Ghanaian water bags

You can't drink the tap water in Ghana - assuming that there is tap water in the first place. That said, fresh drinkable water is never far from reach. Fresh, purified water is for sale pretty much everywhere. It's difficult to scan an average scene in Ghana and not see someone wandering around selling sachets of water, just like the lady in the picture above. Ghanaians bite a tiny bit off the corner of the sachets and drink the water straight from the bag.

The guys at Maker Afircan Faire were thinking about what else they can do with these bags and came up with some interesting ideas including how they could use the bag to generate electricity by using them to create small turbines. Read more on their blog over here.

Windmills in Africa

It's difficult to talk about African inventions and innovation without mentioning William Kamkwamba. Indeed, his name came up more than just a few times at Maker Africa Faire. When he was just 14 years old, this Malawian inventor made his family a windmill. William's family was so poor he had to leave school. But then, one fateful day, he saw a picture of a windmill and started to learn all about them, until he built one himself.

He's a huge inspiration to other inventors in Africa and his success is legendary. It's remarkable how a boy from a relatively unknown village can end up in the states on a book tour. The guys I met in Ghana would probably call that African spirit.

Maker Faire Africa

While I was in Accra I was lucky enough to find myself in the company of Africa's hottest inventors, desingers, web geeks and entrepreneurs for one, glorious afternoon.

Maker Faire Africa was an awesome event that celebrated  African ingenuity, innovation and invention.

The event was unbelievablly inspiring. Over the next few days I'm going to share some of the hottest African inventions with you.

This short film about Maker Faire Africa is a great start. And of course, get in touch if you'd like to know about any inventions or have any questions.

Red-red, come and get it

I've written about red-red before.

It is my favourite, favouirte of the Ghanaian dishes I sampled on my trip - and when I tell you I ate it all, I seriously mean it!

When I returned home, I made it my mission to learn how to make a few of the dishes I'd sampled in Africa. Red-red was top of the list. 

Here's how it's done:

• 1 can or about 300g of black eyed beans
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 can crushed tomatoes
• 1 scotch bonnet or habanero pepper
• 1 chopped red onion
• Loads of garlic and ginger

Heat the oil in a pan and add the garlic and onion. Fry for a bit, until the smells sweeted and they start to go a little translucent. Add the tomatoes and the pepper (you might want to remove the seeds from teh peper first, because it's really fiery). Let the sauce cook for ages, reduce and deepen in flavour. You'll know it's ready when the oils rise to the top. At this stage, add the beans. Let it simmer for about ten minutes, season and it's ready.

Serve with plantain, sliced the long way and fried until they're all golden and luscious.

Great interview with Harriet Lamb

The FAIRTRADE Mark just turned fifteen. As part of thier celebration they published a great interview with the Fairtrade Foundation's  Executive Director Harriet Lamb. Here's a little snippet:

How do you feel about the 15th anniversary of the FAIRTRADE Mark?

The Fairtrade movement is a typical teenager. It’s growing quickly, it’s full of energy and passion for the cause and full of anger at the injustice that still exists across the world. I feel proud of our achievements and yet dismayed that across the world, many people who supply our tea, coffee, sugar and cotton are still struggling to cover their costs and can’t plan for tomorrow.

What is your favourite Fairtrade product of the last 15 years?

Can I have two? The first would have to be bananas from the Windward Islands. When the farmers came together in 2000 and began to engage with Fairtrade their status and influence was boosted and farmers began to take over managing the supply chain. My second favourite product is Palestinian olive oil which was launched this year. It is so moving to hear of the problems farmers face even just to tend their crops and so fantastic to learn how Fairtrade can play a part in underpinning peace by offering an economic outlet. 

Have you met any of the first producers to be certified from Belize, India or Costa Rica? What ways has the premium been used to improve communities?’

I have been lucky enough to meet many producers over the years and they are always inspiring. I have also seen the various ways in which the Fairtrade premium has made a difference. The beauty of the premium is that local communities decide how to spend it and they are the experts in knowing what they need locally.

Read the rest of the interview here. 

Jill's Ghanaian Wisdom

Meet Jill Frankland, a volunteer with VSO in Ghana fro Kent in England. Most of the time I sent in Ghana was with Danielle and Jill. Together, their wisdom enlightened my experience and made it totally magical. Thanks ladies. Jill though, does deserve a special mention, this grandmother is full of bite and great spirit, always ready to dance, laugh and live life to the full.

Along with telling me to get used to the noise and the seasonal fruit and veg which means you can't get anything out of season. Living with the seasons, especially in places like Suhum, often means spending months trying to make the most of garden eggs. She was always full of little piece of wisdom, here are two of my favourite lessons:

• Ghanaian's regularly call each other and hang up before the other person answers the phone. This is called mobile phone flashing and it's a great way to let someone know you're thinking of them without being charged for a call or text.
• Ghanaians can party anywhere. Any place in Ghana with blue and white stripes painted on the outside is a spot. And when I say anywhere, that's exactly what I mean. I'm talking about old shipping containers and rooms behind petrol stations.

Chocolate Fun

If one thing's universal, it's chocolate. It brings supermodels and novelists together, policians and emporers. The proof, as if you needed it, are right here in these great quores we stumbled across:

‘Life without chocolate is life lacking something important.' Writers Marcia Colman Morton and Frederic Morton

'Once in a while I say, 'go for it and I eat chocolate.' Claudia Schiffer

''There's nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend with CHOCOLATE '  Linda Grayson

'The divine drink, which builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink (cocoa) permits a man to walk for a whole day without food.'   Montezuma - Aztec Emperor (c. 1480-1520)

‘Biochemically, love is just like eating large amounts of chocolate.’ John Milton

‘Exercise is a dirty word.  Every time I hear it I wash my mouth out with chocolate.” Charles M Schultz

Meet Anna Swaithes

A community meeting in a local church.

What is your job title?

I am Head of Development for the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership – a bit of a mouthful I know.

How long have you been working at Cadbury?

I have been working on the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership for a year now, though to begin with I was just supporting the team with a governance review.

Can you recount a story or tell us about a moment that has been a particular highlight for you while working on this project?

It’s difficult to choose, but I’ll pick one that’s fresh in my mind. I have just returned from my latest trip to Ghana, and I spent two days out in the field in Asunafo North and Amansie West districts where our partner CARE International is working. In Atoborako village, Amansie West, we met with members of the community and heard about the progress they have been making since CARE started work with them as part of the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership a year ago. One of the key needs that the community identified in the planning process that CARE facilitated was for toilet facilities. They have already dug these. Farmers are working together on one another's farms, recognising how they can achieve more as a collective than individually. The atmosphere was buoyant, and the attitude of community members was all about working together to imrpove their farms and their community. For me, this was a great moment.

Scott, one of our blog readers had some questions about the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership.

Firstly, who the actual partners are in the partnership? Who is specifically involved in the partnership on both sides. Who are the Cadbury people involved and who are the Ghanaian people involved? Secondly, how have the roles and responsibilities in terms of the partnership been developed? What are the various roles and responsibilities and who are the people in those roles?

The partnership is a fairly flexible (and ever evolving) structure. Both internationally and in Ghana, we have Boards that are responsible for decision making on investment. The International Board is chaired by Cadbury's CEO and has several other members of senior Cadbury management, as well as the Director of ICI, the Director of Anti-Slavery International, a senior Environmental Economics advisor from UNDP, and a representative from the Ghana Board.

The Ghana Board is co-chaired by the Ghana Cocoa Board and Cadbury, and also has representation from Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, several farmer representatives, several development representatives and a further Cadbury representative. UNDP advises the Board. Then we have the partners in Ghana who receive funding to implement programmes on the ground. These include VSO, CARE International, World Vision, Cocoa Board and Fairtrade cooperative Kuapa Kokoo. Over time we will be working more and more with farmer organisations directly. Fairtrade is a key partner globally and in Ghana, though they don't sit on our Boards. We have working group structures both internationally and in Ghana that act as a platform for bringing all these different partners together to develop and coordinate the programme. It is really about working together rather than funding a series of separate projects, and it is also very much about working as much as possible with Ghanaian institutions.

Also it’s important to say that the Cadbury Cocoa Partnership is not just Ghana. We are also investing in India and Dominican Republic, but the programme is newer there, so we haven't developed the partnership structures to the same degree.

Thirdly, is there any public formal or informal documentation on the partnership and its details and where might one access this information?

No, the Partnership is not a legal entity. It has its legal 'home' in Cadbury, but this is really to maximise efficiency. We don't want to use funds on setting up new HR systems, Finance systems etc when we can leverage the ones that Cadbury alrready has. The Partnership is set up as a standalone project with a ringfenced budget.

National Cocoa Day

National Cocoa Day 2009 was held in Suhum and attended by the chief of Akim Abuakwa
(a part of the Eastern Region which contains a few districts)

Ever since I returned to the UK from Ghana I've had mild pangs of nostalgia. The tumbling red earth, the dusty hot air, the smiling, joyous spirit and awesome people - Ghana has a lot to miss.

And if I'm totally honest, remaining in regular contact with Danielle isn't really helping. Her emails are full of the familiar awesomeness that you can only get in Ghana and though I love hearing from her and about them, the pangs of nostalgia do sharpen every time my inbox pings with an email from her.

Her most recent email was all about Cocoa Day - which she attended on my behalf. Here's what she wrote about it:

Every year, the 1^st October is COCOA DAY in all COPAL countries.

COPAL, the Cocoa Producers’ Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization instituted in January 1962 by representatives of the governments of five cocoa producing countries. The founding members are Ghana, Nigeria, Brazil, Ivory Coast and Cameroon. Other members are Dominican Republic, Gabon, Malaysia, Sao Tome and Prinicpe and Togo.

African countries account for approximately 70% of total cocoa production but only 3% of cocoa consumption.   COPAL recommended that all members initiate and sustain activities towards the promotion of local consumption of cocoa by changing the perception of cocoa. Each country was to put in place a National Promotion Committee which will develop and run activities.

 

This year the theme focused on the tremendous health and nutritional benefits of cocoa. Research has shown that cocoa has about 300 elements and has the highest level of antioxidants in all nature foods. Cocoa is believed when taken regularly to help in several ailments such as cardio-vascular diseases and reduce the aging process, among the many diseases it can prevent. Therefore, the Committee recommends the regular intake of cocoa and cocoa products by all persons for good health. 

In order to promote the consumption of cocoa, improve its perception and encourage people to eat more of it, a list of 43 reasons has been drawn up. It's a long list, but here are 5 of my favourites:

1. If you serve chocolate pie at a family reunion, you will have at least one thing the whole crew will agree on.
2. Help your kids excel in school. Bring their teachers chocolate
3. Chocolate makes a better gift than those little porcelain knick-knacks. Chocolate never needs dusting
4. Eat lots of chocolate to stretch your stomach out in preparation for thanksgiving
5. Chocolate can have a calming effect. It sure makes your in-laws easier to take.

I'll be tweeting some more of the 43 tips over here.

Zingolo Extra Extra!

Since our music single celebrating our move to Fairtrade went live we've had loads and loads of questions. People wanted to know what about the dancers, the head, the moves, the handshakes and loads of other stuff.

That's why we've released a special edition of the video, with extra information where you asked for it.

Enjoy!