Ode to the Aduanaba Information Centre

If you have spent any time visiting Humjibre, chances are you’ve been woken up at 5 A.M.

Indeed, this town, known as the place of rest, comes wildly alive very early thanks to the two information centres in town.  Over loudspeakers, announcements are broadcast at peak volume; loud enough for everyone in Humjibre to hear them, loud enough to wake you up.

 

When I first arrived, I loved the concept. It’s a giant audible internet message board! It’s Humjibre’s morning news program!  It’s like someone took the 'Local' section of the newspaper and yelled it at you! Neat!  My enthusiasm did not last long…

Somehow, I’ve adapted my sleep patterns to it and the loud voices in Sefwi don’t always wake me up.  Now,  I only really wake up if I recognize the voice.  GHEI often makes announcements about its outreaches or if they have a special PSA like the one Aggie made last month, but why, Saga, why?  Why do you have to tell everyone about the Early Childhood Literacy classes so early!

 

After several months of lingering curiosity, I set off to the origin of the early morning noises.  I’d spent a summer hearing questions from volunteers that I felt needed to be answered: “Why are they so early?” “What are they announcing?” “Singing? Really!?!”

With Lawrence in tow, as my translator/cultural attaché, we set off for the Aduanaba Information Centre near the centre of town to answer those questions and learn more about the early morning cacophony.  We found it empty but I had my first look inside, and with all the equipment set up just so, it was like a compact, pirate radio station.  There was room for only one.

 We asked around where the proprietor was.  Lawrence gave him a call, while I snapped some photos.  He was at home, and off we went.  We met Isaac Baidoo as he was spreading cocoa out to dry after a day of farming.  We sat on a bench in front of his house, and I presented our mission in English. He looked confused, so I nodded to Lawrence who presented our mission in Sefwi.  He was still confused, but now also amused.  

For 1 ($.75) Cedi, Isaac makes announcements for others, or allows others to make announcements, at two times, once in the morning and once in the evening.  Each follows a similar sort of pattern, but the mornings are laid out this way: Between 4:30 and 5 AM is the time for various religious announcements, whether they be church gatherings, preaching, or a new sect that might be setting up.  The price for this time is negotiable and often Isaac lets them on for free for no more than 20 minutes, expecting that if they are blessed by donations, he will also be blessed with a small gift from them.  This is often when the singing happens: Pre-Sunrise Hymns in Humjibre.

 

The second segment is for personal announcements, and these announcements happen between  5 – 5:30 AM.  These announcements can be a place to make announcements about important events in families such as funerals, or births, and it is when the chief would be broadcasting decrees.  It is also a place to air out grievances, such as announcing theft from your farm, whether the culprit is known or not. One can also broadcasts insults and comebacks to insults slung out earlier, which seems to me could lead to a vicious war of words over the airwaves. I suppose the 1 cedi price tag restricts the frequencies of this, I mean, surely at some point it’s going to cost too much to continue insulting each other… I posed this to Isaac.

He assured me that he has a small interview with everyone before they make an announcement to judge the content of their message, and, I’m guessing, the content of their character. I don’t think the chief would let excessive hate flinging happen in Humjibre, either.  In fact, the chief was the one who decreed the time limits on the announcements to begin with.

The last session lasts between 5:30 and 6 AM, but often longer.  This is where people can try their hand selling some products, like all natural healing balms or various other wonder cures, like efficient door to door selling.  Different chop (*food) stalls along the Humjibre strip will take this time to announce special additions to their menus or moments when soup is on. Breakfast is one of the busiest moments for the chop industry in Humjibre, so these last minute announcements for ampesi  or hot stew dishes with yams are probably a good bang for their cedi. 
   

Isaac has been in the announcement business for five years now.  The Aduanaba Information Centre is one of two announcement systems in Humjibre, I asked about competition between the two.  “Daabi, daabi,” he said, quickly shaking his head.  They were the first to make announcements in Humjibre, they were pioneers in the field, and he affords them all respect.  Yes, I said, but what if you both make an announcement at the same time?  Who wins then? The loudest volume?  Isaac laughed at my barbaric view of media, and said that he defers to them.  They give him a signal when it’s his turn, and he starts his announcing.

I was impressed by how complex this system was.  From my bed, stewing in groggy frustration, it sounds like the blown-out chaos of overly excited voices, and now I see there’s not just a regulatory system in place but consideration and respect.

 

I asked Isaac if I could make an announcement, he said of course.  I asked if I could give him some nice, soft music to play in the morning, music that wouldn’t wake us up but give us a relaxing sleep for another 20 minutes.  I imagined Chopin lilting out of the speakers. 

 

He said sure, it’s your money.  I asked if people would like this, because there are a number of people at GHEI, now and previously, that would probably love it.  He said maybe, but not many people complain about the morning announcements in Humjibre.  Most people, he said, complain during the evening announcements, when their nightly news comes through their radios, when they’re trying to sit and have a meal and a conversation with the family, when the youth are hanging out on the streets.

Isaac and Lawrence

Lawrence elaborated, “Everyone’s already awake at 5 AM. The only one still sleeping is you.”

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GHEI Handwashing Education Reaches Hundreds, And Then, Hundreds More...

For those who moan and complain about the state of the world, the developing world in particular, GHEI's Handwashing With Soap Program has seemed to me the antidote to that sort of cynical bellyaching. 

“It’s hopeless man; the world's hurtling towards 2012, the poor keep getting poorer and sicker, the rich are richer, and I can't afford the latest iPhone.  Nothing changes for the better, life sucks,” a person might say in the bored sneer of western apathy.

This person is wrong on many accounts: You can buy used iPhones on the streets of Kumasi for pretty cheap. (Of course, without showing off the latest iPhone how will people know you're better than them?) The rich are indeed richer, but average people are getting wise to that. Ghana has the fastest growing economy in the world right now. Malaria deaths are down by 20%  worldwide in the last decade.  2012 is a myth and a terrible movie.  For heaven's sake dude, it's not hopeless

Take GHEI's Handwashing With Soap Program: It's a very simple concept (teach young people when and how to wash their hands properly) and it can lead to powerful results.  Proper handwashing is a proven method in reducing instances of the biggest killer of children under five in Africa: diarrhoeal illnesses. 

Over the course of this past week, in celebration of Global Handwashing Day on October 15, the Health Team attended 7 Primary and Junior High Schools in Humjibre and Muoho to demonstrate the importance of proper hand washing.  Thanks to many donors who have generously come out in support of Humjibre's youth, GHEI has installed Polytanks (large tanks that fill with rainwater, and have taps on the bottom) at all schools in Humjibre and at one in Muoho.  

Several months ago, in my second week in Humjibre, I tagged along with the Health Team to visit Muoho Primary School and watch a handwashing outreach.  These latest outreaches followed a similar dynamic, but the swelling mass of young humanity and the soapiness were increased sevenfold.  On October 11,12, 13, Mensah, Aggie, Carly, and Saga reached over 1500 students in the Humjibre area with an educational review of handwashing.

These kids knew the handwashing song pretty well, and the way they answered the question regarding the critical handwashing times showed something all too rare in the education system in Ghana: Critical Thinking.

 “What are important times to wash your hands?” asked Aggie to the hundreds.  Several hands shot up.  Aggie chose a boy who seemed anxious to answer.

“After handling poison!” he said.  Aggie was briefly thrown off and then said, yes, please wash your hands after handling poison. The standard appropriate answers trickled in later: after toilet, before cooking, before eating.

At the D.C. Primary, I hung out among the class 5 and 6 kids.  While the younger kids were taking turns at the polytank, these older ones stood in a line in the shade. Although, they were all supposed to be silent, these kids were whispering and making fun of each other.  As I was once like them, I assimilated myself.

Do you wash your hands at home?

“Yes, of course, Mr. Obruni.  Do you wash your hands at home?”

I said yes, at all critical times.  I even wash my hands before I attempt to cook food.  They all laughed. How did they know I was a terrible cook? Incensed, I asked why, but they were laughing at the idea of a man, pounding fufu, cooking soup, serving food.  

The way life changes so fast here in Ghana, I don't think these young guys will be laughing in a few years...Having the fastest growing economy in the world means a whole lot of other changes come with it...

“At home, I tell my brothers and sisters to wash their hands.  But, me, I wash all the time,” said a boastful young man who had just lifted up his school uniform to proudly show his Manchester United jersey underneath.  Then he made a joke in Sefwi that cracked the whole group up.  I smiled and took my cue, strolling over to the polytank to watch the giggling little one press up against each other, jockeying for a chance at the tap.

I thought about the changes that Ghana is going through, and I wondered what it was like for that young man in Manchester colours at home.  I imagined how he might show his younger brothers and sisters at home what he was learning that day, and how his parents might look at him strangely and might even learn something new themselves...

As effective of an outreach that I saw from us at GHEI, I can't think of a more effective outreach than this boy showing his younger siblings how to wash their hands properly.

According to Aggie, this isn’t a lone phenomenon.  A mom in Humjibre told Aggie that her kids won’t allow her to start preparing food until they’ve seen her wash her hands.  Students teaching brothers and sisters teaching parents...GHEI reached over 1,500 students in three days, but how many siblings, parents, and friends have also been reached because of these outreaches?

So no, it's not hopeless.   

 

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GHEI Staff Celebrate Outstanding Service From 2011 Volunteers

Here are this year’s Outstanding Service Award winners, in GHEI staff’s own words. 

Ernest ‘Saga’ Badu on Meera Patel:

Meera was dependable, when she said we would learn something, we would learn it. During computer training, I learned how to draw a pie chart on the computer.  I will be using that in the future during my exam questions.  I can do it now without her supervision, but only because she helped me. 

Aggie, Meera, Tola, and Poranee

She was cooperative at the football camp, she made sure everyone had a chance to participate.  She was always fair to everyone involved, and she was always thinking about what she could do to help others.  She responded to problems, in the football tournament, she was like a medic.  When someone would get hurt, she would go to them, and she would attend to them seriously. 

And she is very friendly, but she was also very good at pretending to be a bad sportsman during the camp.  And I thought that was awesome.

 

Dickson Akah Mensah on Sarah Gustafson:

She was dedicated, very hardworking, and she had very good interactions with all the people she saw.  The way she talked to people, she made people feel very comfortable.   The mothers who brought their children were very happy when they saw her, and the children also liked her.  Even if some cried, she was very gentle and they liked her somehow after crying.

She represented GHEI very well culturally in Ampenkrom.  And wherever she went she created a very good environment.  There were many people who liked her

Sarah and Dickson

 I think she needs to come back!  This is volunteer work, and its rare to find someone with so many good quality of leadership.  We were very lucky to have someone who would do this voluntary, and be so skilled.  She must come back to Ampenkrom next year!

Aggie Obeng on Erin Rosen:

She was very nice and friendly but also liked we had done when we finished for the day.  At the end of the day she was always praising what we had done and praising the way all of us were doing the work together.

 

When there was something that needed to be done on the surveys she consulted people individually, and she was very serious.  If the interviewer did not understand how to ask the question properly she made sure that they understood, but it was always in a nice and friendly way.  She never made people scared, but she was serious about the work.

I really like what she accomplished when she was here.  Not only the work she did, but the way she did her work was also very good. 

Lawrence Donkor on Krista Nickerson:

In session one of Summer Serve and Learn 2011, there were three volunteers and they all did their best, but Krista distinguished herself in that she really understood the words “Serve and Learn”.

Krista reads a book while Helen and Lexi look on

She was active in working, sharing concerns, asking questions to know what she needed to know and was positive in all the activities.  To me, the most interesting part is that she likes working with different people and showing a lot of qualities that shows that she can be a leader.    She showed respect to all people from students, GHEI staff members, and volunteers and their community members as a whole.  She acted exactly the same in session two.  Again she is the first person to take lead in all the activities and the role plays, because of that some of the girls from Girls’ Empowerment have taken her as their role model.  

More or less, she spent only four weeks in Humjibre but still, people had her name in their minds, which I think is good.  

On our Facebook page: Check out Erin's photo album of her time in Ghana here  

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GHEI Now Hiring! Are You An Awesome Person? APPLY!

In some sort of bizarre proto-national twist, the neighborhood that hosts GHEI, and the many volunteers and long-term coordinators from around the world that are serving Humjibre, is called Canada.  It's not called this because the townsfolk of Humjibre have designated this area of town as some sort quaint cultural milieu, like their own Chinatown, but in reality this area was called Canada long ago, when people began to build their homes on the slight hill where I now live.  The air was cooler here than in the rest of town, so they decided to name it Canada, because you know, it’s cold there.  Thus, some are from that Canada and live in this Canada.  

 Jen is the Education Program Coordinator here at GHEI.  There are a lot of education programs, and this keeps Jen busy but she also teaches Early Childhood Literacy (ECL), and in Jen's words ECL is there “to catch the ones who are about to be left behind in school.”  They gather first for some purposeful play with each other and Jen while the late comers straggle in.   They sit at the table constructing epic structures with building blocks and various other little preoccupations, but in essence, these six and seven year old kids spend twenty minutes hanging out, speaking as much English as they got. 

To Jen, this time is just as important, as the actual lesson, and maybe among the most important part of her busy day. We learn so much in the smallest moments we spend with each other. Sometimes, the small moments teach us more than our actual classes.  

GHEI is now hiring for an Education Program Coordinator and a Communications Director, Jen and I respectively.  Living and working with GHEI is no piece of cake, but I can't think of anything meaningful that is.  And, though I've said it many times here, the people here are wonderful.

If you’re looking for more than a year’s worth of small important moments, apply.  Come live in Canada in Ghana, it’s a great neighborhood.

You can check out the job descriptions and download the applications on our website here.  

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Aggie Has Something To Say About Malaria

Community Health Workers

 From an article in Modern Ghana:  “According to the National Malaria Control Programme, ‘During 2009, a person in Ghana died from malaria about every 3 hours. This means about 3,000 people died of malaria in Ghana that year alone, most of them children.’"

I remember Lawrence showing up to work one day, sweating heavily, with a dazed look in his eyes.  I asked what’s wrong, and he waved it off, “Oh, it’s nothing, just a little malaria…” as though it were a case of the sniffles in Canada (which would lay up your average worker with whines and daytime TV).  “I’ve got some medicine, I just need to enter the attendance from the library last night…”

In 2004, at the Bibiani Hospital (the only public hospital in the district, and the one that people in Humjibre must attend; it is about 33 miles away, and it has one ambulance) malaria accounted for 43.7% of admission (according to Ghana Health Service).  Malaria was responsible for 34.5 % of all deaths; 38.7% of all deaths of children under 5.

Despite its potential fatality, Malaria is a way of life here, its frequency and severity is seen as a burden to bear…

GHEI has taken a very aggressive stance against Malaria in Humjibre, and in the neighboring communities of Sorano and Kojina.  We have distributed Insecticide Treated Nets to all sleeping areas in those communities and have enlisted the CHW’s to constantly push the necessity of these bednets through education outreaches and one on one follow up visits.  Still, like any community anywhere, apathy can set in.  

Aggie Obeng, Mensah Gyapong, and Carly Edwards have begun taking decisive measures to combat this apathy.  Here is Aggie’s announcement that has been spread on the Humjibre Public Announcement System, and in many announcements in all 14 churches in Humjibre. The hope is that all 4,000 folks in Humjibre hear this.  It is presented here in its English translation from the original Sefwi:

We have a message for you about malaria and sleeping under bednets.  Last month we had some volunteers come to Humjibre to help us conduct an evaluation survey to see if people here are sleeping under their bednets. Our survey told us that only half of the people in Humjibre sleep under their bednets every night. This concerns us very much. We have given bednets to every home in Humjibre because we want to help protect people in the community from becoming sick with malaria. 

We know that if you are sick with malaria, it is difficult to study well or do good work or take care of your family. Mosquito bites give you malaria, so if you sleep under a bednet every night, then mosquitos cannot bite you when you are sleeping so the time when you can get malaria is reduced.

We have six community members who work with us to help you use your bednets well. We call them Community Health Workers or CHWs because they help teach you about different health issues. They are Yaa Mary, Yaa Nyamekye, Rose Ware, Shadrack Ofori, Mabel Dede Asiedu, Lydia Ampomaning, and Francis Yeboah. Their job is to visit your house once every two months to educate you on how to care for your bednets and to encourage everyone in your family to sleep under their bednet every night. They will help teach you how to hang your bednets and how to mend any holes in your bednets. If you have a question about bednets, you can always ask them.

Please, these people are here to help you with your bednets, but you must also help yourselves. Learn from them so that you will be able to hang your own bednets the next time. We cannot force you to sleep under your bednets. You must understand that sleeping under a bednet every night will help keep you and your family healthy. The CHWs will begin visiting your houses from the end of this week. Please welcome them and learn from them so that we can all work in partnership to keep everyone in Humjibre healthy.

Aggie, and baby Nata on her back, demonstrating on a flip chart the way to tuck in your mosquito net

If you have any questions or need a new bednet, please come to the GHEI office to talk to Aggie or Mensah or inform one of the CHWs. We will ask you to buy a new bednet for GHC2 (about US $1.25). This price is much lower than the price of a bednet at market, where a bednet might cost between GHC 10-20 (about US$7 -15). We have reduced the price of the bednets for you because we want to help everyone in Humjibre to have a bednet to sleep under so that everyone can be healthy.

by Aggie Obeng 

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