Saturday, March 2, 2013

Unforgivably Ghanaian - Investors = Foreigners


What is the word for investor in Ga? Twi? Fante? Ewe? How about Dagomba? Hausa?

When government officials and the political elite talk about investors they are invariably referring to foreigners. Why? Does this explain why almost everything that requires any capital investment is owned by non-Ghanaians?

I have seen government officials travel to the US and made statements like "I'm not here to meet Ghanaians, I came to meet investors". There are several Ghanaians who can invest in the opportunities available in GH but nobody approaches them. Why?

Unforgivably Ghanaian - Travel and see


We have all heard our fellow Ghanaians say this – “travel and see”.  For me this suggests that you really haven’t “seen” until you’ve “travelled”. This bothers me – having lived outside Ghana for many years. There is an underlying sense among Ghanaians (perpetuated by the ruling elite) that anywhere else (especially Europe, America, and South Africa) is better than Ghana.

We are fascinated with travelling outside the country and people who do.

The truth is that the basic needs and challenges of life are the same everywhere. What we all want is access to health care, some education, and opportunity to work and be productive. The freedom to socialize and express ourselves.

Ghana doesn't need to be like New York, Atlanta, Amsterdam, Jo’burg or London. We just need to be the best Ghana we can be. There's no need to travel and see.