Fertile Ground

Thursday June 3rd 2010

Akpafu Odomi is a charming mountain side community, approximately 2000 individuals in size, in the heart of the Volta region. Because of its geographic location, it is blessed with both fertile soils and heavy rains. Community members harvest rice, maize, cassava, cocoa, groundnuts, banana, oranges, grapefruit, coconut, and various types of vegetables. During my stay, I was able to join farmers in going to the field nearly everyday. During the first two days, I worked closely with a rice farmer named Charlotte.

It all started with an invitation to visit the community’s nearby rice plot. Early in the morning, we made our way from Charlotte’s home to the rice field, following a winding dirt path through the forest. She assured me that the field was nearby, yet I was surprised to see that the field, a 40 minute walk from her home, fell into the ‘nearby’ category.

Once we arrived, Charlotte insisted that I stand at the edge of the field. She was under the impression that I should just look at the field— not actually do any work. Of course, I was under the impression that I hadn’t just walked 40 minutes in the beating sun to get a visual on a +5 acre rice field.

I was frustrated that I had inadvertently wasted Charlotte’s time, and also that my interest in farming wasn’t being taken seriously. Charlotte was very against me farming– she thought the idea was ridiculous and that I was crazy for wanting to participate. I insisted that I join her on the next occasion that she would be farming, and after some debate, I was able to convince her that I was in fact willing and able to help.

The next day we again made our 40 minute trek to the field. Little did I know that our outing was about to become a memorable adventure. Less than 10 minutes after arriving, the skies opened up and we were greeted by a full on African rainstorm. My clothes felt instantly soaked. Charlotte cut down a huge banana leaf that I used as a makeshift umbrella, and not wanting to appear like too much of a whimp, I agreed to continue on with what we had set out to accomplish. In moments like this one– walking along the shoulder of a bumpy Ghanaian back road in a torrential downpour, in size too large rubber boots, with a banana leaf umbrella, life strikes the perfect balance of hilarious and challenging.

The valley where the rice is planted is very swampy– great for a high yield, not so hot for human locomotion. Wading through the swamp, with each step your foot is immersed in thick clay-like mud that requires a few shimmies before being set free. At first I was all smiles, laughing with Charlotte as we made our way through the mud. Gradually though, as the novelty of the mud wore off, I realized that it was zapping all of my energy– it took a lot of effort to move through the swampy environment and I quickly became tired. Combined with the constant threat of falling on your bottom, travelling through rice fields is both an exhilarating and exhausting experience.

I was quite relieved when we reached our desired location and we were able to take a break from moving. The break was short-lived, though, as Charlotte began transplanting the seedlings and weeding the field simultaneously. Because I was just learning the ropes, I stuck with transplanting the rice. This was quite straightforward: grab a seedling, dig a small hole in the mud with your finger, and insert the roots. I learned that it’s all about the spacing– neat and tidy rows with evenly spaced stalks. I thought I had it in the bag, only to notice at later inspection that my lines were totally askew. Regardless, I was very proud of my work at the end of the day.

Charlotte is pushing for change in her farming community. She’s setting an innovative example by taking the risk to plant a new variety of rice seed, and by experimenting with her farming techniques. She is a smart, resilient woman who has the best interest of her family always at the forefront of her mind. It takes only moments to realize that she has an incredible work ethic and is tough as nails. Between taking care of her growing family, planting and harvesting rice three times a year, farming cassava, and acting as treasurer of her church, I left Akpafu Odomi exhausted after just a small glimpse into her life. To say that she inspired me during my stay would be quite an understatement.

Thanks for reading,

Erin

Good Intentions

Thursday May 20th 2010

I’m going on my 1st village stay next week. I’ve asked my counterpart Ben to use his network of friends, family, and colleagues to find a rice farming community nearby that I can stay with. Over the past few days, Ben and I have been traveling around visiting different value chain actors—from farmer based organizations, to small input dealers, to aggregators and everyone in between. Because of our traveling, I’ve already been introduced to a few different farming communities. Having the opportunity to explore many different villages for a short period of time is quite interesting, as it has given me the opportunity to compare how different groups of people live their lives. At this point I’m looking forward to immersing myself in one community for a week to gain a much deeper understanding of rural livelihoods.

I recently read an EWB article discussing the village stay experience. It stated that being in a village and passively learning from your surroundings simply isn’t enough; you should have clear intentions and learning objectives defined before arriving to both maximize your learning experience and to clarify for others why you’re there.

There are two components to my learning objectives for my village stay:

1) To obtain a realistic introduction to the realities of rice farmers in the Volta region

2) To gain a deeper understanding of Ghanaian family structures and dynamics

I’ve decided to post these objectives up on my blog so that I’m accountable to both topics—I’ll likely post on both of these after my stay.

As for a general life in Ghana update: I’ve moved into a compound home on the outskirts of Hohoe. I’m living surrounded by five other families, complete from elderly grandmothers all the way to all to little children. In addition to all of these people, the compound is also home to a herd of goats, and a few roosters and chickens. As if all of those things don’t make enough noise, someone always has the radio on blasting Ghana’s latest beats for everyone to enjoy. Needless to say my new home is a busy (and often noisy) place—but more than that, it’s a comfortable place to call home.

I’ve added pictures to my Flickr feed of my new home, so be sure to check them out.

Thanks for reading,

Erin

Eyes Wide Open

Tuesday May 11th 2010

I’ve been in Accra for approximately 48 hours. In that small amount of time, I’ve said goodbye to 15 beautiful JFs heading to Tamale, had a crash course in the Ghanaian language Twi, visited the busy Madina Market on my own, and spent a day at the ACDI/VOCA ADVANCE office in Accra.

Ghana is very different from Canada.  The air is dense and hot, and the pace of life is quite fast– taxis are zooming around, narrowly avoiding accidents, and using their horns quite liberally as a means of communication. There are tons of noises and smells wafting around me that I’m not used to, and I’m getting way more attention than I feel comfortable with. Thankfully, people are very friendly and willing to help me out when I have questions.

Navigating Madina Market on my first full day in country was no small challenge. In the spirit of pushing my comfort zone, I was dropped off at the entrance to the market by my coach, given a list of incidental items to look for, and was on my way. Some of the vendors I interacted with included a woman and her daughter at their vegetable stand, three women selling fabric, a family run shoe shop, and a small hybrid stand both offering haircuts and selling phone units. Along the way, I ran into quite a few people dancing and celebrating, heard a lot of people calling me obruni (white person), and was hissed at several times. Some of the most surprising sights included several bowls filled with tiny crabs crawling around, large chunks of meat/ animal hide being periodically doused with water, and the incredible amount of imported rice being sold everywhere. Most of the rice seems to be imported from Thailand, China, and the US.  Overall the market was a positive experience and I’m looking forward to heading back sometime soon.

This week I am spending most of my days being introduced to the ADVANCE team in Accra, and working with my coach and her colleagues to learn more about market facilitation, knowledge management, and systems thinking. This is allowing for my thinking to become more sophisticated, and I’m really enjoying the challenge. Overall I think that what I’m learning for my in-country training will allow me to be a better detective during my placement. As a bonus, the ADVANCE office is beautiful, and is likewise filled with lots of lovely people!

My true placement begins on Thursday. I’ll be based out of Hohoe district in the Volta region working with ASRuD. ASRuD is currently involved in 5 value chains: rice, maize, soya, pineapple, and mango. On Thursday I’ll travel to Ho to visit the ASRuD regional office, and to meet a few of their managers.  On Friday I’ll then head to Hohoe to meet my counterpart Benedictus and begin the 2nd stage of my  placement. Over the weekend I’ll be setup with a place to stay and settle into life in Hohoe.  Stay tuned for more posts on how things pan out for me in the Volta region!

Thanks for reading,

Erin

Note: I’m gradually updating my Flickr site with pictures, so be sure to check out the images at the bottom of this page!