Responsible tourism in Ghana

Responsible tourism in Ghana

Ghana can be something of a shock to the senses for Africa first-timers with its raucous cities, roadside litter, unpredictable power cuts and, shall we say, relaxed approach to timekeeping. This is a wonderful country to travel, with some of the best opportunities on the African continent for meaningful cultural encounters in places few tourists visit, but getting around is not always easy. It can involve spending hours on bumpy roads, more simple accommodation than you may be accustomed to, and coming face to face with poverty. You might be able to escape that in the luxurious game lodges of other African countries – but not here.

This is a country that is still coming to terms with its past, as can be seen by the grim slave forts that continue to haunt the coast. It’s also a country that is struggling to care for its natural landscapes, with rivers polluted by gold mining, overfishing rife, and plastic waste a major concern. But this is also a forward-looking nation, unwilling to be held back by the weight of history. Innovative businesses are springing up to reuse plastic waste in novel ways. Citizen activists are stepping up to defend the environment against illegal mining and fishing concerns. And the Ghanian diaspora, their ancestors sent around the world in chains, are invited to return and learn about their roots while sharing their own creativity in vibrant events like Accra’s AfroFuture festival. Ghana’s past may be dark but its future is bright.

People & Culture

Reconnecting with your roots

Ghana marked 2019, the 400th anniversary of the first African slaves being taken to the United States, as the ‘Year of Return’. Ghana was a major transit hub for the international slave trade – millions of African people passed through the ‘Doors of No Return’ on the coast to board ships that would transport them around the world; the forts that were built by traders to hold their slaves before they boarded serve as a sombre reminder of a crime that continues to echo through the centuries.

Slavery’s legacy means that there is a wide diaspora of people around the world with Ghanaian roots, and for the Year of Return they were encouraged to visit the country and reconnect with their heritage. So successful was this effort that hundreds of visitors chose to stay in Ghana, and a small industry of ‘homecoming tourism’ has developed, allowing people to retrace the journeys of their ancestors and perhaps take part in traditional African naming ceremonies.

Respecting cultural beliefs

Certain traditional beliefs in Ghana can prove unsettling for visitors. Two of the most difficult superstitions to come to terms with are the concept of ‘spirit children’, and of so-called ‘witches’. If there is a tragedy in the family around the time of the birth of a baby, or the baby is born with a deformity, for example, they may be declared a ‘spirit child’, one possessed by an evil spirit, and killed by hiring a ‘concoction man’ to brew up a herbal poison. This practice is particularly widespread across the north of the country. It has been estimated that up to four percent of infant mortality in some villages is a result of spirit child practices.

These beliefs are deep-rooted, and many parents believe they are doing the right thing. The practice is also frequently performed by very impoverished families, for whom caring for a disabled child without support is untenable. The police and authorities, who refuse to do anything to stop the killings or improve education around disabilities, bear responsibility for their continuation.

Another age-old and ugly tradition in parts of Ghana sees some women being accused of witchcraft and threatened with death. Such accusations can result from feuds between or even within families; in other cases, the ‘witches’ may suffer from mental illnesses. Women accused of witchcraft are forced to flee to escape being killed, and many end up in ‘witch camps’, distancing themselves from the rest of society.

What you can do
It is possible to visit some of the witch camps on our holidays; tourism provides a small amount of income to these women, and a valuable opportunity to have their voices heard without being judged. Our partner Native Eye, who organise some of our best cultural holidays in Ghana, has useful connections in this regard: "On the way to Tamale we visit a village of ‘witches’,” says founder Jim O’Brien. “They’ve established their own village where they can go about their business without fear of persecution. You can go and have a chat with them and find out their histories and learn a little bit about that side of things which is sometimes disturbing – but it’s part of Ghanaian culture.”

Several NGOs are working to eradicate the practice of killing spirit children. One of the best known is AfriKids, a British-Ghanaian charity that has managed to eliminate this practice from some villages in northern Ghana. They have also raised funds to support children’s homes that have rescued spirit children, raised them and, where possible, resettled them in their communities. To support their work, you can fundraise or donate. We also recommend reading Spirit Boy, a book written by Paul Apowida who was declared a spirit child but survived and has now told his story.

Environment & wildlife

Ghana’s golden nightmare

There are fears that Ghana may soon have to start importing water; some 60 percent of the country’s water sources are now dangerously polluted to the point of being unusable for drinking, cooking or washing. The Pra River, just 200km from the capital, Accra, is so polluted that one local artist known as Enil Art, campaigning for change, was able to paint with its yellowy-brown water.

Galamsey, illegal gold mining in Ghana’s mineral-rich forested regions, is held to blame for this environmental destruction. And with Ghana being the world’s sixth-largest exporter of gold, the galamsey is becoming more sophisticated, more industrialised, and more profitable. As it does so, a web of corruption expands, making it harder for local people to fight back.

Around a million people are thought to be involved in illegal gold mining, while environmental and community activists are intimidated, arrested and ignored. Profitable cocoa plantations are taken over to be mined, swathes of old forest cut down or burned, and waterways flooded with sediment in a classic gold rush that puts profit ahead of everything else. Ghana is being poisoned by greed.

What you can do
Illegal gold mining in Ghana is largely driven by poverty, and many of those involved in it are risking their lives for only a small profit to try and support their families. Even so, don’t buy gold while in Ghana as this only exacerbates the problem – even legitimate mining is incredibly destructive. For souvenirs, look instead to locally produced cocoa or kente clothing. And consider holidays that visit remote, forested regions and protected areas – responsible tourism provides well paid jobs for communities. By serving as an alternative to mining it can help persuade Ghana to conserve its valuable forests and rivers, rather than sacrificing them for a golden dream that has become a nightmare.

Overfishing

Delicious fish suppers are a highlight of holidays on Ghana’s Cape Coast, but the catch of the day is getting harder and harder to actually catch. Overfishing is a problem the world over, but it’s particularly bad here. Nearly three million people in Ghana depend on small-scale fishing for work, jobs that are threatened by rampant, unregulated and highly destructive mega-trawlers that are mostly Chinese owned.

These huge vessels are technically legal in Ghanian waters, but they engage in illegal practices such as catching young fish, which harms reproduction rates, and entering areas that are reserved for local fishermen. Often this goes on with the full knowledge of local authorities, but corruption means little action is taken to prevent it.

Adding insult to injury, in order to defeat catch limits these trawlers will also openly sell fish back to communities who would otherwise have caught them themselves, but now cannot compete.

Fish stocks are slumping, while local fishermen are seeing their profits decimated. This forces them to look for work in other industries, to migrate, or to resort to unsustainable practices themselves, like dynamiting and poisoning, to improve their catches.

What you can do
Our holidays use local guides, and often they will be from the very communities that you are visiting, and staying in. Talk to them about the issue and ask them if they can recommend places to eat where they know the fish and seafood is sourced from small-scale fishing businesses.

The waste issue

Plastic waste is a big issue in Ghana – when you travel here you will sadly see it all over the place. Around 840,000 tonnes of the stuff is generated annually, but less than 10 percent of that is collected for recycling. And unfortunately, with precious few recycling or even waste disposal facilities around, this is a problem doesn’t look like it’s about to have a solution any time soon. And it’s compounded by the fact that tap water is not safe to drink; you will be dependent on plastic water on tours here.

What you can do
If possible, bring a reusable water bottle or two, and buy large bottles to refill them from, rather than lots of small ones. Otherwise, water sachets create less waste than plastic bottles (although you may not think it, given that they are strewn everywhere). If you buy water sachets, keep hold of the plastic until you can put it into a proper bin.

Most holidays will spend at least some time in the capital, Accra. Here, you can pay a visit to the wonderful Trashy Bags store in the Osu district. They make beautiful shopping bags, wallets, tablet covers and more using collected and cleaned water sachets, and scraps of fabric. A single shopper can use 70 sachets that would otherwise be discarded on the street. They also create smart messenger bags using recycled plastic billboards.

How will climate change affect Ghana holidays?

Ghana effectively has two seasons: a dry season approximately between November and March, and a wet season approximately between April and October. While these are already variable, Ghana’s climate will become even more unpredictable in future, leading to extreme heatwaves, especially in the north of the country, and volatile rainfall that causes both drought and flooding.

Rising sea levels don’t just threaten cocoa, one of Ghana’s most profitable crops, which is predominantly grown along the coast. They also pose a threat to the country’s lovely beaches, and the many communities situated along them. Some seven million Ghanaians are at risk of displacement as their homes are taken over by the sea.

Currently the dry season is the most popular time to go to Ghana, but daytime temperatures of over 30°C, and higher in northern Ghana, can feel several degrees warmer due to the humidity. Climate change will drive ever higher temperatures that will make travel during the warmer months uncomfortable. Activities like trekking and wildlife watching, as well as long journeys on overland tours, will need to be arranged so that they avoid the hottest parts of the day and have as much shade as possible.

Responsible tourism tips

Don’t hand out gifts – sweets, pens, notebooks – to children. If you want to donate, ask your tour leader about the best way to do this. It may be that you give items the village elder or chief, or to a head teacher who can then distribute them later on. Your tour leader can also suggest which items are the most necessary. If possible, buy these items in Ghana to support local traders. Ghanaians are welcoming, chatty and often beautifully dressed in colourful fabrics, but resist the temptation to whip your camera out at every opportunity. The chances are that if you ask, people will be happy to pose for photos, and may even spot your camera and ask you to “snap” them. In markets, strike up conversations with stallholders and buy something before asking for a photo. Never photograph children without their parents’ permission – it’s certainly not something you’d do at home. Read our article for more tips on the ethics of travel photography. Always dress respectfully. The more rural and traditional the area, the more covered up people are. It is very hot in Ghana, but long, loose clothing is recommended – cover shoulders with sleeves or pashminas, and wear trousers or long skirts rather than shorts if possible. In the city, skimpier clothes are more acceptable. Be aware of your water and electricity use. Keep showers short, reuse towels and unplug any devices once charged. Don’t leave lights on when you are not in the room – and give the hand fan a go rather than the air conditioning. Do tip – but not too generously. Food and services are incredibly cheap in Ghana, but excessive tipping can result in situations where waiters earn more than teachers, which can cause problems. If in doubt, ask your tour leader what is a reasonable amount.