Harmattan Redux!

This morning, it was unusually cold. Little did Ghanaians know that they were going to wake up to another "round" of the Harmattan--those dusty winds that blow through Western Africa. My sources tell me Cote d'Ivoire, Mali and Burkina were also plagued by this kind of weather this morning.

Between you and me, bar the dust, I quite like the coolness!

Spintex Road into Accra

Spintex Road, near Regimanuel Estates

Tetteh-Quarshie GPRTU Bus Terminal

By-word for Accra Traffic...anyone? How about "Trafficitis"?

Traffic has become so endemic that if we're not careful, it'll become a pandemic -- maybe trafficitis! Add a bit of occasional rainfall and you got yourself even more trafficitis.

Am unsure--as are many commentators--what the cause is. We keep blaming the never-finished roadworks and the numerous cars on the road.

Some of us are so tired of talking about it it's no longer funny...so we take pictures of traffic instead!;-)

One such picture is one I took on the famed Spintex Road--you will see "Oak Plaza Hotel" on the left there -- towards Accra. On that day, it looked like despite the rain, there would not be much traffic. Boy was I wrong! There was a bumper-to-bumper just waiting up ahead to get my finger a-clicking for a blog entry.

But I desisted. I was so bored.

Ghanaians, Remain Disclipined on our Roads!

I have deliberately used this picture both here and on my sister blog on this link here: http://ekbensahinghana.blogspot.com/2011/09/what-i-told-daily-graphic-about.html. This is because for the past few days, there have been too many road crashes and attendant deaths that are totally unnecessary. My fellow citizens often fail to adhere to road safety rules--especially the commercial drivers -- who are too quick anad too keen to make as much sales as possible in a day they flout all kinds of road laws for the bottom line.

Simply put: KEEP SAFE! DRIVE SAFELY!

Danpong Clinic -- A Testament of Ghana Sweat, Blood and Tears in Ghana's Health Industry

Danpong Clinic is located on the infamous Spintex Road, and actually closer to Batsonaa.

It may not have a dedicated website for the clinic, but has one for detailing its parent group -- DANADAMS, which website can be found here: http://www.danadamsgh.com/?root=profile/

The interesting thing here is that DANADAMS in wholly Ghanaian. Here is what the corporate profile says on its website:

"Danadams Pharmaceuticals Industries Limited is a wholly-Ghanaian owned limited liability company incorporated in Ghana. Danadams was commissioned on 8th June, 2005 by His Excellency J.A. Kufour, with staff strength of fifty-two(52), which has now grown to over 200 employees.

The company is focusing on economically targeted areas in the pharmaceutical industry, which have much social implications in the country. Our core business is the production of Antiretroviral, Antimalarials, Anti-Tuberculosis and other quality generic pharmaceuticals used to fight opportunistic infections in HIV/AIDS patients.

Danadams seeks to address the problem of scarcity of Anti-retroviral drugs in Ghana and the rest of West Africa, by increasing its production of quality generic Antiretroviral drugs locally. Danadams Pharmaceuticals Industry Limited is among other West African Pharmaceutical companies selected to collectively act as catalysts to spearhead the building of the local capacity for production and distribution of Antiretroviral drugs and working in partnership with governmental initiatives like the Food and Drugs Board (FDB), Economic Regional Bodies such as West African Health Organization (WAHO) under ECOWAS, and international Organizations like United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and World Health Organization. (WHO)"

At a time when the WIKILEAKs cables reveal our Ghanaian elites and policymakers to be grossly out of touch with the Ghanaian, it bears reminding that things do and can work in Ghana, and for those that do work, they need encouragement to do better!!

Sneda or Melcom? CHINA** & INDIA's contribution to Ghana, or a Tale of How Ghanaians Love to Shop!

To the left is Sneda shopping centre; to the right is Melcom. Both are perhaps a by-word for retail shopping in Ghana. That they have been around for many years only adds up to the credibility they have built in Ghana as one place "to-shop".

Sneda's website is a non-starter; it's just a page, which you can find here: http://www.localyte.com/attraction/20656--sneda-shopping-centre--Ghana--Greater%2BAccra--Accra. Conversely, Melcom's site promises to be big, but has not gone to be big yet. Here is the link: http://www.melcomgroup.com/melcom/html/index.html

These stores can be found all over the country, but, interestingly, never have I found the  two so closely to each other. Sneda came first, but probably did not anticipate MELCOM's. Still the famed Spintex Road, from where I took this picture, offers significant potential for custom.

Four months after I took this picture, you should come and take a look at how they both have changed: SNEDA now has a clean, beige, minimalist look and feel at its entrance, whereas MELCOM is offering more competition by adding "MELCOM PLUS" to its regular store.

If you're ever in Ghana, or the capital--Accra--pass by and compare prices. If you don't like the quality, you know what you can do, don't you? Blog about it!!

Make your weekend nice and safe!

**correction: SNEDA is, in fact, Chinese. A facebook friend pointed it out to me. Don't get me started on the BRICs!;-)

Busy Baatsona Market!

Baatsona follows after the famed Spintex Road, and also has a reputable market (pictured), where you're likely to see--every weekend--much of Ghana's (upper) middle class that lives on the Spintex flock to for relatively-bargain prices of quintessentially-Ghanaian foods!

Accra Markets Have Potatoes, Onions...you Name it!

Markets are commonplace for Ghanaians, but increasingly, too, there a good number of these more "sanitised" markets springing up--as the one here off the Spintex Road (towards Baatsona) "Sanitised" because they are rarely located in areas that might pose challenges to the average nose, and as you can see from the picture, the arrangement of market goods are a bit more orderly.

See those potatoes and onions in the picture? They don't come cheap these days! Not quite sure whether it's because of the rains or that things have generally gone upwards, which might be considered strange considering inflation is reported to have gone down...

Thanks to 89% Electricity increase, I can emphatically ask: "Where are My Accra Streetlights?"

Yesterday, I launched what is to become a series of vituperative pronouncements on Ghana's streetlights--or lack thereof. Just to spare you going to the actual link, this is what I actually wrote:

I was in the Central region over the weekend, and noticed without fail that despite the ubiquity of the beautiful and well-maintained roads, there were no streetlights!

I believe this either remains the bane of contractors who come to Ghana to help us with our roads, or is a reflection of the myopia of our government.

From the Spintex Road (that has undergone a metamorphosis) to the already-well-done Accra-Cape Coast road, how can security ever be maintained without sufficient streetlights? No matter the number of police patrols you have set up, lights have–and will continue to remain–a great deterrent to criminals, both physical and otherwise!

I am not quite sure what else to say, except to say that it is heart-warming to see that there are actually government cars out there that have "Street Lighting projects" emblazoned on them. It is indicative of an effort.

Now, that the Public Utility Regulatory Authority announced 31 May that electricity has gone up by 89%, might we not finally sit up to protest for our streetlights?

A careful scrutiny of our electricity bill reveals that each and every blessed consumer pays an amount towards fire-fighting and street-lighting.

Bottom line: where are our streetlights?

Ghanaian Roads are about Livelihoods...

...so they must needs remain free (of traffic)!!

I couldn't resist that as this is a picture I used for a post on my ghana blog over here: http://ekbensahinghana.blogspot.com/2010/02/unbearable-lightness-of-being-in.html, which I wrote about this way last week:

Roads are our lifeblood. It is what we need to move from A to B. It is what helps us get to our destination. So, when we do not move on it quickly, it invariably becomes more than a headache. We cannot avoid traffic--there will always be accidents, people driving crazily and/or carelessly/foolishly--but we can certainly avoid a situation where the most important parts of our morning are eaten up in traffic on the only thoroughfare that will take us into the capital!

The essence of the post was about the National Road Safety Commission hotline calling me to check--as they did again this morning--whether the Motor Transport Unit of the Ghana Police were there!

The police officer is the one standing in reflective yellow to the left of the picture. That place is strategic, because it is very often the genesis of the chaos that takes a life of its own and finds expression in dual-way traffic northbound, when it should be one-way northbound.

That this confusion is compounded by major construction works on the Spintex Road to smoothen the traffic does little to give small headaches this side of the capital every morning!

An Unnecessary Ghanaian Crowd -- Just to Register National ID?!

Though it is true that Ghanaians are naturally nosy and like to find out in both discreet and indiscreet ways what someone is doing, you might not believe me if I told you that this crowd has been formed because of the ongoing registration of the national ID card. This scene was taken in one of the Estate neighbourhoods that fall under the deceptively-sounding-prestigious "off Spintex road".

The crowd was rather amorphous on account of the denizens standing in the then-up-and-coming midday heat. Apart from the frustration and fatigue associated with this queue, people could not quite understand the incredibly slow pace of the registration. Sadly, despite media criticisms, the pace has not quickened.

Some might say "all in the name of democracy"!;-)

Better this pace than to be fighting a senseless war that characterised a good number of African countries two decades ago...

Ghana's Talking Point:" Road Tolls"

I have come to read and understand that the USA has an atavistic revulsion towards big government. Consequently, anything that comes with a greater role of the State and the government is attacked. Small wonder Obama is suffering the fallout, if you will, of focussing on bringing some sanity to health care reform in a manner that the EU would applaud.

Ghana and the US might be similar only in the sense that our elections are held the same year as the US, but I sincerely hope that Ghana will never go the way of sneezing at taxes and government. The what some might say "dramatic" increases in the road tolls on Ghana's major motorway--the Tema motorway--where the tolls have gone up more than 50% overnight has led to a situation where commuters have used the infamous Spintex road in the morning just to avoid paying the taxes.

Or so private radio station CITI97.3fm was averring yesterday morning in interviews. I seriously would not put it past my fellow denizens, though!

Snaking through Spintex Road on a Sunny Morning

If you have never experienced traffic of this magnitude on a morning, try this kind for size. Traffic is further compounded by the fact that Christmas is near, and so more cars on the road, including those of Ghanaians in the diaspora who have come home early to celebrate with families. More people inevitably means more cars!


Snaking to the East Legon tunnel. The cars look like they are moving -- they are not! The will be this stationary for a few minutes before we move!









I cannot for the life of me understand how despite the presence of a traffic warden, three to four lanes are created by magic to get through the East Legon tunnel through to the Spintex Road!



FREEDOM!!!

Welcome to GOIL Filling Station, Spintex Road

As far as I know, this GOIL shop does not have a website, but I can tell you that given the human traffic that flows in and out of this place every hour, if it did have a site, it might be hitting the thousands every week!

East Legon--The Tunnel of No Return?

Not quite.

East Legon has this tunnel, which was never supposed to be used by cars--but by animals--but now has become a veritable tunnel to allow cars and dodgy trucks pass through north-bound and south-bound to the dreaded-Spintex Road.

Am I making any sense?

Neither does the inexplicable traffic that occasionally develops without reason. Had it not been for the guys at the mouth of the tunnel (check the figure in blue, wearing yellow on his head on the left) , the traffic would have been more than bottle-necks!

And, yeah: they're ALL guys. Tunnel-watchers haven't gotten gender-sensitive yet;-)

Terrible Traffic on Spintex Road 17 Aug, 2009

Both northbound and southbound directions revealed tremendous traffic yesterday evening due to an accident on the Tetteh-Quarshie interchange. Those among us who are foolishly intrepid decided to walk instead of staying in a vehicle that was charging you for essentially being in traffic! This picture attests to that "foolishness". My camera-phone was a worthy target for theft but, hey, anything for a photo-op!

You can view a video clip of how bad it was here.

Changing Faces of Accra...

Don't reach for the rifle yet, when I tell you, in this post, about the Spintex Road for the umpteenth time!:-) It is important to let you know, though, that major changes are a-foot on this road for expansion. And this picture attests to those changes!

Return of the Mass Metro Buses on Accra Roads?

A question like that might go some way to do a great disservice to those buses that actually have been plying on the Ghanaian roads, but it was important to ask! Especially because last time the regularity was indisputable, I was posting entries like this here: http://accradailyphoto.blogspot.com/2007/02/inside-ghanas-mass-metro-buses.html and http://accradailyphoto.blogspot.com/2006/10/heres-almost-how-packed-i-was-in.html

Yesterday morning, I needed to go downtown as part of my habitual service to the nation that I am rendering (all will be revealed soon!) alongside my regular work.

Running late, I decided I was going to have to charter a taxi, which would have been rather expensive (around 6-8 ghc, or roughly 4/5 US$). Rather fortuitously, a bus (as referred to above) pulls up, with a sticker by the window "SAKUMONO / [Accra] CIRCLE" [Sakumono is on the Spintex Road, and Circle is really downtown!!], with a young personable lady shouting for customers.

I boarded the bus to a sight of neat buses--very atypical to the tro-tro. I thought these buses had gone out of service this part of Accra!


I would rather coincidentally board this same bus on my way home from work, just across the Accra Mall. The young lady of the morning--looking rather tired--and I would exchange smiles for the very small world I am reminded daily of being a part of!

Whichever transport you take today, keep it safe, and have a great weekend!

"Onyame Bekyre" Market Stall on Accra's Spintex Road

As I was going to work this morning, I was confronted by the sight of two bulldozers -- one on either side of the Spintex road -- doing the necessary grading of the road to expand it to the four-lane the new NDC government promised us.

Almost seven months into the government, this is an exemplification--if ever--of delivering on a long-held promise the outgone government failed to work on.

As Ghanaians keep their fingers crossed for the work to continue apace (and, frankly, where it's at, it would be ignoniminous to stop!), it might be a good idea to remember our market men and women who have stalls all along the said-road. Their livelihoods might just come at the expense of "development"--read: "a reduction in traffic for already-too many cars on the road".

This stall (pictured) is but one of many. Tomatoes are not the only food the market woman lady is selling, though the picture might belie this fact.

I'm all for development, but as they say in this part of the world (and as per the inscription of the market stall), Onyame Bekyre, or God will show the way!

Busy busy, on the Spintex Road (I)

I like this picture because I think it represents the increasingly busy nature of parts of the Spintex Road.

Take the Chinese Restaurant--"Sweet Roses"--that I have referred to before here: http://accradailyphoto.blogspot.com/2009/03/when-commercial-enterprises-in-ghana.html. It is located just a stone's throw away from that hotel in the picture. I took this picture from the front of a pharmacy.

The man walking in my direction was going to the pharmacy.

Now these apparently-mundane activities to me highlight one thing--how "convenience" is becoming a catch-word for Ghanaians, and how the famed Spintex Road has created what I would call "clusters of convenience" for those who ply the road. That there is a bank--just metres away from all this business--can only testify to how entrenched the clusters of convenience are becoming more apparent on this road.

Cautionary Tales of ...Ghanaian Taxis!

There I was last evening sitting in a shared taxi (that's a taxi that takes you to a destination with the price split among the number of occupants) of four people almost at GOIL filling station on the Spintex Road, when the taxi blurts to a rude stop.

The reason was a simple one: petrol--or lack thereof! We had to wait some ten minutes before the taxi driver ran up to GOIL, get some fuel, and get back to the car to fill it up.

As you can imagine, I took the opportunity to take a picture to memorialise some of the hazards our taxi-drivers put us through!