Cellphones

Cellphone use has skyrocketed in Ghana over the last decade. Of a population of 24.7million (2011 estimate), there are merely 267,000 (2009) land lines and over 15.109 million (2009) cellphone users that grows each day. I find it very interesting how Ghana, and indeed many African countries, have basically skipped the landline phase and have transitioned smoothly to using cellphones. Even at my office, landline phones are non-existent. I knew based on my pre-departure research that cellphones are considerably cheaper than in Canada (let’s face it - anywhere is cheaper than Canada). The phones themselves start at 20 cedi ($15), and for that you get a simple phone with a flashlight and FM radio. For that little, that’s pretty great value. Phones can range up to 1100 cedi for the brand new BlackBerry Torch, if you are feeling flush with cash. I don’t often see people walking around with BlackBerrys except on campus where I see people with them all the time. iPhones and Android phones are also becoming more popular for those who can afford them. Some people have multiple cellphones. This seems rather excessive however once you experience the unreliability of cellphone networks in Ghana, it makes sense to have multiple phones with different networks in case one network goes down.

There are a few key differences between the Ghanian system and the Canadian one.

Firstly, there are many different service providers in Ghana from MTN, TiGO, AirTel, Vodafone, and the new GLO which has yet to start providing service. Unlike in Canada where you are very limited in your options (Bell, Rogers and Telus being the main three), all of the companies here are independent and switching between networks is no more difficult than either porting your number to the new network or simply buying a new SIM card. Secondly, in Ghana a SIM card will set you back 1 cedi or approx 60 cents CAD. In Canada these tiny little chips can cost upwards of $20. Some people have phones with slots for two SIM cards for different networks which is great because you never know when a particular network is going to be down. Once you have paid for your SIM card, you can start adding credit to your phone by buying the scratch cards being sold pretty much everywhere. Enter the unique number code and you are ready to start using your phone. Unlike in Canada where you pay that silly $7 monthly network fee and that emergency number fee, here whatever money you spend on credit is yours to use. 

Data, something I could never afford at home, is completely affordable here. I use Vodafone and I pay for what I use. Most networks require BlackBerry users to pay for a data subscription that is valid for a month. It is really really handy to be able to get online whenever I need to wherever I am. I find my BlackBerry internet the most reliable internet access I have.

Cellphone usage has many headaches in Ghana. It is beyond frustrating when you are trying to make a call and it drops every 30 seconds or simply doesn’t connect. It is equally frustrating when my SMS messages seem to evaporate into thin air, never reaching the recipient. It is puzzling that I get excellent service in my building but if I go to the buildings on either side of mine, I can’t get reception if my life depended on it. There are also days where BBM or the internet just doesn’t work despite my best efforts.

Welcome to Ghana!

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Get Used to it

Traveling to Africa, you know that you are not going to have all of the comforts of home. Beyond not having your friends and family around, there are some major lifestyle changes I’ve had to make. It’s not all bad - some things have actually enhanced my life and my well-being. Other things less so.

The first thing is showers. A lot of places do not have running hot water or if they do, it is more expensive or doesn’t work regularly. For someone who enjoys showers so hot that my skin turns red, I’m impressed with how little a cold shower at the end of every day bothers me. You learn to shower very quickly and not to waste water. I am lucky that my building is equipped with showers that actually work - some people have no choice but to use buckets to shower. If you are capable of having a bucket shower (I have yet to attempt this feat), you can have hot water if you boil some in advance. Another bothersome thing is when the water in the building gets shut off. Going to bed dirty and sweaty when I have to work the next morning just plain sucks. When there are well over 250 people living in your building with communal bathrooms, you can imagine the state of things when the water isn’t running. Did I mention I live on the University of Ghana campus?

Staying clean once you get clean is a challenge. Even if you get a shower and put on clean clothes, you are going to be sweaty and dirty within 10 minutes of going outside. Unlike the locals who wear suits or jeans, I am still getting used to the heat and wearing pants to work is very hot. To be fair, 9 times out of 10 I really don’t care how I look when I go out; it’s hot, I want to be comfortable, and doing my hair or makeup is futile because it won’t look good in an hour.

The second biggest thing is laundry. The overwhelming majority of the population still does their laundry by hand in buckets. I could take my laundry to another residence on campus and pay for my clothes to be laundered however I have come to enjoy doing laundry by hand. I love doing laundry at home as it is an easy and relaxing task so I have added doing laundry to my daily routine here. Because of the heat and dust, I’m washing my clothes very regularly. Another incentive to do laundry frequently is that ants love dirty clothes and seeing as leaving any food lying around will prompt an ant invasion, its best for me to wash my clothes often. It’s amazing how well the laundry powder works! I’m pretty good at using both the laundry soap bar and the powder to get my clothes as clean as possible.

Another big difference between Ghana and Canada is that it is impolite not to greet people that you meet on the street. While it’s just about impossible to greet every single person on the street, I make sure to greet the people I see regularly. It does take longer to get anywhere but it really makes my day when people take the time to stop and speak to me.

The internet. What we know to be the internet in Canada is NOT what the internet is here in Ghana. I’m very lucky because I bought a BlackBerry and it has fantastic internet. Frequently it’s quicker and more reliable than wireless or my modem. But generally, I’m getting used to infrequent and slower internet. At work (where the internet is pretty darn good), I will look things up while reading the newspaper because it does take longer. It doesn’t bother me, I just work slower.

The final thing is getting used to buying food on the street. Normally, I wouldn’t be so quick to purchase food from people on the street but in Ghana, restaurants are very slow and expensive. Most people instead will purchase food in the market or from a stand by the side of the road. Sometimes you get some not so good food, even the same stall will have great food one day and bad food the next. It is impressive that I get dinner for less than a dollar. I couldn’t cook for myself for a dollar. 

This is just a few things that I thought of off the top of my head about life in Ghana. Depending on the day, I am much better equipped to deal with the potential problems (like lack of water, getting hassled by taxis on the street, finding something to eat etc.), that I face. A positive attitude and no expectations makes it easier to deal with.