April Fool's!

Mary Kay writes:

I have been struck this Holy Week with the juxtaposition of the sacred and the secular calendars.  As you know, Palm Sunday fell on April 1 this year.  This has only happened nine times in the last three centuries.  Apparently it happened in 2007, the only other time in my lifetime as I look back, but I totally missed it then – probably because we had just moved to Ghana and everything else about Holy Week and Easter celebrations here was so new to me.  Plus, it doesn’t seem like Ghana makes as big a deal of April Fool’s Day as we used to in the US.  The next time it will happen will be in the year 2091.  Since I would be 131 at that point, I think it is probably safe to say that this is the last time in my life that I will see Palm Sunday and April Fool’s fall on the same day.

I read a couple of devotions, tweets, and the like this week that pointed out this juxtaposition.  Most pointed out that the same people who were praising Jesus, shouting “Hosanna”, which means “save us”, were the ones shouting for his crucifixion by the end of the week.  Some talked about the disciples “borrowing” a donkey – which the owner must have seen as a prank – though presumably the donkey was returned at the end of the day. 

I also looked into the history of April Fool’s Day to see when the tradition started.  The Persians (and now the Iranians) celebrate a day of pranks on the 13^th day of their New Year, which either falls on April 1 or April 2, according to Wikipedia. The earliest mention of a day of pranks associated specifically with April 1 was in Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales in The Nun’s Priest’s Tale, which is the tale of Chanticleer and the Fox.  Certainly Chanticleer outfoxing the fox could be considered a good April Fool’s prank!  But the Romans celebrated a festival called Hilaria on the 25^th of March, which is also thought to be a precursor to our present day tradition.

Given that Jerusalem was under Roman rule, and that the Passover (and therefore Easter) changes days as a lunar holiday, it is quite possible that the original Palm Sunday procession coincided with the Roman Hilaria.  This would be even more fitting in my mind.  To see Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, with the crowds going wild?  This event is easier to see as a Monty Python-esque satire of the great Roman military processions than as a real act of worship and praise.  Who would cheer for a guy on a donkey, unless you thought it was all a great farce?  Certainly Jesus did not represent the type of military hero that Israel would have liked to see come and kick out the Romans – that guy would have looked more like a combination of Sparticus, Ben Hur and Rambo!  Or at least Iron Man, with the disciples cast as the rest of the Avengers.

By Friday, the prank seemed obvious.  Jesus, who had triumphally entered Jerusalem the week before was now hanging on a cross, dying.  The joke felt like it was on all of us for believing, for hoping.  The disciples sure didn’t get it – they were the ones most discouraged at the death of their leader.  They were the ones who thought Palm Sunday was real, only to have their hopes dashed.  They heard Jesus say, “It is finished,” and thought all was lost.  They spent the weekend hiding in terror that they would be killed next as his associates.  Even Satan thought he had won that day, triumphing over God’s Son at last.

On Friday, a thief on a cross and one of the Roman centurions who helped to crucify Jesus caught a glimpse of the real story, but even they didn’t get the full picture.  But today, Sunday morning, we can look back and laugh!  We see joke and we get it.  We share in the “Gotcha”.  We can run to our friends shouting the Good News.  He is alive!  Jesus conquered the cross and death.  He conquers all the rulers of this world – whether Romans or Americans or someone else.  He conquers all the lesser gods and demons of the spiritual world – even that most powerful of demons, Satan.  On Easter, of all days, we proclaim that all is right with the world.  God’s creation is restored and God declares, “It is very good!”.

Alleluia! Christ is risen.  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!

“[Jesus] told them, “This is what is written:  The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness will be preched in His Name to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.”  (Luke 24:46-47, NIV)

The artwork posted today is from www.jesusmafa.com, an organization dedicated to presenting the Gospel in an African context.

My Take on KONY 2012

Mary Kay writes: 


It has been fascinating to me to watch KONY 2012 go viral this week.  This is the first time I personally have seen this phenomenon, partly because I am “a clueless old fogie” (as my high school senior would put it) and partly because we live in Ghana, where we are just beginning to explore all the uses of social media.  True confession:  I only figured out how to participate in Twitter this week, follow me at @ghanawaterwoman.  It has been doubly interesting as it follows on the heels of and illustrates two books that Charlie and I have been reading lately about the new world social order – ala Facebook and Google – What Would Google Do and Public Parts, both by Jeff Jarvis (@JeffJarvis and www.buzzmachine.com).  Watching the video gave me more insight into how the web could be used to form a critical mass for change – ala Tahrir Square, or Yemen, or Libya, or I guess even Wall Street (though I still haven’t figured out the whole “occupy” movement).

The video does bring attention to one of the major problems in Africa over the last 50 years– that of child soldiers.  But Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Rebellion Army are hardly the only ones involved in this practice.  Child soldiers have been used in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan and elsewhere, as well.  The movie does bring infamy to Joseph Kony, but since he has been under indictment by the International Criminal Court since 2005, I would argue that he already was infamous.  In the end, all KONY 2012 does is vilify Joseph Kony and call for his capture and prosecution.  Easier said than done since he is hiding out in dense and sparsely populated jungle and could be in one of three or four different countries in Central Africa, in a geographic area approximately half the size of the United States.  After all how long did it take the FBI to find Eric Rudolph, the Atlanta Olympics bomber, when he was hiding out in the mountains of North Carolina?  Or for the international community to find Osama bin Laden, for that matter?  And why pick only on Joseph Kony?  Three other leaders of the LRA are also under indictment for the same crimes against humanity.  A two others were indicted in 2005, but have since died, so the charges against them have been dropped.

My biggest beef with the movie and the KONY 2012 movement is that it doesn’t really address the underlying issues in Uganda that led to the formation of the LRA or provide any solutions.  Let’s say we arrest Kony, try him, execute him.  Or that he dies in a gun battle when they try to arrest him.  What happens next?  What will keep another from stepping into his shoes?

Many of the blogs and news sources I have read on the internet, from people living and working in Uganda, and more importantly, from Ugandans themselves, don’t see Kony as their biggest problem anymore.  Yes, he is evil, and did atrocious things.  But he is not nearly as active in that part of Africa as he was 10 or even 5 years ago.  His power has diminished greatly.  But the conditions that led to his rise to power are still in Uganda and throughout Africa.  Corruption.  Oppressive governments.  Grinding poverty.  Malaria and HIV/AIDS.    Lack of access to health care, or potable water, or sanitation, or education.  Kony and the LRA may have abducted as many as 70,000 children over the course of his rebellion, and certainly they killed more than that.  But approximately 4,500 children die every day from preventable waterborne diseases, most of them in Africa.  And 1,400 children die every day in sub-Saharan Africa from malaria.    EVERY DAY!  That would equate to over 50,000,000 children from these two causes alone, over the 25 years that Kony has terrorized children.  And this does not include the children who are ill but recover.

Of course, there are plenty of organizations that are mobilizing around the issues of malaria, waterborne disease, education, or other issues as well.  You can google any of these topics and find heart-breaking videos of the impacts of disease and poverty on God’s children in Africa (or Asia or the United States for that matter).  I can point you to a lot – and I can show you my own photographs and videos. 

But the myriad issues in Africa, or specifically in Uganda, have been going on for 25, 50 or even 100 years or more.  They are too complex to distill into a video like KONY 2012.  They won’t be solved overnight, or in 2012, or with the arrest or death of one person.   The United States can’t just “come to the rescue” like some governmental version of Superman.  And these problems certainly won’t be solved without the input and effort of Ugandans and other Africans.  Africans should be engaging in conversations, whether face-to-face or on Facebook, Twitter and the like, with other Africans about what they see as their greatest problems, most significant needs and their proposed solutions.  Then we in the west can follow along, learn, and in turn ask how we can best support and encourage them to achieve their dreams and meet their own needs. 

THAT approach, my friends, is community development.  That is development with dignity.  That moves past colonialism, or neo-colonialism, or the Western “we’re here to fix you (and remold you into our image)” mentality.  That would recognize and celebrate the image of our creator God in Africans.  And that is what I pray that I am learning to do, with sensitivity and love.

I have cried until the tears no longer come; my heart is broken. My spirit is poured out in agony as I see the desperate plight of my people. Little children and tiny babies are fainting and dying in the streets.  (Lamentations 2:11, NLT)

Water Is Life

Water is Life. We all have been thirsty, we all understand. Whether in the hot summers of Georgia, the hotter and more humid equatorial tropics of Houston or southern Ghana, or on the even hotter, dusty semi-arid savannahs of northern Ghana, “water is life” is not just a saying – it is reality. Here in Ghana, water is deeply ingrained in the local culture. Any time you visit anyone anywhere - city or village, office or home - Ghanaian culture and hospitality demands that you are offered water to drink. That is always the first order of business – before even introductions or stating your mission. If you are not offered water, by oversight or because you are visiting clueless expats, it would not at all be rude to ask for water. Once you have traveled around Ghana at all, even here in Accra, it is easy to understand why. This is a hot, dusty place, and you get thirsty so quickly. Dehydration easily turns into a headache or worse here. 

When we dedicated the borehole at Koduakrom last Friday, I had the opportunity to share a few thoughts with the assembled villagers. I reminded them of the role water plays in their culture of hospitality. You could see the heads nod in agreement. Then I told them the story of Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman at the well from John 4. While the Samaritan woman gave Jesus water to drink from the well, He gave her something much more valuable – Living Water! And despite the sin in her life, her religious traditions, her gender and her culture – all barriers that could have blocked her from receiving this gift from Jesus – she accepted it. 

The people of Koduakrom have been blessed with the gift of safe drinking water. The village will have plenty of potable water throughout the year. Their children will be less likely to get waterborne diseases. They will be able to share this water with visitors and weary travelers who come to their village. All of these are great, life changing benefits to the village. But how much more life changing will it be if they share the Living Water that Jesus offers with each cup of drinking water! 


In the US, we are blessed with abundant access to safe drinking water. And we are blessed with abundant access to Living Water as well through our churches, media, books, seminars, even the internet. But do we link the two together as Jesus did? Do we introduce Jesus when we offer a glass of water to a visitor who may not know Him? 

"Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:10-14, NIV)

A Day of Celebration in Koduakrom, Ghana

Mary Kay writes:

I first visited Koduakrom in 2010. This little rural farming village is about 30 minutes outside of Sunyani, the capital of the Brong Ahafo Region of Ghana, which is the breadbasket of Ghana. Farmers here grow bananas, plaintain, coco yams, palm nuts (for palm oil) and other staples of the Ghanaian diet. But it was a somewhat depressing little collection of crumbling mud huts with thatched roofs, one borehole that dries up every year during the dry season, and two cement block buildings – churches – on either end of the village. The Methodist chapel was roofed, but not finished – no plaster, windows or doors.

Back again two years later, my fifth or sixth visit, we celebrated a new day in Koduakrom. The village has a new deeper borehole that will not dry out, thanks to the generosity of my friends at St. John’s UMC in Edwardsville, IL. Everyone in the village is excited about this improvement, especially the children who will not miss school due to waterborne disease as often as in the past.

The Methodist Chapel has been completed as well, thanks to friends at Asbury UMC in Madison, AL. A team from there came this past November to Koduakrom and participated in a revival in the village. At the same time, they were moved to contribute funds toward the completion of the chapel. My dear friend and colleague, Bishop Kofi Asare-Bediako, also remembered his pledge to build a chapel at Koduakrom from the early 90s, when he was a minister in their circuit. So now they have a beautiful Easter egg colored church to remind them of their new life in Jesus – yellow for the light of Christ in our lives, blue for His living water, pink for joy. Villagers report that the church is growing and has a renewed hope for their future.

There is a beautiful grove of mango trees started around the chapel now, too, a gift from the Bishop as well. So in a few years, the church and its members will have the income from the mangoes they grow to augment their coffers – money that will be used to support the widows and orphans of the village.

Lastly, a school is under construction – right across the road from the Methodist Chapel. This is being funded by the local District Assembly, as it should be, but there has never been a school in Koduakrom before now. Schoolchildren have had to walk a couple of kilometers to attend the nearest school in the next village. What a blessing that they will soon be able to attend school in their own village.

Things are definitely looking up in Koduakrom. You could see it in the smiles on peoples' faces and the hugs and warm greetings I received when I got out of the car. The people of Koduakrom also gave us a traditional "thanksgiving" gift from their harvest - plaintain, coco yams, a goat (live!), and palm nuts - all the ingredients for fufu and palm nut soup. I can’t wait to come back in two or three more years to see the changes here, all because its citizens now have pride in their community and hope in the future. And I can’t wait to taste one of their delicious mangoes !

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life..." (Psalm 23:5-6a, NIV)

Ant Music

Mary Kay writes:

No, not the early 80s Adam Ant kind, though I did go back and watch his videos on you tube for a blast from the past this afternoon… And not the cool ants running around in the baggage claim area at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport either.

This morning, I poured cereal for Ken, but he didn’t eat it. Then, instead of eating it myself right away, I got distracted. So when I did go to eat, it was swarming with ants.

A WAWA (West Africa Wins Again) moment, but I was not about to let the ants win! A quick stay in the freezer, and they were dead. Then if you shake the bowl, the dead ants fall to the bottom, and you can transfer the cereal to a new bowl. Or you can put the cereal in a colander, give a shake and the ants will fall out, leaving the cereal behind. Any that remain in the cereal will float when you add milk and you can pick them out. Besides, ants are protein, right?

This may sound funny to my North American friends. Why pick the ants out of the cereal, or weevils out of rice (rinse – the weevils drown and float) or flour (freeze then sift)? Why not just throw it out and start over? That is certainly what I would have done before. But here in Ghana, food is expensive, especially imported items like cereal. This was a precious bowl of Honey Loops (a European version of Honey Nut Cheerios) that I had spent almost $10 for.

And more importantly, here in Ghana, many will not have enough to eat today. The UN World Food Programme reports that 18% of children are undernourished, a number which seems low based on my experiences in the rural villages, where 50 to 100% of children may be malnourished. How can I waste food, even if I can afford to, knowing that there are others nearby, maybe even next door, who got no breakfast this morning?

Christ’s heart is for the hurting in the world. And we as Christians are called to love others as we love ourselves. The least we can do is not waste the bountiful resources we have.

“The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." (Galatians 5:14, NIV)

Laundry Day

Mary Kay writes…

I am working at home today – an unusual occurrence in and of itself. And since I am home, I am getting some housework done as well – even rarer! Hell might actually be freezing over at this very moment. I have scrubbed the bathrooms and hung out a couple of loads of laundry to dry.

As I hung out the laundry, I was overwhelmed by memories. I remember as a very small child “helping” my mom hang out the laundry in our back yard. I would hand her clothespins out of her apron pocket. I think she only wore the apron to hang out the laundry – and to hold the clothespins. I loved to run through the damp clothes, feeling the cool damp cotton against my arms, especially on a hot, sunny Houston summer day. While I am sure my mom was thrilled, it was a bittersweet day when we got a dryer.

Sheets flapping in the breeze remind me of my Grandmother Queenie’s house. Myrtle, her housekeeper, would hang them out to dry, then iron them flat even after they got a dryer. The cotton sheets always seemed so crisp and fresh. Who needed “spring breeze” scented laundry soap then – we had the real thing.

Today I also washed and hung out my hotpads – all hand-crocheted by my mother. She rarely has idle hands, preferring to always be working on the latest project. She learned to crochet and to make the hotpads from my Great-Grandmother, so it is a family tradition of sorts. Some of my hotpads (the maroon and navy ones) are almost antique now – made as shower gifts when Charlie and I got married 25 years ago. The primary colored ones were made before we left for Ghana – to match the dishes I was bringing here.

While I am far from home, today I feel like I have been hugged – by my Mom, my Grandmother and the great-grandmother I never knew. Who knew that housework could be so rewarding?

A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies…She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed. (Proverbs 31:10, 13, 27-28, NIV)

Ashesi African Studies

Charlie writes,

I sat in on two classes yesterday at Ashesi where fellow faculty discussed African issues. In the first, Lloyd Amoah, introducing Leadership 3, had the students read and react to two essays written by a Kenyan and a Ghanaian on the state of political leadership in their countries. The other, Mikelle Antoine, supervised the African side of a bi-coastal conversation (Ashesi and Swarthmore) on the reactions college students studying the diaspora had to a troubling image of an African wrapped in a European Union flag, standing, head cocked, next to a smashed bicycle in a desert landscape.

What do you make of it? What do you think the photographer was trying to say?

December 2011 Newsletter Released

Mary Kay writes:

After several late nights at the computer, our next newsletter is finished and will be going out via e-mail, or you can read it at the last link.

GE, meet Ashesi. Ashesi, meet GE.

Charlie writes:

On Tuesday, December 13, Ashesi celebrated a new partnership. The General Electric company, a world-wide conglomerate with 300,000 employees, arrived with three managers and three recent Ashesi alumni who have worked at the company for less than two years, to kick-off the relationship (there are only 24 GE employees in Ghana).

Mr. Abu Sulemana is GE's new Africa CIO. Abu, a tall, poised, and handsome gentleman, was raised in Ghana, educated at KNUST (first class in Civil Engineering), later earning an MBA in the UK. Moving to the US, he worked with Amersham Health, which was acquired by GE in 2004. Mr Sulemana had just moved from Princeton, New Jersey the night before, planning to live and work out of Accra. He offered to teach on project management at Ashesi, claiming he had some wonderful stories about IT projects around the world he had managed.

Mr Patrick Awuah, founder and president of Ashesi University College had spoken at a GE training event near Washington, DC, triggering Mr. Sulemana's interest in the college. Some visits later, GE's HR organization determined that Ashesi met the criteria for becoming an "Executive School," a list that includes over 45 US colleges the likes of Boston College, Boston University, Bucknell University, Clarkson University, Clemson University, University of Connecticut, Cornell University, University of Dayton, University of Massachusetts, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of Michigan, Northeastern University, University of Puerto Rico, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Syracuse University, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Case Western Reserve University, University of Cincinnati, University of Illinois, Indiana University, University of Miami, University of Notre Dame, Pennsylvania State, Purdue University, University of Wisconsin, Stanford University, University of California-Berkeley, Duke University, University of Florida, Georgia Tech, University of Maryland, Michigan State, North Carolina A&T, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Prairie View A&M University, Texas A&M, University of Texas, Tuskegee University and Virginia Tech. According to the University of Dayton, nearly 70% of GE interns and college hires come from this small list of schools.

Mr Kunle Olaifa, GE Africa's HR executive, defined the goals of the designation as a strategic university partner. Ashesi becomes the second such college on the continent, along with Strathmore College in Kenya. These schools are willing to work with GE and will see GE investing corporate & business resources to proactively build a sustainable employment brand, recruit & measure results. We were pleased to hear the comment that Ashesi hires had some of the "best ROI" of their African recruiting campaign to date.

One of the reasons Ashesi came to GE's attention was its focus on ethical leadership. Key qualifications included academic excellence & GE cultural fit, and the gender balance at Ashesi. GE also applauded Ashesi's goal of drawing students from a broader geographic area, an initiative supported by the Master Card Foundation.

What was most encouraging to me was the realization by GE that finding bright people in Africa is not particularly hard, but that GE's "DNA" of integrity is trickier. One of the alumni hires admitted that her experience at Ashesi exposed her to a community that expected ethical behavior, making it easier for her to "fit in" at GE. All in all, it made for a very encouraging morning.

Thanksgiving - Considering Africa's "Middle Class"

Charlie writes:

This had to be the strangest Thanksgiving for me in many years. Both Mary Kay and I worked, since it is not a Ghanaian holiday. Ken and Mary Kay joined friends at the home of other friends for a turkey dinner (including the requisite dressing and sauerkraut). By the time I arrived after the daily bumpy ride down off the mountain at 7:15pm, the only food left was pizza (well, I did get some pumpkin pie and dressing, too).

Lest I throw myself a pity party, Lloyd Amoah, one of my co-workers at Ashesi, sent along a link to the following report by the African Development Bank. The report, while many months old, shocked me with the idea that "middle class" for Africa includes those who make more than USD 2 per day, and making over USD 10 per day puts you in the "upper class." When I consider that I spend more than the lower amount on lunch each day, it puts my complaints in perspective!

Yet, the claim by AfDB is that incomes rising into that range have a large number of positive impacts on governance and lifestyle. People with something to lose tend to me more concerned about the government protecting them from abuse or theft. They also begin to save, and consider investing in their children's education. Birth rates go down. Health improves. And Africa has been moving in that direction.

There is still far to go. Last week, Lloyd also forwarded the text of an address that Kwaku Sakyi-Addo, the entering CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Telecoms made at their recent inaugural meeting. As he fussed Telecoms is no Tobacco Industry before the National Communications Authority, which had just fined all the mobile operators big bucks for "poor service quality," he stuck a nerve for all of us up at Ashesi. He commented:

Chairman, there are external factors peculiar to our third world environment, and over which mobile operators have little or no control, but which impact the quality of service; factors that you will not find in the First World.

...

Power outages and diesel thefts also prevent base stations from functioning without undue interruption. It’s extremely unlikely that you’ll run into a man on the M1 in the UK or along the autobahn near Berlin trying to peddle diesel by the gallon to passing motorists.

This lack of infrastructure and the costs to private operations for services that are taken for granted in the US have concentrated our minds out in Berekuso. At the recent "Town Hall Meeting," Patrick expressed his frustration at the huge expenses that Ashesi is now incurring because of roads, electricity, and water. Most of the staff refuse to drive to the campus for fear of ruining their vehicles, and the entire campus has been afflicted with over-voltage and blackout-induced failures, including the destruction of the pump that provides us with drinking water from our private borehole. This last week, the University elected to run the Administration block off diesel backup after measuring voltages from 100 to 400 volts on a nominally 220 volt system. And he announced that the school has had to pay 4500 GHS (about USD 3000) to have water trucked up the hill for sanitation over a two week period. This is a huge burden when you are trying to run a "first world" operation in a "third world" context. And to juxtapose these charges with the idea that a "middle income" begins at $2/day, which would represent working "four years" to pay for two our last two week's worth of water...

I'm just pleased to be working with folks that are trying to do their best in this environment.

But even more so, that God sent his Son to be born in barn and laid in a feeding trough!

Have a Merry Christmas

Philippians 2:5-11 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

"Dead Aid"

Charlie writes: I've been reading a book that I had seen
in Schiphol airport on the way back from The Mission Society's
eastern hemisphere meeting. The author, Dambisa Moyo, is an
economist who was born in Zambia, but then schooled in the
USA and UK, later working for the World Bank and Goldman
Sachs. Her thesis is that the reason Sub-saharan Africa
has floundered for the past fifty years is the trillion
dollars that the World Bank and developed nations have
dumped on them. The insidious unintended consequences of
aid (dependency, corruption, opacity, etc.) have left
those countries in worse shape than they were before the
aid began.

The excerpt below really rung true for me this week:


Although Africa is at the centre of the universe in the
area-accurate Peters Projection Map (occupying a much-coveted
proximity to the industrialized hubs of Europe and America),
it takes way too long to transport goods on its
nonnavigable rivers, impassable bridges, and pot-holed roads.
Besides, to state the obvious, no profit-seeking company can
afford to bet on Africa's unreliable power and erratic
telecommunications as the source of its manufactured
inputs. Of course, were Africa's dire infrastructure predicament
remedied, its chance for higher-valued trade (thereby distancing
itself from the tag of commodity exporter) could dramatically
improve.


as Ashesi struggled today with limited electricity. There
were a series of strong rains yesterday, and the power was
coming on and off all afternoon. Apparently, the circuitry
connecting the four backup diesel generators to the property's
circuits require that fuses be physically removed to isolate
the generators from the mains. During the repeated ons
and offs something was ''spoilt'' on three of the four.

Since starting at Ashesi, I've really begun to depend on
Courseware, the Moodle-based LMS (Learning Management System).
It enables me to set and collect all the assignments as well
as posting all the lecture slides which Ashesi is trying to put
out there so that Google and webometrics will find them and
credit Ashesi with a variety of learning resources. Of course,
if the electricity is out, the server (and the phones, printers,
canteen cash register, projectors) will also be out. I lectured
using my laptop on battery to review my slides, but had to
do a lot more writing on the board than I typically would have.
And we resorted to ''sneaker-net'' to distribute Assignment 7 on
a pen-drive to all the student laptops.

Tonight, I was able to log on from Cantonments, so apparently
the lights must have come back on!

Sub-Saharan African Economics

Charlie writes...

Today at Ashesi, Dr. Augustin Fosu, who is deputy director of the UN WIDER (World Institute for Development Economics Research) center in Finland, delivered a lecture on the topic of how Sub-Saharan African economies have fared during the credit crunch and ensuing bad times around the world. The story was actually rather encouraging.

Apparently, since the mid 1990's, the GDP (and to a lesser extend, GDP per capita) for Sub-Saharan countries have moved upward at a rate nearly equal to those of the Asian Tigers and BRIC countries. Even during the credit crunch and trade shocks following those events, their economies did not dip as deeply, and even seem to have been more resilient to the dip, recovering more rapidly than other countries. Ghana, in particular is really heating up, as a Ghanaian in the diaspora mentioned here, it has been reported the fasting growing economy in the world this year!

As an expert in econometrics and the data collected by the UN and World Bank, Dr. Fosu had published articles in refereed journals noting that this improvement seems to be coincident with a blossoming of democracy across the continent. If countries are able to navigate the change from autocracy to democracy without descending into chaos (which he admits has happened in several countries), they become more appealing to FDI (Foreign Direct Investment). In early, destitute conditions, external aid is vital, but many of the countries in SSA are now moving beyond such overwhelming reliance on outside help, and are growing well.

Also encouraging is the observation that finally, it seems like this rising tide is starting to float more boats. The reduction in abject poverty is becoming noticeable in many countries, including Ghana.

He cautioned that the distortions of the oil boom and gold price increases might not be managed well for the further support of the poor in Ghana, but was encouraged upon visiting here (he will be a visiting scholar at University of Ghana, Legon this year) to hear debates in parliament about the use of oil revenues. Transparency will likely be an important issue.

When asked about how such money should be spent, he admitted that the strict "savings only" approach used by Norway would not be appropriate in Ghana, as there were still major development challenges needing funding. As it seems everyone who visits Ashesi remarks, he highlighted an improved transportation network. The US Ambassador had mentioned he felt like "fufu" on his way up the mountain, and I have already reported on the bone-jarring trip the Ashesi staff endure twice a day.

Today, I noticed on the way out that the first sandy place which had been absolutely awful in the morning had been smoothed out and filled with more sand this evening. Why sand is used still escapes me, after tonight's rain/dew the place will likely be back to the prior condition. There is also some work being done on the crater pictured at the head of this post.

²³ Be sure you know the condition of your flocks,
give careful attention to your herds;
²⁴ for riches do not endure forever,
and a crown is not secure for all generations.
²⁵ When the hay is removed and new growth appears
and the grass from the hills is gathered in,
²⁶ the lambs will provide you with clothing,
and the goats with the price of a field.
²⁷ You will have plenty of goats’ milk to feed your family
and to nourish your female servants.
from Proverbs 27 (NIV)

A New Beginning - Ashesi University

Charlie writes...

This Monday was my first day at Ashesi University. After five years at Methodist University, I was ready for a change, and the Ashesi approach to private tertiary education in Ghana was and is compelling.

Ashesi, which means "Beginning" in the Akan language, was founded in 2005. Next week, students will be joining us on a brand new campus in Berekuso, atop a hill overlooking Accra. As you can see from the photos at the last link, the facilities are in a lush, somewhat cooler climate than the lower elevations. The first phase of construction has the library at the highest point, with three other wings containing faculty offices, administration, and classrooms. Adjoining the Founder's Quad is the dining area. The hostels (dorms) which will house 60 male and 240 female students, (out of this year's expected population of 500 students) are below that. The rest of the students will be renting space elsewhere and commuting.

WAEC (West Africa Exams Council) has delayed the testing and reporting of WASSCE (West Africa Senior Secondary School Certification Exams, the analog of SATs in the USA) results this year. Thus, Ashesi's admission decisions will be delayed and our first year students will not be coming to the campus until October 24.

I am glad to be in an office with a window out onto the central courtyard, with windows that open on two sides for ventilation. So far, I have not turned on the air conditioning, but all the rooms are so equipped. They were able to provision computer and email on my first day, impressive!

Alex Inkoom, the HR Manager had organized a two-day program to orient new staff. We heard from the founder, the dean of students, academic dean, facilities manager, librarian, nurse, as well as the career services and IT directors. We also saw a quick run-through of Ashesi's computerized LMS (Learning Management System), called FOCUS. It is based upon Moodle, which I had already used.

I was inspired by the founder's address, which outlined the mission and some of the strategic decisions that have been made recently. It was refreshing to hear that Ashesi will not copy the recent explosive growth in size of both public and other private university colleges. Knowing that a school of 500 to 2000 students is an entirely different place than one of 5000 or 10,000 is important. The impact on the students can be significant in a smaller school, as I have been reading in the book "Colleges That Change Lives" by Loren Pope. With any luck, the new campus will greatly increase the number of candidates applying for admission. Coupled with a limited population, this could mean a student body with fewer students from the lower half of their high schools.

This term I will be teaching Quantitative Methods. Fortunately, the content is rather similar to a combination of the statistics and Operations Research classes I have been teaching at MUCG. Also, I share an office with Andrew Nunekpeku, who has taught the class before, and who will be teaching the other section. Still, starting on Monday will be a challenge to my organizational skills.

Much of the staff is riding Ashesi's GET (Ghana Education Trust) Fund-supplied bus back and forth to work, which is a good thing since the road to Berekuso from Kwabenya looks like a minefield. Ken says the video looks like an amusement park ride! In one section, half the road has completely washed away. Mary Kay has been dropping me off at 6:40 a.m. and picking me up at 6:45 p.m. from the former campus, which will be the first stop for the bus until Ashesi establishes a smaller satellite office in Accra somewhere for admissions processing after the new year.

Thursday, the IP telephones were labeled and plugged in, and the network engineer was programming the main switch. He trained us on how to use the new phones this afternoon.

At lunch Thursday, a fourth-year student working on a research project with the dean asked me what brought me to Ghana. He was a bit surprised when I answered "God did," but was interested in hearing about The Jackson Journey.



Lamentations 3:22-23 Because of the LORD's great love, we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Light of the World

Mary Kay writes…

Easter Saturday was a Red Letter Day for the village of Fawomanye near the coast of Ghana between Winneba and Cape Coast.

My first interaction with Fawomanye was in the fall of 2007. I went there at the behest of friends from Arizona State University to assess their water situation and determine whether or not the village water supply was suitable for treatment using ceramic pot filters. I journeyed out with my test kit to take measurements of turbidity (off the charts), bacteriological contamination (yes!), and other potential contaminants (not really). I was watched with close scrutiny as I took water samples, mixed in reagents, used test strips, etc. I met under the fig tree with the chief and elders to discuss the potential project and ascertain their level of interest.

The village elders were impressed with my scientific props (in restrospect, this must often look like alchemy to villagers). And they were interested in the promise of help in treating their water supply. The village did have one borehole, but the pump was broken, and they were not really interested in fixing it, as the water was too salty to drink anyway. They did use the water to make cement/mud blocks for building, but they could use the nearby pond, which was currently their source of drinking water, for that, too. But at the end of the day, the oldest man in the village engaged me in a long discussion of what the village really needed – electricity. All of this was in Twi, so I probably only got every third or fourth word, but as there is no word for electricity in the local language, I did get the gist of the subject. He was pointing toward the high-voltage transmission lines that could be seen in the distance and was asking why, if power was so close, they couldn’t have it. And could I help?

Now, I am a Water Engineer. I did take one Electrical Engineering class in college, but only because I had to. All I could think of was to say (in my halting Twi), “Yε bisa Nyame.” (We will ask God.) I left thinking that they were a bit ungrateful not to be more thankful for my water help, and what could I do about electricity anyway? But I guess it never hurts to ask!

Now 4 years later, in the strange ways often ordained by God, they have electricity. My generous friends at ASU and Desert Cross Lutheran Church have raised the money to purchase power poles, street lamps, and to subsidize the electrical wiring of homes. I have joined local delegations to visit the Ministry of Energy and the Electricity Company of Ghana to advocate for their service. It has been a long and sometimes frustrating journey, but sometime this week, the lights will come on for the first time!

But the more exciting part for me was to be able to testify to the village about God’s glory on Saturday. As we once again gathered under the fig tree in the center of the village, I gave thanks to God for the provision of electricity. But I also reminded the village that Jesus is the Light of the World, and that if we follow Him, we will no longer walk in spiritual darkness (John 8:12). Furthermore, if we are following Jesus, we are called in turn to be light to those in darkness around us (Matthew 5:14-16). So I asked the villagers to see their new-found electricity as a reminder that they are to be light to those around them to the glory of God.

May the people of Fawomanye and I never forget that we are called to be Christ's light in a dark world!

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12, NIV)

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16, NIV)

Easter Lamb (and Goat, too!)

Charlie writes,

During a recent trip north, Mary Kay was presented with two animals by the chief in Sekote. A partner church in the USA had sent funds to construct a new secondary vocational school there, and he wanted to express his appreciation for the gift. To reject the animals or even offer them to hungry local people would not have been honourable. So she arranged for the animals to be parked at the local pastor's place, and then ferried back to Accra on the deadhead return of a Pure Home Water supply run. For those of you who did not grow up around animals (like me), you can tell the sheep from the goats by which way the tails stand (tails up, like the white goat to the left, tails down, like the brown sheep on the right). Since she was up in Tamale when the cute animals arrived at the house, she texted me to deal with the situation.

Mary Kay suggested I just take the animals to the local butcher, which in retrospect would have been best, but our day security man said he knew a local butcher who did housecalls. So on Wednesday, he came over with the torch and the two of them butchered the sheep and the goat for us. After slitting the throats, the next step is to burn the fur off. In the north, they would just throw the carcass into the fire, but here in Accra, you use a flame thrower that hooks into the LP gas tank we use for the stove. The smell is quite strong, but it is much easier and faster than trying to shave the fur off.

The heat doesn't help the smell of slaughtering - I can see why they waited until winter to butcher hogs on "Little House on the Prairie". Fortunately we did not have to smear the blood on our door jamb and lintel as we are already covered in the blood of the Lamb! Thank goodness we don't have to practice ritual animal sacrifice anymore!

Then, the hide is washed with Key soap and water. The results are then cut with a sharp knife into various pieces, including ribs, legs, and neck. I washed the pieces a second time in the sink, then sealed them in ziplock bags before loading them in the deep freeze.

Should have double-bagged, as more blood leaked out of some of the bags, and Mary Kay and I had to spend an hour emptying the deep freeze and washing all the other bags which had frozen blood over them, tossing food which had been spoiled by contamination by the blood. Also had to defrost and chlorox the deep freeze. Then, the electric phase powering the deep freeze went out, so we had to crank the generator to get the meat frozen.

Not sure what we will do with the meat, which all still has hide attached, but that will be an adventure after Easter. We'll be sharing a treasured ham, brought from the US and NOT butchered by us, with Michael and Darrell when they spend Easter evening with us before traveling on to Kumasi for their missionary mobilization conference. Have a blessed Easter!

NO GAS: waiting for LP gas ...OR: A lesson in Economics

Charlie writes:

Last week, we ran out of cooking gas in our blue 15kg bottle, and switched over to our second one. I figured we could go by either of Dansoman's two fuel stations for a re-fill, but found it not so easy.

Earlier in the week, the station in the neighborhood of MUCG was dispensing gas to a long line of taxis, making the access to the campus more congested than usual. By the time I made it there, the 3-foot-square white painted plywood sign with red letters "SORRY NO GAS" was back in place, and the station was locked.

Later in the week, we saw a similar long line of taxicabs near Control Goil station. Since High Street is being worked on, all the traffic is rumbling over dirt roads parallel to it, and again the line of cabs was obstructing traffic. I stopped by on Friday with our tank, and the attendant just shook his head, then suggested that I come back at 6 a.m. when the line would be shorter. I

counted about 100 tanks waiting to be filled, and the attendant said it would be a four hour wait.

This morning, our driver was running late (another road closing) but advised that the queue was of a manageable length, so I could try again if I got there around 7 a.m. I loaded the tank in the back seat of the Carina, then parked outside the station. There was a line of about 20 tanks awaiting the pay station, where the attendant would eyeball your tank, then quote your

fee (I paid GHC 12.20, about USD 8 for the 14.5 kg of gas, sold at just over 80 pesewas per kilo).

She dispensed change and a two-inch square receipt with the quantity purchased and today's date.

Next, I carried the tank to the end of the line snaking back from the chain-link fenced cage. Here several operators (all male) wearing bright blue jumpsuits were handling the LP gas filling operation. Everyone was patiently waiting for their turn, and as tanks were brought into the cage, the whole line would advance a few feet. The men would move the womens' tanks, letting them sit on the bench provided. Everyone from a girl who looked about 10 years old, to market women, mothers with babies on their backs, and young men were attentive to their place in

the queue, and there was surprisingly little conversation going on.

When someone's tank was filled, the operators would heft it from the scale, and half roll, half swing the tank down to the entrance of the cage. The young men would often carry them off stiff-armed straight overhead, carrying them as a lifter might carry a barbell weight, in a

horizontal position, grasping the bottom ring and the top flange. Most women would place the tank atop their heads, using a small rolled cloth to cushion their skulls from the metal edge of the bottom ring. One woman begged the attendant to help her carry her tank, she holding one

end while he the other, until they got to the main road, where she could hail a cab. I noticed a handtruck near the gate, so used it to lug my filled tank back to the car, belting it into the back seat for the trip home. During the hour that I was at the station, I believe I was the only one to do that.

The whole experience reminded me of a summer in the 1970s, when I sat in our family car during the gasoline crisis in the USA. Today, the Goil folks were not accepting taxis at

their station, I presume they are nearing the end of their supply and would prefer to dispense gas for cooking than for driving. According to Dean Osborne Jackson, my local economic advisor, the main cause of the lines is that the price set by the government is sub-market. Therefore, taxi drivers have moved in great numbers towards LP fuel. This interested me, so I checked with Mr. CDK Opoku, an economics lecturer. This resulted in a long discussion about markets and African politics. If you pull up a chair, here's the rest of the story...

The Government of Ghana had worried that her forests were being cut down to make charcoal for cooking fires. To relieve pressure on the forests, Ghana, as well as some other African

countries, promotes the use of LP Gas for cooking. In order to make the cost attractive, the Government, which is the only entity allowed to import petroleum products, enters into agreements for the supply of crude oil from Nigeria and other oil states. Then the Tema Oil Refinery produces petrol and LPG from the crude. The government subsidizes the cost of the LPG. CDK believes the market price for my tank would be about GHC 20, rather than the

GHC 12.20 that is charged.

During the last administration, the Government of Ghana entered into a 90 day credit facility with Nigeria for crude oil. Nigeria required that their oil be carried on Nigerian vessels to use the facility, and the current government of Ghana claims that there were payoffs being made to certain unnamed parties on this carriage, and withdrew from the deal. Now, LPG must be bought on the spot market for cash, rather than refined from crude here on credit. So, there

is a reduced supply, since the Government does not have sufficient funds to purchase and subsidize the quantities demanded. Ironically, since the prices are subsidized, the taxi operators have found that it is cheaper for them to run taxis on LPG than petrol. In yet another example of unintended consequences to government programs, the LPG demand has grown dramatically.

And there are taxi drivers who are already dropping LPG tanks off to be filled while they wait at other stations to fill their tanks. It is likely that they use the other tanks to unsafely fill their taxi tanks. So clearly, it would be impossible to set a different price for domestic and automotive use of LPG.

Who'd have thought I'd learn so much economics from a simple transaction so Mary Kay can cook dinner?

Couple Time

Charlie writes:

Today marks 24 years of marriage for me and Mary Kay. It has been interesting to spend a week back in our old haunts around Atlanta, but without either of our boys. Ken is down in Brazil, visiting our missionary colleagues, the Reyes, while Chip is busy at summer school in Blacksburg, VA. The two of us had spent a short time in Utah in early July, visiting Mary Kay's brother and a supporting church in Park City before spending two days in the southern part of the state, enjoying the incredible scenery at Bryce Canyon and at the Capitol Reef National Monument.

We have been able to meet with some long-standing friends on this trip, and as we share stories and hear about their lives, it strikes me how encouraging it is when such friends affirm our decision to extend our stay in Ghana another two years.

Yesterday, we spoke at Dunwoody UMC, our home church in the USA, and shared photos of water projects, clay pot water filters, teaching at the University, and such. After lunch with the Mathis's, who have opened their home to us this month, Mary Kay and I drove on up to North Georgia and tromped about, looking for waterfalls. We visited one we had not seen before, called Helton Creek Falls, which was not particularly well-marked, but listed on the Georgia Trails website. On the way back, we stopped in to hike the 3/4 mile trail to the upper DeSoto Falls. Even though the temperatures in Atlanta were in the mid-90's, the forests were still very green and remarkably cool. Then on our way home, the usual afternoon thundershowers cooled things down nicely.

The walks brought back fond memories of other walks Mary Kay and I have taken, especially those in forests. Don't get much chance to do that in Ghana, and I miss that.

Our time in the US is flying, we will gather as a nuclear family of four this weekend in Virginia. I'm looking forward to catching up with both boys, maybe spending some more time out on rivers or in forests, which are beautiful in western Virginia.

Innumeracy in High Places

Charlie says:

As a math lecturer, I'm always interested in seeing the confusion many people have about the subject. Tuesday of this week, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission here in Ghana announced new tariffs. Here's the headline: "UTILITY BILLS UP: Electricity by 89%, Water by 36%." (Story by Michael Donkor, Daily Graphic, Tuesday, 1 June, 2010)

Now, this seemed a bit extreme, so we read on:

Consumers will now pay a total of 125 per cent increase in utility bills following an upward adjustment of 89 percent in electricity and 36 per cent in water tariffs announced yesterday by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC).

Speaking at a press conference, the Chairman of the PURC, Dr. Emmanuel K. Annan, explained that the increases were arrived at after a wide range of individual and institutional stakeholders consultation to solicit views.

He said for electricity, consumers within the threshold of 0-50 would continue to pay the old tariff of 9.5Gp, while those within the range of 51-300 would now pay 17Gp as against the existing 12Gp.

He said those within the range of 301-600 would pay 21Gp, as against the existing 16Gp, with those within the range of 601 and above paying 23Gp, as against the existing 19Gp.

Dr. Annan said in adjusting the tariffs for electricity, the commission did not lose sight of the social impact on and fairness to consumers, hence the lifeline tariff for electricity consumers.

He said, however, that consumers in the residential category of between 51-300 units had an increase of 42 per cent per kilowatt-hour, which translated into 17Gp per kilowatt-hour, up from the existing 12Gp per kilowatt-hour.

Dr. Annan said the increase was partly to restore the value of the tariff in dollar terms, which dropped from 13 cents per kilowatt-hour in November 2007 to eight cents per kilowatt-hour in November 2009 as a result of exchange rate depreciation.

He explained that it was also to ensure that consumers of electricity got value for money through an improvement in the quality of service being delivered by the utility service providers.

Dr. Annan said that the increase was based on a projected hydro/thermal generation mix of 60/40 and it was envisaged that the delivery of natural gas from Nigeria and its use in the generation of thermal energy later in the year would have an impact on generation tariffs.

He said the increase in tariffs fell substantially below the level requested by the utility companies and left a financial gap of approximately GHc49 million.

On water, Dr Annan said the current adjustment was meant to assist the GWCL/AVRL meet key operational costs, such as the cost of chemicals for the treatment of water, replacement of obsolete equipment, maintenance of the system, among others.

He gave the assurance that the commission would closely monitor the GWCL's performance and would not hesitate to impose the necessary sanctions where laid-down benchmarks were not adhered to.

He reiterated that tariffs alone could not raise all the desired funds for investments, maintenance, replacement and refurbishment of utility equipment and, accordingly, advised the government to continue sourcing investment funds to supplement the tariff income.

He said that would enable the utilities to achieve the desired level of investments in service delivery.

He said the PURC would ensure that stringent but realistic quality of service benchmarks under relevant regulations were adhered to by the utility service providers.

Dr Annan said failure to comply with these benchmarks would result in the application of penalties and sanctions under the regulations.

Ken read the story and figured the 89% number came from adding the percentages in each of the bands, I guess that is as good an explanation as we'll ever get. To recap, here is a table:

Band old new %increase

0-50 9.5 9.5 0%

51-300 12 17 42%

301-600 16 21 31%

601+ 19 23 21%

and the sum of these is 93%, close to the 89%, but clearly not the correct number. The Graphic had to print a front page retraction later in the week. I suppose the summing of the 89% and the 36% to get a total of 125% falls in the same category...