Street-Hawking at Night in Accra

This is so familiar a sight during the evening on the streets of Accra that we probably don't even see it any more.

These hard-working ladies--that comprise what many would consider "the working class"--eke out a living from working almost 24/7.

Come hell or high water, they are here--and mostly it's the women that persevere. The young men hawk mostly chocolates, and small bites--and usually drop off earlier. This woman was still working around 8.30pm, selling sachet water.

Better than selling oneself, some might say!

(good to be back!)

The Ghanaian Mobile Landscape Will go Green Soon...

But when, exactly?

Globacom, Nigeria's indigenous mobile service, started springing up its billboards at the beginning of the year. There was attendant visibility with vacancies advertised around the same time.


Five months down the line, Glo has not commenced operations. It was supposed to have started around 2008; then the last quarter of 2009!

It was as far back as 2008 that it won a licence to operate in the country as Ghana's sixth mobile phone service. It sponsors one of Ghana's football leagues, and finally has an underground cable to enhance broadband access when it commences operations.

Question again, is when exactly will it commence operations?

Avoiding Traffic in Accra?

No-one in their right mind would say they love being stuck in traffic, especially when the weather is so sweltering the last thing they want to do is check the temperature!

If you are sufficiently privileged to own a motorbike, traffic-time proves handy, because it's just a matter of not only taking a diversion, but a diversion more easily than the four-wheeled counterparts we like to call cars!

The guy is wearing a helmet--hooray! I am  sure the National Road Safety Commission that has been banging on about helmets for motorbikes...might just give him a hug for being a paragon of road virtue;-)

Ghana's British Council Serves up a Good Message...

I was at the British Council today to visit a friend, and caught sight of this. I thought it was too good not to capture. Kind of like a Zeitgeist!

The Accra Rains are Back in Town!

Good to be back in town after almost 9 days of being outside Ghana. Even better that the rains have followed suit!

Question is--as ever: is the rest of Ghana adequately prepared for the rains? Much of this question animated one private radio station--CITI97.3fm--this morning.

Can we avert the attendant consequences and wretched lives that come in the wake of torrential rain, or will Ghanaians yet again politicise till Death do us part???

Call Centres in Accra are Great, But Who's Patronizing Them?

Allow me to clarify when I write "call centres". After all, there are quite a few in Accra.

There's one for electricity, which can be reached at 030.2611.611, and the one featured here is for water; it can be reached on toll-free number 0800.40.000.

I cannot for the life of me understand why from these two utilities, only one would be toll-free.

The electricity one for Electricity Company of Ghana(ECG) is considered a hotline, yet one has to pay for it! Last time I looked, these kind of services ought to be toll-free--like that of the Ghana Water Company, managed by Aqua Vitens Rand Limited.

Enough publicity for Ghana Water...I believe my point is well-noted: let's also make the electricity "hot line" toll-free!!

Help! Burning Taxi in Accra Central!!

I was near the AU Liberation circle area in Accra this morning to run a quick errand, when I caught sight of this burning car.

It was only turning back to peer at the strange image that I noticed it was one of those ubiquitous double-coloured cars Ghanaians recognise immediately as taxis.

Thankfully, my trusted cameraphone was nearby, resulting in this shot.




It remains unclear what could have triggered it, but there was thankfully no indication of casualties--just tremendous heat emanating even from the distance from where I took the picture!

Indonesian-Produced Rattan Baskets in Accra--Where are the Ghanaian-Made Ones??

I saw this basket, which goes for GHC8.50 (roughly 5.8US$). at Palace Shopping Mall on the Spintex Road.

I could not help but take a picture--not just to tell a story--but to run a mini-commentary on Ghana's basket-making industry.

I did a quick search, and read that Rattan Baskets are mostly-produced in Indonesia.

At a time when basket-weavers are creating some 1050 jobs in the Upper East region of Ghana only in April this year, it beggars belief that the Lebanese-owned Palace Shopping Mall is selling Indonesian-made baskets, without a trace of the indigenous, Ghanaian-made ones!!