extra!

By Thursday 28^th March teachers had returned to work.

But the children hadn’t.

I visited three schools during the day. I watched an impromptu game of football between the male pupils at Lamboya primary and junior, while the laughter of girls shaded from the heat in a classroom echoed along the empty verandah. Boys at Tanga village school were washing the teachers’ motorbikes at the school bore hole. Teacher Bartholomew, with 95 children on his Primary 2 registers (one each for boys and girls) was looking at a class of five. I seized the opportunity to catch up with data collection and analysis, following our screening programmes.

It would seem that the children were now On Strike!

Strike.

Teachers’ strike

Since Monday 13^th March all teachers in the government schools belonging to the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) and the sister NAGRAT (National Association of Graduate Teachers) have been on indefinite strike

The timing of the strike- over a long running dispute concerning the non-negotiation of new pay proposals by the government, a freeze on increments since 2010 and other delays in payments- was deliberate, coinciding with the public exam period, when Junior High School pupils, at the end of 9 or more years of education take their Basic Education Certificate Exam (BECE), (success securing a place at Senior High School) while the Senior High School (SHS)students take the West African Secondary School Certificate Exam (WASSCE). (The WASSCE- a commonly managed exam across the Anglophone countries of West Africa is taken prior to higher or tertiary education application.) SHS head teachers have drafted in cooks and janitors to invigilate the WASSCE exams to avoid disrupting the schedule for students.

After two days, TEWU- the Teachers and Education Workers Union- representing administrative and support staff joined the dispute. All government schools across the country either closed or were barely functioning.

In a non-scientific, extremely partial straw poll of opinions, I spoke with some teachers I have been working with in Zebilla, to gain some understanding of the issues.

Pay continues to be a key issue- the much quoted “Our take home pay doesn’t take us home,” recurring. There are references to the low status of teachers, of the job being the last choice, not the first, for capable secondary high school and university graduates.  There are comparisons with health workers, nurses etc- also not highly paid, but with better pay, and in recent years improved working conditions which saw a surge in applicants for Nursing College places among young students. I was told teachers are paid a small “retention increment” while health staff are paid a higher “management premium.” While qualified teachers receive a salary, schools in the poorer north are largely staffed by unqualified Youth Employment Teachers, Pupil Teachers and Volunteer teachers, who are supposed to receive a regular small allowance for their services. One young Youth Employment teacher in Zebilla said there had been no money for a whole year. Newly qualified teachers with a Diploma in Basic Education “have not been placed on their correct salary scale… for almost a year.”

Underlying pay  and  poor conditions of service:- which for teachers in northern Primary classes can mean pupil numbers up to 100, a classroom with no furniture and few books or other resources, kindergarten classes taught under a tree;-low teacher morale is driving the resolve to support the strike. Teaching is regularly viewed as a “stepping stone” into another better paid, better respected profession.  Of the 10,000 who leave teaching annually, a third moves to the financial sector. And as only 9,000 teachers are trained each year, the current shortfall in teacher numbers, around 80,000 according to GNAT figures, will not be rectified.

After a week union leaders met with President John Mahama, discussed their grievances and as assurances were given, recommended to the area representatives that the strike action be suspended. Schools  began returning to normal activity by Wednesday 27^th March.

The GNAT President, Solomon Doe Alodia told Citi News, “we have presented four main issues to government and as we speak now three of those issues are being addressed seriously. The only one that was not addressed we are supposed to meet the Fair Wages and Salary commission and begin negotiations.”

“Apart from that we have received two thirds of what we presented and we are grateful. If our concerns are not addressed on time we will revert our course,”

Independence Day 3

Soldiers in ceremonial dress parade the flag before the dignitaries.

Army cadets- including a significant number of women, and lead by a woman commander, observe the dignitaries as they march past.

Independence Day 2

A hundred children costumed simply in T shirts and carrying ribbons of the Ghanaian colours danced their routines with energy and joy. 

The uniformed school pupils, some in the tan and brown of the government schools, others in lemon, bright blue, banana yellow, emerald green or scarlet of the private schools of Christian or Muslim faith took their turn to march around the field, some adopting particular gestures or signals denoting peace, friendship or cooperation. 

In the centre of the field the band continued to play, the army cadets held position, an occasional individual collapsing in the heat and ushered into a waiting ambulance.

As the silver band plays, a pair of boots and a cap remain on the field, their owner  ushered into an ambulance after collapsing in the heat.

The various leaders addressed the crowd, Christian, Muslim and traditional African prayers were said, the army saluted and closed the event, then all slowly left the field to continue celebrations or return to the normal work of the day.

Independence Day- 6th March

Independence Day

On Wednesday 6^th March 2013, Ghana celebrated its 56^th birthday.

Ghana was the first African country in the British Commonwealth to gain post war independence. Although a quick scan through the record of elections, coups and changes of leadership suggest crises and upheavals, modern Ghana is a largely peaceful country with the last general election, in December 2012, conducted peacefully. (The resulting victory for the incumbent NDC continues to be contested by the main opposition party, the NPP.)

Aside from the official celebrations in Accra, throughout Ghana, local events, some prepared over weeks and months, take place both during the day time and into the evening.  Schools take pride in training pupils to march smartly, with daily rehearsals commencing two weeks in advance, with skilled drummers among their numbers.

Children from Zebilla Primary rehearse, class by class, on the parade ground in front of the school- known locally as the "field."

Drummers maintain a steady rhythm from 8 am until around 10 am each day during the rehearsal period.

District Assemblies- rather like our local councils in the UK- organize an annual parade to take place at a stadium, sports’ field or similar gathering place. Funding is provided to transport 30-40 chosen pupils from each local school to the venue.

As I am on vacation in Elmina, with visiting daughter Rosie, I take advice on where and when to watch the nearest parade. Acting on instructions, we are up and ready promptly, and deposited at an almost empty football field before 8 am, the time stated on the Programme of Events. 

The parade ground- once filled and ready for action.

Over the next 90 minutes a steady stream of participants arrive:- school pupils and teachers, army cadets, musicians from a silver band, soldiers, uniformed support from the police, ambulance and fire services plus women elegantly balancing baskets and cool boxes on their heads, ready to sell fried snacks, sweets and “ess pia watta” (iced pure water) to the gathering audience. I assumed a predictable pattern to events, all knowing where to stand and patiently wait. As temperatures rose I was thankful we were seated, and shaded under a long row of portable gazebos lined with rows of folding chairs.

Wailing of police car sirens alerted all to the arrival of the dignitaries, representing the civic and the traditional. The heads of the District Assembly, Education and Health services, the Chief of Police, the principle Elder or local Chief and the Queen Mother took their places on a raised covered stage draped with the red, gold and green of the Ghana flag.

The silver band played the national anthem, the army cadets marched in formation, the soldiers presented ceremonial swords, the Ghana flag was raised: all was done with a formality and precision familiar to a British observer, but with a rhythmic, lyrical, dance-like execution. 

Zebilla as a tourist 4

Although lives are busy, seven days a week, there is time for fun with children- this baby is loaded into Rosie's bicycle basket!

A tro-tro- on the main road in Zebilla, loading up ready to go to Bolga. All excess cargo- including the goats, is piled onto the roof.

After six`days in Zebilla, we packed the rucksacks and left in a tro-on the first part of our road journey down to Accra, then along the coast westwards to Elimina.
The tro constitutes the regular bus service between Zebilla and its neighbouring towns of Bawku to the east and Bolga to the west.
Vans wait until they are full- meaning carrying up to twenty passengers- although small children and live fowls are not counted as such. En route they will frequently either break down, or need a change of tyre, the drivers efficiently doubling as mechanics. The tarmac road between Zebilla and Bolga is in a poor state, each vehicle picking out its own best way around the potholes using the full width and the rough tracks at the sides.

Zebilla as a tourist 3

The dance troupe- three men, four boys, plus a woman accompanying the musicians. Additional percussive shakers are tied around the ankles.

One engagement was made in advance, with a troupe from a neighbouring village, Boya, which regularly performs traditional West African dance and music at weddings and funerals.  While singing simple messages of living a good life, men and boys danced to complex and changing rhythms, with much energetic foot stamping and highly athletic body gestures, the women occasionally joining in. We were seated near to the Elder of the extended family, and next to his two beautifully dressed wives, while the rest of the family and later returning school children gathered to watch, applaud and share food and water.

Musicians from Boya- two percussive players, and one single string violin type instrument.

One boy performs- the chief's two wives can be seen in the background.

When individuals were invited to perform, the women joined in- with equal strength and with grace.

Never too young to start- one of the dancers attaches the percussive beads to his son's leg.

Zebilla as a tourist 2

Rosie tries on her sundress, while Grace folds her second dress,  and Love, Grace's daughter, prepares her mobile phone to take a photo.

In the market- serving palm nuts at Fatima's space.  (Yams in the background)

Rosie adds onions to the pot,  Fati grinds chilli peppers, garlic and tomatoes to make a  paste,  Mouda fans the charcoal to increase the heat of the fire, and Wassila watches and learns.

Ready to share a meal with my work counterpart, Haruna, his wife  Haleema and daughter Hassana.

The children I have come to know were delightful, and keen to greet the new “Nasallah” (white person), though a little crestfallen, expecting Rosie to be a young child they could play with, not an adult.

Small details of daily routines I accepted as normal needed explanation.

 Fluttering noises across the zinc roof overhead were guinea fowl. Grunting or crunching meant pigs, goats or donkeys were eating the dried remnants of crops immediately outside our windows. Strange huffing sounds came from billy goats as they attempted to mount and mate with the females. The electricity, phone network and internet will function for most, but not all the time. Water is precious, to be used sparingly. Absolutely everybody will greet, will stop and ask after your health. Socializing is also conducted via the mobile phone, any time from dawn onwards being acceptable.  At the market, a shop or a food stall, ask, “What do you have?” and not “I want….” Whenever there is a problem, explain your difficulty, then trust, as collectively a solution will be found. Do not use a watch- judge time by the length of shadows, plan activities by the day, not the hour.

Zebilla as a tourist

Eric- our taxi driver -ready to collect Rosie at Tamale airport.

Zebilla, a market town on the main road from Bolgatanga linking Bawku with the Burkina Faso border, is not on anybody’s tourist trail.

Everybody has their purpose, their work, their function- for some principally to get through the day finding enough to eat. Therefore visiting Zebilla means either watching or joining in: this was our experience as my older daughter, Rosie, came to visit for five days.

From the saddles of our bicycles Zebilla’s people, domestic animals and landscapes could be seen, observed and appreciated.”Joining in” meant buying food on the street, choosing fabric and visiting the seamstress for discussion, measurement and later a dress fitting, serving at the market, learning to cook Ghanaian style and sharing family meals with typical hospitality and generosity.

Fresh oranges are shaved of their zest, their lids removed, and then enjoyed as a refreshing snack.