Speech at the weltwaerts open forum in Accra, February, 15th 2011

In line with our mid-term seminar (yes, I am already halfway through) our oganiations  ijgd and ARA had organized an open forum at the Teacher’s Hall in Accra to address main issues volunteerism as a whole, difficulties in language etc. Among the guests were several elected host-families, project-partners, ARA and ijgd representatives as well as a cultural drumming group, enriching the event’s atmosphere. In order to color the whole thing up – as a pleasant relief from all the speeches that had been held before – Manuel and I (as the volunteer’s representatives) performed a dialogue, displaying our perception of long term volunteerism and giving a small insight into our present state of mind….

Volunteer (V): Mahaa-o, Kwesi. Etse däin?

Tourist (T): Excuse me… What did you say?

V: Me se, etse däin? It means “How are you?” in the local language Twi.”

T: Oh really, I never knew. So how come you speak the local language?

V: I am a weltwaerts volunteer and have been living in Ghana for six months so far.

T: Wow. That is so cool. As for me, I am here for two weeks only.

V: Okay, well, how do you like the country?

T: I have been having a really good time so far. Ghana’s beaches are amazing and then I also went to Mole- National Park in the North – the Safari was the coolest thing ever. I even think that I learned a lot about the culture when I went to Kumasi. They have this really neat cultural center there.

V: …Hm… Do you really think you get to know the culture just by visiting the cultural center?

T: What do you mean? Of course, they for example provide a small insight into the Ashanti history or show how the traditional Kente-fabric is made.

V: Actually, there is a lot more to it. As a weltwaerts-volunteer for example you get a deep impression of the culture, the country and the people.

T: As a so-called “weltwaerts-volunteer”, what exactly do you do?

V: Well, I am staying in a rural town called Agona Swedru. I work as a teacher there. But there are pleeenty other volunteers working in hospitals or orphanages.

T: I am wondering. You seem a little young. Do you have a proper certificate that qualifies you to work in a school and are you actually able to help?

V: Good question-ooo. Most of us just graduated from High School and do not have a university-background. We usually work as assisting teachers-ooo. At our project-site we normally help the professionally trained staff.

T: Are you sure that they need you there?

V: You know, most of the schools in rural communities are lacking teachers and sometimes the classes are very big so we are quite helpful when it comes to marking exams and so on. But the greatest impact is probably felt in the long run.

T: What exactly do you mean?

V:  I think we are able to leave a much deeper footprint. Like I already mentioned it is very helpful for the students to have me as an advisor in the classroom. The same way they learn from me, I get to know the Ghanaian culture and tell them about life in Germany. I have introduced a pen-pal program between my former German and the Ghanaian school for instance. My Ghanaian students frequently exchange letters with their new friends from my German hometown.

T: I understand. It seems like both Ghanaian and German students will have an advantage from this program. But is cultural exchange only restricted to the workplace?

V: As a matter of fact I am really happy you asked this question. Cultural exchange is not just restricted to the workplace. I also go to town, visit my Ghanaian friends and we share ideas. In addition I have joined a local football-team that I spend a lot of time with. It is amazing how a common passion can combine people.

T: Okay. You must be awfully tired when you get back to your hotel.

V: Che!!!!!! It’s not like I live in a hotel for 11 months. All the long term volunteers live in host families. It is a very good way to experience Ghanaian family life. I get to pound Fufu, the popular local dish, I go to church with them. It is actually them who taught me most of the Twi.

T: Looks like I am really missing out on something here.

V: Ehe. That is definitely true. Another example: I have been living in an extended family which really gives me an impression of Ghanaian family ties. After last year’s flooding catastrophe in Agona Swedru many people lost their houses and family members. Lots of these people found safety and shelter within their family, though. To me, this kind of behavior proves more than hospitality. It shows a deep understanding of humanity and compassion.

T: Wow. I haven’t experienced any of that here. To me it is just another place in the world. I didn’t know that it can be so different to live here. But I mean you have left all your family and friends from Germany behind. The culture seems to be so different and also the climate. It is just so hot. I guess it must have been really hard to adapt to the new surroundings.

V: Ayyyy. True that. To be honest it was kind of hard in the beginning. I mean, before I came here I had just graduated from High School. While my friends move out to live by themselves, I have to adjust to new family rules.

T: Really???

V: I’m telling you… And then being a white attraction to everybody in the village can be quite disturbing as well. But especially difficult communication between the local people bothers me a lot. It feels like I don’t always get through to the people and I am sometimes misunderstood.

T: I hear you. But most of the locals speak English…

V: …I think it is not because of the language itself but more due to the cultural background which is expressed by language. “You’re invited” for example does not necessarily mean that you are invited to a party or something. It is rather a polite way of asking other people to join you for the meal.

T: I bet that must be a little random at first. So how do you deal with downs? Do you frequently call home or is there anyone in particular that you usually address?

V: Well, if I experience big problems, I can always address them to my organization “A R A – Agricultural & Rural Development Association. A good friend of mine for example, didn’t get along well with his host family. After a really helpful and intense discussion between the host family, my friend and ARA, they finally came to an agreement that everybody was satisfied with.

T: It is always nice to have somebody to talk to. So do you address ARA just in cases of emergency and problems or is there more to this organization?

V:AH!, it is much more than this. For example ARA also organizes excursions. A trip to the Ghana Cocoa Research Institute was a very interesting experience that taught me a lot about economic issues in Ghana.

T: Wow. You are really taken care of… I just now recall meeting this volunteer during my travels. We also talked a bit and she told me that she actually had to change her host family – because she didn’t like the bucket shower, I think…

V: Ewuradeee. How long did she say she was here for?

T: She said she was only staying for six weeks.

V: Okay. That makes the situation obvious. She is probably part of a short-term voluntary service. You know these people, they are something. It will be hard to compare both long term volunteers and short term volunteer programs…

T: What do you mean? Can you clarify that?

V: Yooo, I can. You see if you want to explore a different culture you need enough time to get to know the habits. The short-term volunteer only gets to see what is going on above the surface…

T: …I can see where you’re getting…

V: …Even in their projects they don’t have such a long-lasting impact because they are only helping out for a few weeks. Let’s take the orphanage as an example. The short-term volunteer will only be there to get to know the children and soon be leaving again. Before he even knows his way around he will already have left the country.

T: Yeah, that makes sense.

V: Besides, these people are usually paying their projects money to work there, so it’s really not as much about a deep cultural understanding but much rather about their own CV and the career. The weltwaerts-volunteer, however, should dive deeper to experience the culture AND should spread his experience in Germany as well. This way the society will become aware of developmental issues and life in Ghana.

T: I’m convinced. You know what? Weltwaerts seems to be a really good program. After all, the volunteers can actually inform a whole society and I could even imagine that some of them might use their knowledge to study and come back to help the host country…

T+V:  Jedamoase….