Global Voices » Ghana

Conference for Women Writers of African Ancestry

Ndesanjo Macha — Sat, 18 May 2013 11:28:22 +0000

Yari Yari Ntoaso is an international conference on literature by women of African ancestry. You can follow in on Twitter using #YariYari hashtag or on Kinna Reads blog.

Ghana's First Ever Social Media Award Winners

Kofi Yeboah — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 05:06:24 +0000

The results are in for Ghana's first ever social media awards.

Thirteen people and organizations were awarded on March 23, 2013 for their outstanding use of social media to create content and promote their work during ceremony in Ghana, which was attended by US Ambassador to Ghana Gene A. Cretz. The contest was hosted by Blogging Ghana, a group of bloggers and social media users writing out of Ghana or about the Ghanaian experience.

Blogging Ghana's website displays the following as the winners of the various categories listed:

Best Business and Commerce Blog - eStock Analysis.

Best Technology Blog - Techy-Africa.

Best Organisational Blog - AccraDotAlt.

Best Showbiz and Entertainment Blog - AmeyawDebrah.com

Best Activist Blog - Adventures from the Bedrooms of African Women

Best Citizen Journalism Blog - Circumspect

Best Lifestyle Blog - Ganyobinaa.com

Best Creative, Literary, Short Stories, Poetry Blog - Ganyobinaa.com

Best Photo Blog - A window to Ghana and Africa – Nana Kofi Acquah

Award for Personality with the Best Social Media Presence - @mutomboDaPoet

Best Original Content goes - Kodjo Deynoo Poetry

Best Blog - Adventures from the Bedrooms of African Women

Honorary Award for Exemplary Social Media Activism - Ghana Decides

According to Blogging Ghana website, nominations for the award were received from 314 people, totaling 1,128 nominations spread over 13 categories. That averages about 87 nominations per category.

African Presidents Active on Social Media

Rakotomalala — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 10:51:06 +0000

Dapa Arnaud gives a list of the 10 most active african presidents [fr] on social media. At the top of the list is president Paul Kagame in Rwanda:

In place since 2003, the president of Rwanda is the most active on the internet. According to the Ecofin agency, Paul Kagame interacts with many users on Twitter through his account @PaulKagame. His personal website named “The Journey Continues, Dukomeze Imihigo” is also one of the most visited websites in the country. His presence is also quite strong on other social media sites such as Facebook, Google+, Flickr or YouTube.

Bloggers Duke it Out for Ghana's First Ever Social Media Awards

Kofi Yeboah — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 15:04:38 +0000

For the first time in the country's online history, the best and brightest of Ghana's blogosphere will be awarded for their social media savvy.

BloggingGhana, a group of bloggers and social media users writing out of Ghana or the Ghanaian experience, will recognize the best bloggers and social media mavens in categories ranging from technology to citizen journalism to photography in the country's first ever social media awards on March 23, 2013.

The competition is fierce. The blogging group received nominations for the awards from 314 people, totaling 1,128 nominations spread over 13 categories, according to their website. That averages about 87 nominations per category.

Logo of the organising committee. Image source: blogcampghana.com

Categories for the awards include:

Best Technology Blog

Best Business & Commerce Blog

Best Citizen Journalism Blog

Best Creative, Literary Short Stories, Poetry Blog

Best Showbiz and Entertainment Blog

Best Lifestyle Blog

Best Activist Blog

Best Photo Blog

Best Organisational Blog

Best Blog

Other Social Media Categories

Personality with Best Social Media Presence

Organisation with Best Social Media Presence

Best Original Content

The Social Media Awards officially kicked off on January 8, 2013, launched under the theme “Content is King”. BloggingGhana co-founder Kajsa Hallberg Adu (@kajsaha) tweeted:

@kajsaha: With this tweet, I mandate the #Blogcamp13 team to go find the Best Blogger in 2012! blogcampghana.com May the best win! #233moments

BloggingGhana reported that they began to receive nominations only a few hours after the awards’ official launch. The nomination period closed February 1, 2013.

Born from a small meet-up of bloggers in 2008, BloggingGhana seeks to educate the general public in Ghana on social media and promote citizen journalism. Writing about that first meeting, BloggingGhana states on its website:

We wrote:

“we would like to bring the Ghanaian blog community together in real life! There is so much to say…about our green homeland, if Blogger is better than WordPress, if labels are useful, how best to boost and count traffic, what Internet cafées [sic] are fast and of course how blogging changes your life…”

Continuing the tradition of bringing bloggers together offline, the organization hosted a day of workshops in Ghana on May 5, 2012, dubbed BlogCamp. Blogger and science teacher Gameli Adzaho wrote about the event in a post titled “Unforgetable memories of #BlogCamp 2012″:

There are some memories that are easily swept off by the tidal waves of time and events. There are others that are etched deep in our consciousness, replaying like sweet music in our minds as the days roll by. BlogCamp 2012, organised by BloggingGhana, Ghana’s biggest social media community, falls into the latter category. Held at Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT on 5 May 2012, and sponsored by Vodafone Ghana, Google Ghana, US Embassy Accra, etc., Ghana’s first BlogCamp truly lived up to its theme of creating the “Voice of a New Generation”

To cast your vote for best of Ghana's blogs, visit here.

Ghana: Vote for African Women's Development Fund Blog

Ndesanjo Macha — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:26:32 +0000

Vote for African Women's Development Fund blog which has been nominated in the first ever Blogging Ghana awards: “I’m really pleased that AWDF’s blog has been nominated in the category of ‘best organisational blog’. Many thanks to all of the AWDF staff that have contributed to this blog. I plan to revamp this blog soon with even more exciting content.”

When Bob Marley Went to Africa

Ndesanjo Macha — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 15:10:02 +0000

The film opens on the Ghanaian coast at the remnants of a slave post, the camera then pans over the Atlantic, finally settling on the green hills of rural Jamaica (Marley’s birthplace Nine Mile) from where it picks up Bob Marley’s story, thus cementing a link between the continent and its new world diaspora.

Sean Jacobs reviews Kevin MacDonald’s critically film, “Marley”.

Ghana: Alternative Medicine Practitioners Invest in New Technologies

Ndesanjo Macha — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 06:51:09 +0000

Alternative medicine practitioners in Ghana have decided to invest in new technologies, Kofi Domfeh reports:”M.Y. Ventures, a natural healthcare center, has introduced a swap card technology that helps protect the privacy and data confidentiality of patients.”

Navigating Entrepreneurship in Ghana

Kofi Yeboah — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 11:00:21 +0000

Ghana, a sub-Saharan country, has many budding young entrepreneurs. Some have even been recognised and awarded by international organisations, including Bright Simons, Regina Agyare and Elikem Kuenyehia.

But there are also many young Ghanians who are not getting things right in their field. Many of them have faced hurdles they could not cross and end up failing.

For them, Elikem Kuenyehia story might be useful. Kuenyehia is an entrepreneur, lawyer, author and an adjunct lecturer in Entrepreneurship at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration.

In 2006, he founded Oxford & Beaumont, a leading corporate and commercial law firm in Ghana with offices in Accra and London, and has since advised clients Coca-Cola, Goldman Sachs, Shell International, Vodafone and Citibank.

Kuenyehia is no stranger to awards, he won the 2012 title of Young Business Leader of the Year at the West African All Africa Business Leaders Awards.

He was interviewed by How We Made It in Africa where he shared some of the challenges he faced on his road to success:

For many high profile transactions, because of the sheer value of the transaction and the corresponding financial and other risks, clients tend to feel most comfortable with older law firms with a longer track record. Although I had over seven years post-qualification experience when I started Oxford & Beaumont, many potential clients focused on the fact that the law firm itself had no track record. This was particularly pronounced with potential local Ghanaian clients.

I therefore had to price myself very competitively to get work through the door and then to provide a service that I was confident they would not otherwise find in the Ghanaian market. That makes a difference. The initial clients who took a risk on me quickly become (and often still are) our biggest advocates.

Kuenyehia had this advise to give to aspiring, young entrepreneurs in Africa:

I’d encourage aspiring young entrepreneurs to invest in their own personal development. Africa is changing rapidly and will continue to do so. None of us can predict with real certainty what the various markets and opportunities will look in five, ten, fifteen, twenty (etc) years. But we can prepare for these opportunities if we invest in our own personal development.

Some Ghanaian entrepreneurs also shared their views on Twitter about elements they lack as African entrepreneurs, others blamed the government.

@freduagymenag: Innovation. Appropriate technology.

@ragyare: Ability to pitch and sell your idea, negotiation and networking.

@ragyare: Business acumen to keep the idea running effectively.

@sandistertei : One problem is getting over yourself to maintain high standard.

@novisid: African or European, entrepreneurship to me is a farce.

@ragyare: Simply put early stage funding to help get your idea off the ground

During the interview, Elikem Kuenyehia discussed formal entrepreneurship in Ghana:

My research tells me that there are two main challenges facing formal entrepreneurship in Ghana. The first is human resources – many of the entrepreneurs I spoke to complained bitterly that they could not find the right human resources for their business and when they did, they do not stay. The other is financial capital. Without a developed venture capital or private equity market in Ghana, it can be difficult to source capital for your enterprise, no matter how bright the idea. Banks are completely unhelpful when it comes to supporting growing businesses. The HR challenge could be overcome if business owners spend a bit more time identifying and recruiting the right calibre of staff for their enterprise and by focusing both on competency and values. I found out that too many enterprises do not pursue a rigorous recruitment process. Regarding finance, government and development partners can encourage banks to lend to entrepreneurs through match funding. Our government has set up a government funded and backed venture capital trust fund, akin to a kind of fund which invests debt and equity into venture capital companies. This is a good idea but seriously underfunded. So our government would do well to increase the funding of this vehicle.

Côte d'Ivoire: Charles Blé Goudé Charged with War Crimes

Jane Ellis — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 08:59:41 +0000

Ivorian political leader Charles Blé Goudé, nicknamed the Street General, has been arrested in Ghana. A close associate of former president Laurent Gbagbo, he was charged with war crimes [fr] on January 21, 2013. Goudé had already been sentenced by the United Nations for, among other things, “repeated public statements advocating violence against the facilities and staff of the United Nations, and against foreigners” during events of 2004. His lawyer, Nick Kaufman, believes that his extradition from Ghana to Côte d'Ivoire did not follow regulatory procedures.

His arrest caused heated debate in the Ivorian blogosphere due to its taking place against a backdrop of attempts at national reconciliation in Côte d'Ivoire.

Screen capture of Charles Blé Goudé being arrested – video courtesy of Grigri international

An arrest that got people talking

The arrest of Charles Blé Goudé, former Youth Minister and leader of the Young Patriots, leaves no one indifferent. On learning of his arrest on January 17, the Ivorian biosphere came to life. More than 1750 mentions of him appeared that day on twitter according to the Topsy website. The opinions expressed on Blé Goudé are symptomatic of the polarisation of Ivorian society and underline the need for a sustained effort for real reconciliation after a crisis which still leaves traces and significant resentment.

Some welcomed the surprise arrest, like Roch Tieh, who stated [fr]:

C'est une très bonne nouvelle dans cette ambiance de tension au Mali et en Algerie. Les extrémistes doivent comprendre qu'ils n'auront jamais le mot final.

This is very good news in this atmosphere of tension in Mali and Algeria. Extremists must understand that they will never have the final word.

Others such as Blé Felix reacted with moderation to his arrest [fr]:

J'espère qu'il sera jugé de façon juste et objective.Et puis à quand les arrestations dans l'autre camp? car des crimes et des exactions on été aussi commis de ce côté là. Ou bien on a peur de scier la branche sur la quelle on est assis de peur qu'on ne tombe avec?

I hope he will be judged in a fair and objective manner. Also, when will there be arrests from the other side? because crimes and acts of violence were also committed on that side. Or are we afraid to cut the branch we are sitting on in case we fall with it?

Supporters feel that Charles Blé Goudé has been unfairly charged, including at Infodabidjan [fr]:

Le seul crime que le leader de la galaxie patriotique a commis c’est d’avoir choisi, au contraire d’autres jeunes qui servent les intérêts des impérialistes occidentaux, de défendre son pays et son continent depuis sa tendre jeunesse, sans se compromettre.

The only crime committed by the leader of the patriotic Galaxy was choosing, unlike other young people who serve the interests of the Western imperialists, to defend his country and his continent since his youngest days, without compromise.

Charles Blé Goudé and Laurent Gbagbo held a meeting in Marcory-Abidjan, Ivory Coast, 21/12/2010. Photo by Stephane Meisel from Demotix

What can be expected during the trial of Charles Blé Goudé?

His supporters still want to believe that they will succeed, if they mobilise themselves. Balie Topla wrote about this in la Dêpeche d'Abidjan [fr]:

Pour moi, un des nôtres est tombé, un grand combattant des libertés a été fauché par l’intolérance. C’est pourquoi, aux côtés de tous les autres à travers le monde, je jouerai à fond ma partition pour sa défense et pour sa libération. Je vous invite à rejoindre la grande mobilisation qui se met en place pour que Blé Goudé ne soit pas seul devant l’adversité.

In my opinion, one of ours has fallen, a great freedom fighter has been claimed by intolerance. That is why, along with others around the world, I call from my heart for his defence and for his release. I invite you to join the great mobilisation that is taking place so that Blé Goudé is not alone in the face of adversity.

The acts Charles Blé Goudé has been charged with are well known to the general public. In the middle of the Ivorian crisis in December 2010 he had said, notably [fr]:

“Sarkozy et l'ONU préparent un génocide en Côte d'Ivoire”

Sarkozy and the United Nations are preparing for genocide in Côte d'Ivoire.

and:

“L'ONU a un mandat souterrain, ils veulent enlever Gbagbo du pouvoir (…) Vous allez devoir en tuer beaucoup. “

The United Nations has a hidden agenda, they want to remove Gbagbo from power (…) You will have to kill a lot. …

Incitements to violence on political opponents and the United Nations attributed to him will not stand in his favour during the trial.

The Human Rights Watch organization said that the Young Patriots have been implicated in the killing of hundreds of Ivorians and West African immigrants since the beginning of the conflict.

Allain Jules wondered however whether this arrest could lead to a process of national reconciliation [fr]:

Charles Blé Goudé est détenu en Côte d’Ivoire par les services de la police dans le cadre de la poursuite des procédures judiciaires déjà ouvertes contre lui » disent les autorités. Soit. Mais, si vraiment on veut faire la paix, il faut proscrire cette chasse aux sorcières. La justice des vainqueurs n’a jamais été bonne conseillère, la vengeance aussi…

Charles Blé Goudé has been detained in Côte d'Ivoire by the police in the pursuit of judicial proceedings already open against him say the authorities. OK. But, if really we want to make peace, we must forbid this witch hunt. Victor's justice has never been fair, neither has revenge…

New GV e-book: African Voices of Hope and Change

Bernardo Parrella — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 18:19:50 +0000

Here is a perfect gift to salute the new year: our new e-book dedicated to Africa's Sub-Saharan region. “African Voices of Hope and Change,” gives you an intimate perspective into the stories and people of Sub-Saharan Africa through our best English-language posts from 2012. From a total of about 800 posts produced over the year from the region, we hand-picked 13 posts to feature from Senegal, Uganda, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, Ghana, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Mauritania, Kenya, Angola and other countries.

You are welcome to download it here. You can even send a copy (in PDF, ePub or Mobipocket format) to your relatives or friends across the world, maybe as a present for their donation to GV. Most important, please spread the word in your global circles, social networks and anywhere you deem fit!

African Voices of Hope and Change is more evidence of the power of we‘, a collective effort focusing on places and people too often ‘forgotten’ by mainstream media worldwide, despite Africa’s diverse but promising growth in the upcoming years. As stated in the ebook introduction, “At the start of the new millennium, it felt as though the African continent was essentially written off by the international community… [but] recent statistics suggest that nine of the fastest-growing economies in the world are in Sub-Saharan Africa.”

And while many experts actually believe that new technology's most lasting influence will be on a broadening field of education, “also important is the potential for leveraging technology towards a more general transparency and accountability, as shown by initiatives based on social and citizen media for monitoring local elections or making government data available on the Internet.”

Aimed at providing a larger context and fostering the Global Voices mission, this collection of 2012 posts will try to parse out such complex framework and open up the horizon for the upcoming year. These voices tell us about moving forward in hope and change, their accounts reveal a path infused with struggle and collaboration.

Thanks to Mohamed Adel for technical support and to those who variously contributed to articles selected for this new e-book: Afef Abrougui, Ahmed Jedou, Anna Gueye, Eleanor Staniforth, Endalk, James Propa, Kofi Yeboah, Lova Rakotomalala, Nwachukwu Egbunike, Richard Wanjohi, Sara Gold, Sara Moreira, and Ndesanjo Macha.

Opposition NPP Takes Ghana Presidential Election Results to Court

Kofi Yeboah — Sat, 29 Dec 2012 01:07:37 +0000

The New Patriotic Party (NPP), the strongest opposition party in Ghana has challenged the recent Presidential election results, claiming electoral fraud. Refusing to accept the results declared by the electoral commission, the NPP has decided to take the matter to the courts.

According to Ghana Decides:

The largest opposition party in Ghana, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has challenged the results of the 2012 Presidential election, accusing the Electoral Commission of Ghana of colluding with the incumbent, National Democratic Congress (NDC) to steal votes.

The Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan, has denied the allegations saying the the NPP can challenge the results in Ghana’s courts according to the electoral laws of the country.

The Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan, declared President Mahama winner by 50.70% of the votes, beating his main challenger Nana Akufo-Addo of the NPP who polled 47.7% of the votes.

NPP's projected the results online. Photo source: Nana Ado (NPP's presidential candidate) Facebook page.

NPP's projection on their Facebook page showed that they have won the elections according to the results they received from their polling agents. Ghana Decides reports:

The NPP maintains that results on the “blue sheet”, which they received at polling stations and collation centres across the country, where slightly change to favour Candidate Mahama of the NDC.

Party gurus of the NPP have been holding a crunch meeting over the matter whether to consider a court action.

Ghana Decides reports:

Following this, the NPP has resolved to take the issue to court and has vowed to use all available legal means to seek justice. Meanwhile, numerous supporters of the NPP have poured onto the streets of Circle, ostensibly to listen to party leaders who are assembling near the Kwame Nkrumah Circle to address the teeming crowd.

Many observer and monitoring missions, including the African Union and CODEO have endorsed the results of the Electoral Commission and have called for calm.

These are some of the views of Ghanaians on Twitter:

@nosivid: Nana Addo goes round repeating bogus allegations of electoral fraud with the claim of having evidence and calls it EXPLANATION #GhanaDecides

@kwasireports: “I'll go2 court”-Nana Akuffo-Addo reaffirms as NPP preps evidence 2 back claims of electoral fraud by rulin NDC #GhanaDecides #amaniee

‏@nfaoforiatta: It is clear they know they lost. May Ghanaians stand by the truth when it is revealed. Tis our destiny to protect. #GhanaDecides

@Kwabena: Ah well, I thought they wouldn't file. Let the Supreme Court decide now. #GhanaDecides

@sam_btw: Ghana's opposition NPP discovered >10% irregular votes in presidential election 2012. Fraud? Now it's up to the supreme court. #GhanaDecides

Lawyers representing NPP formally filed a petition at the Supreme Court on 28 December, 2012. The NPP only has 21 days to protest against the election results by law or else the incumbent will still be sworn in on 7 January, 2013.

Ghana Election 2012, From the Ballot Box

Ndesanjo Macha — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 20:50:46 +0000

Ghanaian voters went to the polls today, 7 December 2012, to elect a new president and parliament. The main presidential contenders are current president John Dramani Mahama representing the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and Nana Akufo-Addo of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP). The whole world is watching as one of Africa's most politically stable states decides its future through the ballot box. However, @ayittey reminds us:

@ayittey: @IDEGGhana Remember Josef Stalin; “It is not those who vote that count (matter) but rather those who count the votes”

Ghanaian voters waiting to cast their ballots at Trobu in the Greater Accra Constituency. Photo courtesy of Linda Anaan (used with permission).

Generally, reports from the ground show that the voting exercise has gone smoothly. However, there are tweet reports of vote selling, riots, delays, strikes and missing ballot boxes. Below is a summary of election related tweets under the hashtag #ghanaelections.

Delays:

@omgGhanaDotCom: gbogba ascension SDA polling station not voting… No election material since mornin. 3 nd half hours more. #GhanaElections #GhanaDecides

@ghanaelections: voters at the Star of the East school worried as ballot boxes are still not in #Ghanaelections @metrotvGhana

@MissOye_K: Chaos at Ablekuma North constituency. Voting has been halted. #GhanaDecides #Ghanaelections

@AngeloBenj: Snatching of #BallotBoxes here and there… Manhyia, Kentinkrono, Ablekuma, What Could account for this early Strike? #GhanaElections

@Nii_logologi: Vote selling is booming business is booming #ghanaelections #ghanadecides

@bigxghdotcom: The citizens of Nkwanta South in the Volta Region says they are not voting for lack of dev. in the area. #Ghanaelections

@omgGhanaDotCom: A tear gas shot at the Ablekuma North Constituency to deter people from creating confusion #Ghanaelections #GhanaDecides

Long queues:

@ghanaelections: Queuing begun as early as 10pm in parts of Kumasi with neighbourhood watch dog teams protecting people #ghanaelections

@MsAbenaAnnan: Queues started as early as 7pm yesterday @ Tip Toe Lane Accra 2 vote.Pple used stones 2 mark their spot & slept @ voting stations. #ghana

@MacJordan: People been queuing since 3am at polling stations, marking their spots with stones an gallons. Everyone want to vote early. #GhanaDecides

@BMarshall601: Finally voted after waiting 5 hours!#GhanaElections http://instagr.am/p/S791H9qWY3/

However, according to @Nii_logologi, voting in Tema was quicker:

@Nii_logologi: #ghanadecides #ghanaelections RT @mey3_ewuraba: took me less than 5mins…. No place lyk Tema

Arrests:

@ghanaelections: the unthinkable happened-EC officer arrested for failing to stamp ballot papers – Ashanti region #ghanaelections @VOAAfrica @joyonlineghana

@bigxghdotcom: Arrested DCE in Walewale released. Police now claim he was going to repair the machines… #GhanaDecides #GhanaElections

@ghanaelections: Ayigya EC polling officer arrested for not stamping over 200 ballots cast! #ghanaelections

#Ghanaelections: Double registrant arrested for attempting to vote in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem constituency http://ow.ly/fUd2t

Finally, join @Africanelection and @ghanaelection on Facebook, whatsapp and BBM to share images and elections stories:

@Africanelection: send images of the elections and chat with us about #ghanaelections on whatsapp 0241995737, 0202841029 & 0244838097

@ghanaelection: we are also on facebook, you can like our page too http://ow.ly/fUdzp #Ghanaelections, join us on whatsapp and BBM 28F11BFF +23341995737

New Technologies Monitor Ghana Elections 2012

Ndesanjo Macha — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 18:47:09 +0000

As Ghanaians get ready to head to the polls on 7 December 2012, we would like to point out local initiatives using new technologies to ensure free and fair elections.

Ghana Votes 2012 uses a Ushahidi-based map to display election related reports:

The Ghana Votes 2012 instance map has been developed and designed to display reports from the elections body, civil society groups and citizens on the upcoming Ghana elections. The map will provide information about everything from security issues to polling station logistics to voter education activities. In addition, the map displays all the polling stations, parliamentary and presidential candidates and political parties by constituency and regions, making the map a one-stop shop for election information.

A screenshot of Ghana Votes 2012 instance map, from http://ghvotes2012.com/.

The reports can be sent by filing out a form online or using the options outlined below:

By sending a message to 7000 or 1902 or 0202841029
By sending an email to info@africanelections.org
By sending a tweet with the hashtag/s ghana or ghanaelections or ghanavotes or ghanadecides or elections or johnmahama or nanaaddo or ndc or npp or pnc or cpp or ppp

Sarah Brierley and George Ofosu reported last month that the Electoral Commission of Ghana launched a technological tool in order to expand access to the Provisional Voters Register (PVR). The tool uses SMS technology to allow voters to text in to check that their names and other details have been properly captured on the newly composed Voters Register.

However, they argued that this initiative was flawed:

Firstly, although the donor world (and indeed it is the UNDP that funded this project) have eagerly embraced mobile technology as the latest tool to “empower citizens”, it should be recognized that there are limits to how successfully citizen-based SMS projects can be executed. The fifth round of the Afrobaromter (2012) indeed shows that only 36% of Ghanaians ever used SMS when communicating, and the vast majority instead relies on voice calls. This suggests that for all of its efforts and related costs, the EC may be targeting a relatively small voter population. Arguably, the money could have been better spent educating citizens on the importance of visiting polling stations, organizing community meetings for voters to check the register, supporting a free voice hotline to allow voters to verify their details, and allowing for a longer exhibition of the voters register.

Secondly, the project has been launched very late in the day, after two days of the ten-day voter exhibition at polling stations has already been completed. Furthermore, there has been no public education on this new service and a lack of advertising. As it stands, voters are likely to be confused as to how to verify their Voter ID detail, that is whether to use the mobile phone text messaging method or visit their polling centers.

African Elections Project has established Ghana's first Social Media Tracking Centre (STMC) to monitor the use of social media during Ghana's 2012 elections. The center will provide a real time response mechanism on election irregularities, violence and other concerns by reaching out to key election stakeholders for immediate action.

In an e-press release received today, African Elections Project said:

Apart from all these tool deployed, citizens are now empowered to actively participant in the electoral process by simply sending reports free of charge to the SMS short code 7000 on MTN and 1902 on other networks by prefixing their message with ‘AEP'. Verified reports will be plotted on the elections instance map.

Recognizing the impact and ownership of mobile phones in the country, a mobile app christened ‘Jangbeeshi’ (delivering results in style) mobile app which will not only provide citizens with information about where, when and how to vote but also get citizens report to on irregularities at their voting centers during the elections just at the tap of a button has also been developed.

Other tools include the social media platforms such as facebook, twitter, online info and knowledge platform (www.africanelections.org/ghana), Google plus, Flickr and Twitpic for pictures and Youtube for videos.

African Elections Project (AEP) was established in 2008 with the vision of enhancing the ability of journalists, citizen journalists and the news media to provide more timely and relevant election information and knowledge while undertaking monitoring of specific and important aspects of governance

In March 2012, BloggingGhana community launched a social media initiative, Ghana Decides, to train stakeholders to use social media tools for election monitoring and reporting. GhanaBlogging is a group of bloggers in/outside Ghana who blog about Ghana.

Tomorrow all eyes will be on the two main Ghana's political parties, the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Counting the Hours Before Ghana's Presidential Elections

L. Abena Annan — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 15:07:29 +0000

It is just one day before Ghana's election day and campaigns are intensifying – some early morning street campaigns are accompanied by horn blowing, loud singing and clapping. Some people are proudly wearing party-affiliated shirts around town while others are taking the subtle route of keeping it private. Television networks are transitioning programs with peace messages from both children and adults amidst a handful of stories about political violence in some towns.

Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo – Ghana's main opposition presidential candidate. Photo released under Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) by Nana Addo.

@Macharia_M tweeted on December 5, 2012:

@Macharia_M: These guys are taking the peace campaigns pretty seriously. Even in their music programs a whole 15 minutes of peace songs. Whoa.

@accradotalt tweeted on December 4, saying:

@accradotalt: All these peace songs are a bit much- as if prior to the elections #Ghana was unstable.

The Electoral Commission of Ghana has warned the public not to use cell phones to take pictures of their votes while in the voting booths. The warning, however, doesn’t seem to sit well with some voters.

Commenting on a story about the warning published on MyJoyOnline, Freedom Fighter had this to say:

Everyone has the right to announce who they supported, and vote buying will continue as long as this is a capitalist country. The US allows photo taking. They cannot stop freedom.

Commenting on the same story, Kobbie wrote:

I wonder how they’re gonna enforce that. Pat-downs before entering the booth?

On the issue of peace, @novisid, clearly a supporter of the National Democratic Congress party tweeted:

@novisid: I won't merely pledge to vote. I pledge to vote 4 Mahama [current president John Mahama]. Against all die be die. PEACE!

It appears the rhetoric has intensified in the few days leading to the elections as staunch party members are using social media platforms to counter statements from their opponents.

@novisid tweeted again:

@novisid: Seems Bawumia was told that for him to be seen as a politician whatever he sees, he should just call it ‘propaganda'.

And he adds:

@novisid: What has dominated debate ahead of election is not education but Akuffo Addo's fraud called free SHS [Free Senior High School].

A supporter of the opposition party, New Patriotic Party, @ohenebagyimah has been raining tweets for the party in the days leading to the elections.

On December 2, he wrote:

@ohenebagyimah: When NDC says (in their ad) that “for peace to prevail in Ghana, vote JDM [John Dramani Mahama] and the NDC” what are they telling us?”

On December 3, he tweeted:

@ohenebagyimah: For a better value for your vote,votewyc for Nana Addo #3 on the ballot paper.

It will be interesting to see what happens between supporters of the two major parties, NDC and NPP, on social media platforms come Saturday, December 8, after the elections. There will be a run-off on December 28 if no candidate receives an absolute majority of 50% plus one vote.

On World Toilet Day, Introducing the Crap Map Project

Rakotomalala — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 13:26:20 +0000

With both big technology players and local partners in Ghana, we’ll be hacking together our “crap map” using existing open source tools and software paired with meaningful offline facilitation around behavior change in sanitation.

Molly Norris of Ideo.org explains the objective of the Crap Map project: “to stimulate collective action to improve community-wide behavior and pressure the public sector and others to make investments in improved sanitation solutions.” On World Toilet Day, it's worth noting that in West Africa, only 37 percent of inhabitants can access a clean toilet, posing important issues of public health and human dignity. The WHO/UNICEF joint monitoring program (JMP) estimates that Eritrea and Niger have the highest ratio of population forced to defecate in the open.