Ghana: day 1 and 2

I’m back in Ghana! Specifically, I’m going to be spending the next five weeks in Koforidua, which is the capital of Eastern Region. I’m working with Isaac Bruce, a student at Ashesi University, to research the agricultural inputs market in Ghana and develop a plan for how Burro (my dad’s company) can enter the market.

Since arriving on Sunday night, I’ve had a number of exciting and unique experiences, including, but not limited to:

1) A woman in the market grabbing my boob, squeezing it and nodding approvingly before telling me that I was “very beautiful”.

2) Having a mango, banana, orange and pineapple smoothie for breakfast, and having zero foodie-guilt, because all the fruits were produced well within 100 miles of our house.

3) Our neighbor’s chickens flying into our yard, which resulted in a chick falling into our sewer (it’s a concrete trench that goes around the house; the sinks and showers, but not toilets, drain directly into it). The chick was running around and squeaking in a panicked fashion, which caused its mother to run around the corner of our house, almost crash into me, chase me away and then cluck frantically trying to find its chick. Which it did not succeed in doing.

4) Our water almost running out. Dad has installed a 1500 liter tank at the house, which fills when the municipal water is running. Unfortunately, the water has not been running for the past few weeks, and our tank is down to about one day’s worth of water. We’re contemplating getting a water truck to come refill it, but in the meantime, we’ve set out two giant laundry tubs in the hopes that the rainy season will come through and give us enough to bathe with (and in the hopes that the chickens won’t use our water backup as a toilet). I’m beginning to understand the reasons people suggest that municipal systems in developing countries get privatized, because apparently this happens all the time.

5) Attempting to get information from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Ghana. Isaac and I went to their regional office and found three men sitting at desks covered in stacks of papers, without computers. All three men were reading the newspaper. We were told that they could maybe fill out a questionnaire for us, but that they probably couldn’t give us any specific information. The guy we talked to also said that we should pay him a consultant fee, because we were trying to make money off of our research.

6) Seeing the motorcade for President John Atta-Mills, who was visiting Koforidua today. Dad got way more excited about this than any of the Ghanaians.

7) NOT GETTING SICK! I’ve had two restaurant meals and eaten a bunch of fruit from the market, and my stomach is as happy as it ever is when I’m home. So fingers crossed J