Christian Aid -‘Ghana: slave trade to trade slaves’

“In Ghana, as in many developing countries, 70% of people earn their living from agriculture. Unfair trade rules forced on poor countries by the World Bank and IMF are having a disastrous effect on local farmers and are putting many of them out of business.”

“In the 21st Century rich countries and financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank exert enormous control over the economies of poor countries like Ghana. Instead of being a means by which countries could work their way out of poverty, international trade works against the interests of poor communities.”

“People migrate from the grinding poverty of the north hoping for work and a new life in the cities of the south. What they find, however, is far from streets paved with gold. Some may be lucky and find low paid work in factories while others hustle their international wares in the cities market stalls - tomato paste from Italy, British chicken or American rice. They soon discover their small profits are not enough to pay for a roof over their heads in the city slums or for water bought from the local pumps.”

'I used to own a tomato farm but I couldn’t feed my family' says Kofi Eliasa who couldn’t make a living competing with cheaper European tomato imports flooding local markets. As a result Kofi often has to work a 12 hour day in the searing heat breaking stones in a quarry for less than a £1 a day to help feed his family.”

“International trade is worth $10 million a minute but poor countries only account for 0.4% of this trade. According to UN estimates developing countries lose $1.3bn every day due to unfair trade rules.”

“What many of the slum dwellers don’t know is that the World Bank and IMF encouraged Ghana to privatise their public services in return for loans. The privatisation of water led to higher prices and made accessibility for poor people even more limited.”

“With no prospects of employment or income some survive, but risk their health, by scavenging for food, or things they can sell, on the stinking city rubbish dumps.”

“The Ghanaian government has been forced to open its markets to cheap foreign goods, and to stop giving support to its own farmers, in return for loans, aid and debt relief from the rich world. This means local farmers struggle to sell their produce and they are angry.” [Photos and text courtesy of www.christianaid.org.uk]

For more information or to donate to Christian Aid please visit: www.christianaid.org.uk

Community: A rise in ‘Farmer Suicides’...-what is being done for the famers in Ghana?

[Photo courtesy of www.christianaid.org.uk]

I often wonder about the farming sector in Ghana [especially small scale farmers] during this never ending recession. I wonder only because in England -where ‘government subsidized’ farmers are suffering –they at least get some help.....but what of Ghanaian farmers? Is there help for them concerning debt, loan sharks and market access? I stumbled across the following alarming piece by Erika Fredrickson -and it’s got me thinking........

Title: Farmer Suicides Rise in India and Ghana
By: Erika Fredrickson Date: Friday, 13 February 2009
The number of farms in India is decreasing while the number of farmer suicides increases. Between 1997 and 2007 it's reported that 182,936 Indian farmers killed themselves over debt-related issues. The actual number is probably higher because women aren't considered farmers in this kind of data-collection (they rarely get land in their name) yet they often are primary farmers. So any women suicides are deemed “suicide” but not “farmer suicide.”

This is the largest sustained wave of suicides in historical record. The way the stats break down is that ever since 2001, a farmer has committed suicide every 30 minutes on average in India. Peasant farming debt has doubled since the first decade of neo-liberalism “economic reforms.”

The suicides are highest among cash crop farmers, especially those who grow vanilla, groundnut, sugarcane, coffee, pepper and cotton. Giant seed companies have displaced cheap hybrid seeds and traditional seeds. When these farmers switch to GM crops, the crops often get attacked by pests and also need double the water. Farmers have to invest in pesticides: something they were told would not be needed. Their crops often fail, and they find themselves in huge debt. Hunger among farmers is skyrocketing. Healthcare costs make it worse. Many farmers have to work on other people's farms to make a living. And as government subsidies keep Western farmers strong on the international market, the Indian farmers can't compete. Many of them kill themselves by drinking the pesticides they thought they wouldn't need.

In Ghana, there's also been a suicide wave, but here it's among small-scale tomato growers. The importation of tomato paste on the international market makes these farmers tomatoes difficult to sell because people are buying the paste instead of local tomatoes. Lack of refrigeration options leaves tomatoes to rot. And the farmers find themselves harassed by creditors at which point they see suicide as their final option. [Credit: www.envirovore.com]

Food: Ghanaian Coconuts and more at Waitrose

Blue Skies' workers




Blue Skies Ghana was founded in 1997 and started production early in 1998 with only 35 employees. The company now employs over 1000 people and supports a wide network of farmers and their communities. The factory is located at Dobro near to the town of Nsawam and specialises in cutting and packing fresh fruit which it exports to Europe..................Blue Skies is built upon a culture of fairness in business, respect for each other and trust. The company believes that care for its people breeds care for its fruit which in turn fosters a natural respect for the environment and the communities where it operates. In 2008 Blue Skies was awarded with a Queens Award for Enterprise for its approach to Sustainable Development and became the first company in the world to receive LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) accreditation for a group of farmers. www.caretrace.com

I love shopping at Waitrose. It's not just the whole, 'chichi lifestyle' thing they have going on at Waitrose, but just how supportive they are of farmers from around the world. I buy their Fairtrade certified -Ghanaian coconuts, pineapples and mangoes -and they are delicious. Along with many items like Kenyan coffee and butter beans from China, -Waitrose are leading the way in fair and ethical trading -and helping third world farmers. And via their, Caretrace website -I know more about the the people who prepare these yummy fruits -like, Daniel Amaadi -a farm manager at Anamo Farms. He supplies pineapples from his 110 acre farm -situated near to the village of Dumpong. He is married with 8 children. Or, Yaw Issaka from Abor in Ghana. He has been farming for 20 years. He grows sugarloaf pineapple for the Blue Skies Organic Collective (BSOC), which is a Fairtrade association of more than 78 farmers who work in the Central Region of Ghana. Yaw is 47 years old and is married with 6 children. You can find out more about the farmers and workers -who supply Waitrose at: http://www.caretrace.com.