Remembering January 4 in Angola

Luanda — The Angolan people are celebrating on Friday, January 04, the Colonial Repression Martyrs' Day, with political, cultural and sports activities.

The date is of extreme importance in the context of the struggle for national liberation against colonialism, since it marked the start of an uprising in Baixa do Cassanje against the Portuguese colonial occupation of about 500 years (1482-1975), with devastating human and material consequences.

The Baixa de Casanje revolt is considered the first battle of the Angolan War of Independence and the Portuguese Colonial War.  The uprising began on February 3, 1961 in the region of Baixa do Cassanje, district of Malanje, Portuguese Angola. By February 4, the Portuguese authorities had successfully suppressed the revolt.

On January 3, agricultural workers employed by Cotonang, a Portuguese-Belgium cotton plantation company, staged a protest to force the company to improve their working conditions. The protest, which later became known as the Baixa de Cassanje revolt, was led by two previously unknown Angolans, António Mariano and Kulu-Xingu. During the protest, the Angolan workers burned their identification cards and physically attacked Portuguese traders on the company premises. The protest led to a general uprising, to which Portuguese authorities responded with an air raid on twenty villages in the area, killing large numbers of Angolan villagers. 

After independence from Portugal in 1975, the Angolan government designated February 4 a national holiday, "Colonial Repression Martyrs Day," in 1996 in remembrance of the attack. To the Angolan people, this date continues to inspire different generations of Angolan children in their actions in defence of liberty and well-being. (AllAfrica.com)

Historic City Series: Lobito

The city of Lobito is long considered “the guest room of Angola”. Located on the south-central Angolan coast, in the province of Benguela, it is the city that most resembles Luanda, adorned with a wide bay, where stands the Port of Lobito, and a magnificent tongue of land which penetrates the sea - the famous Restinga ex-libris of the city, which hosts the famous Carnival of Lobito.

The Restinga do Lobito is the most attractive area of the city, with over ten kilometers of white sandy beaches and clear waters, a network of hotels, restaurants and bars, which extends from the Colina da Saudade to Ponto Final, with its towering lighthouse guiding the constant movement of ships towards the country's second port in importance and grandeur, after the one in Luanda.

Categorized as “international first class seaport”, with its mineral pier recently expanded and modernized, it is in line with the Benguela Railway (CFB), for flow of goods into the interior of Angola and neighboring countries - particularly the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, which need it mainly for export of its minerals.

The origin of the name Lobito comes from the word Pitu in Umbundu language, preceded by the particle Olu, which results in Olupitu, which means “door, walkway, passage", which the caravans of porters coming down the hills from the interior, travelled before reaching the “trade square” of Catumbela. With the passage of time, the name changed from Olupitu to Lupitu and, then, was finally translated to Portuguese to Lobito. 

Historical records show that the establishment of the city was prompted by the sea access to the major resources of the area:  produce of the local lime ovens, sea salt and the storage and launching point of human cargo (slaves) for international transaction; already illegal practice but widespread in the world by those who found physical shelter in this harbor and tax evasion”.

Proposals for founding the city of Lobito date back to 1650, addressed to the then Portuguese Overseas Council. Given the importance of the location, in 1842 an Regal ordinance from D. Maria II ordered the change of the administration from the “stagnant and unhealthy Benguela, to the most favorable zone, bounded by hills and low breakwater (sandbank) safe and attractive” of Lobito.

In 1902, the potential of Lobito Bay is recognized, in 1906 the port’s project is elaborated and, in the surrounding region, the design of the first part of the city (shopping today) emerges, made official on September 2nd, 1913, by order of the governor Norton de Matos.


In 1923 begins the construction of the port, opening up to exploration in 1928, and in 1931 the British builders take Benguela’s railway from Lobito to the border with the then Belgian Congo, currently the Democratic Republic of Congo. With the construction of the port and the railway line, Lobito would become the first city in Angola after Luanda, to exceed 100 thousand inhabitants to about 1970. Today, it still retains a remarkable human and urban growth, being of the cities of greater economic development in Angola, with its tourism potential, its cement industry and its factories of equipment for the exploration and production of oil. (TAAG Austral Magazine)

Historic City Series: Huambo

With its public parks, open-fronted villas and pavement cafés, Huambo has been said to feel more European than African. Add the Mediterranean climate and the tree-lined streets and you can see why the Portuguese called the city Nova Lisboa (New Lisbon) after their own capital.

Located in the country’s lush central highlands, among hundreds of thousands of hectares of rich agricultural land and connected to the coast by the Benguela railway, Huambo was once a wealthy and successful city and was even planned to replace Luanda as the country’s capital.

 

Huambo receives its name from Wambu, one of the 14 old Ovimbundu kingdoms of the central Angolan plateau. The Ovimbundus, an old tribe originally arrived from Eastern Africa, had founded their central kingdom of Bailundu early as the 15th century. Wambu was one of the smaller kingdoms and was hierarchically under the king of Bailundu and came of interest through the advent of the construction of the Benguela Railway by the Portuguese. Though the kings of Bailundu and Wambu (particularly Ekuikui II and Katiavala I) opposed the penetration of the railway by ambushing workers and settlers, they were eventually subdued by the Portuguese Army and Huambo was officially founded on 8 August 1912 by Portuguese General José Mendes Norton de Matos.

Huambo was found to be a strategic place for many reasons. A benign climate (greatly due to its high altitude, 1,700m) and the presence of abundant water resources in and around made of it an ideal spot to have a hub on the railway.  A rail system was devised by the British entrepreneur Sir Robert Williams as the easiest and cheapest way to link the rich copper mines of Katanga (Shaba) in Belgian Congo to the Angolan port of Lobito on the coast from which the mineral could be exported; the Lobito bay was admittedly the best natural seaport in the whole continent.

By the 1920s Huambo already was one of the main economic engines of Portuguese Angola. It had some important food processing plants, served as the main exporting point for the Province's considerable agricultural wealth and was also known by its numerous educational facilities, especially the Agricultural Research Institute (currently part of the Faculty of Agricultural Science).

Decades of war, however, stunted Huambo’s ambitions of greatness. The city was a major flashpoint between the ruling MPLA and the rebel group UNITA and it saw some of the worst fighting in the country. Its beautiful buildings were devastated, the countryside peppered with landmines, and hundreds of thousands of people were driven from their homes. 

In Huambo’s heyday during the 1960s, it was known asthe “granary” of Angola and a major exporter of products such as beans and maize. The legacy of war and landmines still looms large in the province, however, and the majority of farming is subsistence and small scale. Analysts predict that it will take time to relaunch Huambo as a major agriculture exporter, but in the meantime the city is marketing itself as an eco-city.  Home to the country’s Institute of Agricultural Research and Faculty of Agricultural Science, Huambo is the national leader in environmental matters.

It also has the Casa Ecologia, an environmental study and education venue, and the park in the city center with its Estufa Fria (greenhouse), which is to be redeveloped and expanded to become a base for researching and preserving indigenous plants.

In another reinforcement of its ecological importance, the province has been chosen by the government to
pilot a project aimed at reducing land degradation. The scheme, in partnership with the Global Environment Facility and with input from the United Nations, aims to reduce unsustainable agriculture, stop deforestation, prevent overgrazing and promote better environmental practices, particularly among subsistence farmers.  (Wikipedia,  Sonangol Universo Magazine)

Lubango's 'Feast on the Hill'

Each August 15, the people of the city of Lubango stage the annual Festival Nossa Senhora do Monte (translated "Lady of the Hill").  Tied historically to Catholic religious rituals, the highlight of this annual festival is a procession where up to 10,000 pilgrims share a Catholic mass at the symbolic church of the Nossa Senhora do Monte.

The festival and church building has deep historic roots connected to the Funcal region of the island of Madeira in Portugal.  History states that in 1470 a small chapel was build on a ridge in the mountainside rising behind Funcal.  Initially called the Chapel of Our Lady of the Incarnation, it was reassigned as Our Lady of the Mount some 90 years later.

Legend states that the later name of the chapel was adopted after a great spiritual experience.  Apparently, the daughter of a local shepherd had gone to drink from a spring that emerged from the hillside near the chapel and while there an apparition of the Virgin Mary appeared on the rock face. When a new church in Funchal was restored in the early 1800's after a tragic earthquake, the church was officially proclaimed the church of Nossa Senhora do Monte, the Patron Saint of Madeira.

Because of testimonies of answered prayers from the Madeira parishioners, Nossa Senhora Do Monte was and is looked up to even today with the most affectionate veneration by all Roman Catholic mariners and farmers.  She is considered a protectress in all cases of peril and many miraculous interpositions of hers, under circumstances of appalling danger are recounted seriously and devoutly believed.

It was upon these beliefs in 1901 that a group of settlers from Madeira Portugal sought the sponsorship of the erection of Our Lady of Mount west of the village of Sa da Bandeira, named Lubango today.  Having the church situated on a hillside overlooking Lubango, the settlers wanted to perfectly imitate the traditions of their homeland, being able to look up to the church from their homes and fields and contemplate their crops to bless.

While the catholic parishioners faithfully have continued the traditional mass annually on August 15 to this day, several local, Ovimbundu cultural practices were syncretized into the festival.  In earlier times, the festival included bonfires and drumming ceremonies marking the ritual of 'Ekwenje' when boys were circumcised and 'Efiko', the ritual of puberty when girls get ready for marriage.   As these local, cultural celebrations naturally faded away, the festival's celebrations have become modernized to include beauty pageants and car races.

Angola's Giant (Dinosaur)

The first dinosaur found in Angola has been named the Angolatitan adamastor.  Angolatitan means ‘Angolan giant’ and adamastor refers to the mythical sea giant of the South Atlantic feared by Portuguese sailors. The long-necked sauropod was uncovered in 2005 about 70km north of Luanda by Portuguese paleontologist Octávio Mateus from Portugal’s Universidade Nova de Lisboa and Museum of Lourinhã.

Remains of the large plant-eating dinosaur, which was believed to have been 13 metres long and lived 90 million years ago during the late Cretaceous period, were found in marine sediments. “These and other fossils tell us an amazing story about the climate and climate change in this part of the world,” says Louis Jacobs from the Southern Methodist University, who is a member of the Mateus PaleoAngola Project team. “In an oilproducing country like Angola, this project helps us to understand the geology of the region and the implications for its richness.”

The detailed description, in which the Angolatitan adamastor officially received its scientific name, was presented in the publication Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências (Annals of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences).

As well as discovering Angola’s first dinosaur, the PaleoAngola team has uncovered mosasaurs, plesiosaurs, turtles and other cretaceous marine animals. The long-term goal of the project is to create a strong and lasting institutional and scientific collaboration with Angolan academia.  (Sonangol Universo Magazine, June 2011)

Angola Slavery Museum: A Monument to a Painful Past of Trade Activity

Situated some 18 kilometers south of the capital city Luanda,  sits the National Museum of Slavery; a monument using the original building that processed the transferral of thousands of slaves.

The Museum consists of the Chapel and adjacent rooms; it is a tiny two-story building that sits on a beautiful cliff facing the ocean and Mussulo Island. The Museum itself is relatively modest, but in spite of its size and simplicity, the message is big: “it is a testament and a reminder of the history of the Angolan people who lived in the day of slavery and it stands as a monument to those who suffered and were affected by slavery.”

This little museum is of great importance in the history of slavery because over a period of two centuries, through its doors, millions of slaves entered it to be baptized before being sent off on their arduous journey to the colonies in the Americas. The bulk of the slaves exported to the new world departed the shores of Luanda and were sent to Bahia, Brazil, with a good number sent directly to the North America and the Caribbean islands.

According to historians, slavery in Angola existed since the early times. But starting in the 16th century the conquest of Portugal's explorers began the founding of settlements and trade ports which mitigated and expanded the major trading activities with the Imbangala and Mbundu tribes.  These tribes were inherently involved in an internal 'African slave trade' and the arrival of the Portuguese precipitated the beginning of the 'Atlantic Slave Trade'.

For several decades, slave trade with the Portuguese colony of Brazil was an important trade avenue in Portuguese Angola, and also an important supplier of workers for the emerging Brazilian agricultural sector.   Historians note that besides the benefit of two Portuguese colonies, the slave trade also benefited the local black merchants and warriors who profited from the trade. In the 17th century, the  Imbangala tribe became the main rivals of the Mbundu in supplying slaves to the Luanda slave processing market. In the 1750's the Portuguese sold 5,000 to 10,000 slaves annually, devastating the Mbundu

economy and population. The Portuguese gave guns to the Imbangala soldiers in exchange for slaves.. Armed with superior weapons, the Imbangala soldiers captured and sold natives at a far larger scale. 

Historians note that Portugal had the monopoly on the export of slaves from West Africa for at least two centuries, exporting at least five million slaves; 40% of the total slaves found in the new world.

The Museum curators emphasized that although Portugal tends to be blamed for the fate of slavery in Angola and other parts of West Africa, various individuals such as African kings, African merchants, and local Angolans of mixed color were notorious slave traders. He mentioned that the the greatest organizer of the slave trade in 19th century Angola, was the infamous Dohna Ana Joaquina, a woman of mixed color, and she betrayed her people. (Epinions.com Review, Wikipedia)

Historic City Series: Sumbe

On the South coast of Angola, a few miles from Luanda, is located the splendorous city of Sumbe, capital of the Kwanza-South province.  Sumbe comes from the word, in the national language kimbundo, “Kussumba”, which in Portuguese means “Buy”.

Historians indicate that the location of the city of Sumbe was significant as the city was always a central trade hub. Regular trade items between the peoples of the interior and the coast occured in the trade of salt and fish, as well as the fabrics brought by the Europeans have long served to feed the supply chain.  Significantly, historians note that Sumbe was a major trade port involved in the transfer and sale of black slaves. 

The importance of the place led the Portuguese colonial authorities to think about the founding of a city, also motivated by the “necessity of defense against incursions of English and French pirates and the link between the realms of Luanda and Benguela, as well as the copper mines”.  It was in this region, more precisely in Kicombo, that the Portuguese-Brazilian Salvador Corrêa de Sá e Benevides first anchored his fleet of caravels from Brazil, in 1648, and prepared the expedition which was to expel the Dutch who occupied Luanda.

According to historical data, the foundation of the city beganon January 7, 1768, when Governor Inocêncio de Sousa Coutinho commanded a brigade of engineers to make the choice of where they should establish a prison under the name of Novo Redondo. Its development took place from 1785 with the construction of the first stone fortress; the first church was built in 1811, while the first health services emerged in 1872 through the doctor Francisco Joaquim Vieira.

According to History, Novo Redondo was the first Angolan place to have home lighting, supplied by the hydroelectric dam of Cambongo’s River, later expanded and improved with the current treatment station for 50 years.

But the city has also been called Ngunza Cabolo after Angola's independence in 1975, in honor of the resistant leader to colonial occupation also called "Prince of the Wild."  But the city regained its original name – Sumbe, until today, equipped with its coastline of beautiful beaches, but also with
highlands such as Gungo, where we can find Hill Chamaco, which exceeds the thousand feet. It is a population of about 35 000 inhabitants, consisting predominantly of Mupindas, Mussel, Bailundos, Lumbar and Amboins and that in what concerns education benefits from loans from organic units of
the Katyavala Bwila University. This University has 13 courses in three Faculties and Institutes installed both in Sumbe, as in cities of Benguela and Lobito.  

The Economic activity of the population is centered on fishing and agriculture, particularly corn, potato and horticultural, as well as livestock and cattle.(TAAG Austral Magazine, 2011)

The Impact of Protestant Missions on Angola

In their writings, Angolan historians do not understate the important role that Protestant Missions played in Angola's history. In the 19th century, with an growing interest in Angola, western nations made significant contributions and service to the country in efforts to give indigenous populations knowledge and training. Protestant missionaries built churches, schools, hospitals, and invested in agriculture and husbandry, training teachers, stonemasons, carpenters, tailors and nurses among others.

Beginning with the Evangelical Congregational Church of Angola (ECCA), this organization's presence dates back to 11 November 1880, when the first American missionaries arrived in Benguela. The head of the mission was 32-year-old Reverend William W. Bagster. He was accompanied by the 25-year-old Reverend William Henry Sanders, and the architect and teacher Samuel Taylor Miller. He was the very first black missionary to come to Angola. Others followed, and they spread throughout the nation, founding missions and contributing in this way to the education and training of countless Angolans. Missionaries built churches, schools and hospitals and instructed people how to till the land and how to raise farm animals. They trained teachers, stonemasons, carpenters, tailors, and nurses. They gave training to church workers, to catechists who gave religious instruction, to deacons, and to both male and female pastors.

The EECA came about with the creation of the Evangelical Missions of Bailundo, Camundongo, Chissamba, Dondi, Chilesso, Elende, Lutamo / Dondi, de Silva Porto, Bunjei, Litoral/Lobito, and Nova Lisboa/Bomba. Over time, the Evangelical Congregational Church of Angola was handed over to Angolans to run. 

The EBCA (Evangelical Baptist Church of Angola) is another important religious institution that was set up in Angola many years ago. It was founded in the North of Angola, and the EBCA today has churches in more than half the provinces of Angola, among them Zaire, Uige, Luanda, Cabinda Benguela, Bengo, Huíla, Lunda-Norte, Kwanza-Norte. 
The first missionaries reached the city of Mbanza Congo (formerly São Salvador), in 1878 from Britain. Then, in 1899, the British missionaries founded the Kibokolo Mission and in 1932 the Bembe Mission. The outbreak of hostilities in the war for Independence led to the Portuguese destroying the last two missions. The Mbanza Congo Mission was transformed into a Portuguese military barracks.


The Portuguese repression in the 20th century forced a great number of the Baptist population (and the faithful) to abandon Angola and take refuge in the former Belgium Congo. The ever-faithful Baptists however, did not despair, and they set up in 1969, in this new haven, the CCBCA (The Christian Church of the Baptist Church of Angola). In addition to their religious calling, Baptists also concentrated on building up the capacity of Angola’s future generations. Today, as before, they make contributions in the areas of education, health, social welfare, and other fields that are beneficial to improving people’s lives.

The Methodists also made significant contributions in Protestant Missions in Angola. The United Methodist Church in Angola was set up in 1885 by Bishop William Taylor. The Quéssua Mission is perhaps the best example of its service to training Angolans.  This mission, located near Malanje, was founded by American missionaries at the end of the 19th century.  Of the students educated here, many of whom went on to become important leaders in Angola such as Dr. António Agostinho Neto, the first President of Angola who was the son of a Methodist pastor.  Bishop Emídio de Carvalho, who headed the United Methodist Church for many years, is its greatest living symbol.(TAAG Austral Magazine)

Historic City Series: Soyo

Located in the northwest corner of Angola, Soyo is a historic city that well reflects the encounter between peoples of different cultures. It was in this region where the first contacts occurred between the first landed-Europeans and ancient peoples from the Kingdom of Congo in the fifteenth century, precisely at the mouth of the great Zaire or Congo’s river, which traverses the city of Soyo.
Formerly known as Santo António do Zaire, Soyo is a city located in the province of Zaire in Angola and has recently become the largest oil-producing region in the country, with an estimate of 1,200,000 barrels per day.

It was in Soyo at the mouth of the Zaire or Congo’s river, where the Portuguese navigator Diogo Cão docked his caravels in 1482, in the fifteenth century, serving King D. João II of Portugal.  He arrived in the territory that today comprises Angola, having found a well-organized administrative region. Thinking he had reached the extreme point of Africa (originally called the “Cape of Storms”, then Cape of Good Hope), Diogo Cão entered the river and reached M'Banza Congo, capital of the ancient Kingdom of Congo, which, like the Soyo watched the arrival of the Portuguese and later the Christian evangelization.

At the time, Soyo was a province of the Kingdom of Congo, which stretched from Gabon to the mouth of the Kwanza River in the present province of Luanda, which was the one that had the greatest influence among the six that constituted that ancient and powerful kingdom. After some initial suspicion, the people of the region received the Europeans, who left there some evidence of their territorial "discoveries".

And the marks of the past are also present at the nearby port in M'Pinda, where a huge cross marks the first Catholic Mass prayed in Angola. At the base of the cross, says: "From the Cross the Light" and "In Memory of the First Baptizes" (where the first inhabitants of Soyo were baptized in 1491, including Mani-Soyo, uncle and representative of King Nzinga Nkuvo from Congo, who was baptized 'Manuel').

At the time, M'Pinda was an important port of Soyo, where the first product trades such as copper and ivory were made, but then was used to trade slaves. It is estimated that more than 60,000 slaves were sent to S. Tomé and Brazil from M'Pinda; trades that would eventually provoke rebellion against the Portuguese colonists.

A gift of nature geographically adjacent to Soyo is the passage of the Zaire River, the second largest in Africa after the Nile; it is also the second in flow and forms the second largest hydrographic basin in the world. At its present flow levels, it is the seventh largest river in the world and the second in extend of water. It is navigable in Angolan territory to the county of Nóqui, about 80 nautical miles from the city of Soyo, along which inhabit small fishing communities.

The province of Zaire, where Soyo is located has six municipalities, about 600 000 inhabitants and borders with the Democratic Republic of Congo. The climate is tropical humid, suitable for the production of coffee (which is no longer made), cassava, sweet potato, banana, beans, citrus fruits, peanuts and cashews, among others, as part of a subsistence peasant agriculture. (TAAG Austral Magazine)

Historic City Series: M'Banza-Kongo

M'Banza-Kongo, formerly known as Sao Salvador is the capital of Angola's northwestern Zaire Province . The city was founded some time before the arrival of the Portuguese and was the capital of the historic Kongo Kingdom.  Geographically, its sits on top of an impressive flat-topped mountain, sometimes called Mongo a Kaila (mountain of division) because legends recall that the King created the clans of the kingdom and sent them out from there.

M'banza-Kongo was once the seat of power of the Manikongo, the ruler of the Kingdom of Kongo, from where he would appoint governors for the provinces and receive tribute from neighboring subjects. At its peak, the kingdom reached from southern Africa's Atlantic coast to the Nkisi River up in southern Nigeria; an enormous geographical area some 1,000 miles in length . The Jalankuwo, the Manikongo's judgement tree, can still be found in the downtown area of the city on the grounds of the royal palace and present day Royal Museum.

It is also known for the ruins of its 16th century cathedral (built in 1549), which many Angolans claim is the oldest church in sub-Saharan Africa. The church, known locally as nkulumbimbi, is now said to have been built by angels overnight. It was elevated to the status of cathedral in 1596. Pope John Paul II visited the site during his tour of Angola in 1992.

When the Portuguese arrived in the Kongo region, Mbanza-Kongo was already a large town, perhaps the largest in subequatorial Africa, as certified by Portuguese officials in 1491.   During the reign of King Afonso I of Kongo, stone buildings were added, including a palace and several churches. The town grew substantially as the kingdom of Kongo expanded and an ecclesiastical statement of the 1630s related that 4,000-5,000 baptisms were performed in the city and its immediate hinterland, the surrounding valleys, which is consistent with an overall population of 100,000 people. (Wikipedia:  Mbanza-Kongo)

A video showing the history and scenery of Mbanza-Kongo can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChfecMbl6ug

Ghana: home to the Black Stars, but also much more than that!

After dispatching the USA in their last game of the World Cup, Ghana made history as being the fourth African team to reach the quarter final when they faced Uruguay tonight. Ghana has already done better than four years ago when they were knocked out in the last 16. It seemed that all of Africa celebrated Ghana's qualification for the quarter finals of the World Cup. And many hoped the Black Stars would beat Uruguay to become the first African team to qualify for a World Cup semi-final. Unfortunately, after an intense game and many heart stopping moments, Ghana lost on penalty shoot-outs but went home heroes to their own country who welcomed them with all the Ghanaian pride you could imagine.

Not only does Ghana have a world class team who represent a whole continent, but closer to home they also are one of the friendliest, most stable countries in West Africa with rich local heritage.

From the pristine sandy beaches in the south to the hilly and rainforest covered north, bordered by Togo to the east, Côte d’Ivoire to the West and Burkina Faso to the North, Ghana is truly a gateway to West Africa. And what a gateway it is! For the beginner to Africa, the traveller who wants to experience the ‘dark continent’ first-hand, the cautious tourist wanting to learn more about West Africa’s culture, this country is a great choice. Here are a few examples of the unique things you can do and see in the Black Stars home country.

For the avid historian

Ghana, unfortunately, is infamously known for being one of the main departure countries from which the slave traders filled their ships with ‘cargo’ to take them to the ‘New World’, and the remnants of this barbaric trade are still present. On cape coast near Accra, the capital, Elmina castle is the oldest European building in sub-Sahara Africa. According to records, thousands of captives passed through the dungeons of both castles to be shipped as commodities.

Museums are also numerous, and you will not be disappointed with the amount of choice. From the ‘National Museum of Ghana’, home to a varied collection of objects relating to the ethnography and culture of Ghana, to the ‘Dubois Memorial Centre for Pan African Culture’, a national historic monument in its own right documenting the life of the influential Du Bois family, passing by ‘Museum of Science and Technology’ displaying and preserving natural history specimens found in Ghana, you will need an entire lifetime to satisfy your curiosity.

Recently vestiges from an ancient civilisation were found in a remote part of the country which has questioned many theories that were put forward about the history of the regions people. To read the BBC article on the find, click here.

Or to learn about the possibilities to visit the country to learn about the history of slavery, click here.

For the budding naturalist

The vegetation of Ghana ranges from Evergreen forests and Savannah grasslands, to the lowlands to the highlands which boasts the highest point in the country, Mount Afadjato which is 885 metres high and found in the Volta region. The landscape is very suitable for both hiking and trekking which will allow you to get up-close to the wide variety of flora and fauna species.

For example, Tafi-Atome in the Volta region, is home to 300 endangered Mona and Pata Monkeys and is a traditional conservation area backed by statutory enforcement in co-operation with local communities. These monkeys are found in a remnant patch of forests, which has survived fire and human disturbance around the village.

Agumatsa wildlife sanctuary is another place of interest for those interested in wildlife. The area boasts Ghana’s highest waterfalls. The beauty of the falls is enhanced not only by the towering face of the gorge but most impressively by the several thousands of fruit bats clinging to its sides. At the base of the falls, in the surrounding forest, butterflies of various colours and other wild animals make the area significant for conservation. The falls also plays an important part in the cultural life of the communities around it. The people regard it as a fetish protecting them in all walks of life.

For a holiday idea that will take you to the sites mentioned above, click here.

For the culture enthusiast

Like the rest of West Africa, Ghana has a rich cultural heritage

which has been passed down from generation to generation for millennia, and its origins have been lost in the midst of time. However, being ever present gives the open-minded traveller a glimpse into the various rites, rituals, ceremonies and belief systems which make this country and its people ‘oh so special’.

One of the most important cultural remnants from a bygone era is the Ashanti stemming from a once prosperous Kingdom that ruled the region. There are certain days each year on the Ashanti calendar that are set aside for a celebration at the Royal Palace. This ceremony is called Akwasidae.

During the celebration, the King is seated under a spectacular umbrella of colourful, draped cloth and is adorned in vivid cloth and massive gold jewellery which is centuries old (the Ashanti gold jewellery and masks are considered masterpieces of African art). This traditional ceremony takes place in one of the last African Kingdoms to have kept its ancient rituals alive.

But Ghana is also known for its overwhelming hospitality, and there will be no lack of people who will offer to show you their home, offer you meals or just to have a friendly chat. In the remote villages of the Volta region, you can experience the culture first hand by learning how to cook the various traditional meals, discovering the history of weaving in this area and trying your hands on the weaving process, or visiting some farms in the local communities to learn how to use local farming tools.

There is no lack of educational opportunities in Ghana, and you will surely learn a thing or two from this holiday idea.

For the adventure fiend

For the adrenaline junkie, the exercise addict or for the simple traveller looking for a bit of fun, Ghana offers the possibility to partake in an array of activities including hiking, mountain biking, surfing, canoeing, canopy walking, fishing, and many more.

Let’s take example on the possibilities of surfing. Ghana’s south coast is perfect for those wanting to learn how to ride waves. Constant warm water, no crowds and perfect waves (that’s right, no fighting for waves and no wetsuits) make Ghana’s coasts a great location for beginners and intermediate surfers. To learn more about the surfing possibilities, click here.

Sticking to the water theme, the marshes created by the Volta River, create a rarely visited environment which allows for excellent canoeing where you can observe an exotic collection of birds and a baobab grove.

Or if you fancy something different, in Kakum National Park you can find the only rainforest canopy walk experience in the whole of Africa. Suspended 100 feet above the ground, this offers you what is truly a bird's eye view of the rainforest. At this height, you don't have to be an expert to identify the colourful patterns of tropical birds as they glide through the forest below you.

Unfortunately I could not include all the amazing things available to do and see in Ghana, but I am sure that through the above description you have become curious to know more. So do not hesitate to get in touch with us at info@westafricadiscovery.co.uk with any queries about this beautiful country or any of the other 15 West African countries. Or you can visit our website here to discover all the other unique and awe-inspiring holiday ideas available in one of the most undiscovered parts of the World.

Cotton Growing Revival: An Interesting Story

Prior to independence in 1975, Angola was one of the largest cotton producers both in Africa and globally. The decimation of the Angolan landscape during the 27 year-long civil war all but destroyed the cotton-growing industry as with most other agricultural industries.

The resurgence in the cotton-growing industry was kickstarted in 2005 by a massive loan agreement of $31.4 million with South Korea's Export-Import Bank to re-launch cotton production in Kwanza Sul province.  The modernization project is only now coming to fruition in 2010 with the completion of construction of irrigation infrastructure for a 5,000 hectare area in the coastal province.  Programs for technical assistance to cotton producers have only recently been ramped up. Though the project will begin in Kwanza Sul Province, it is expected to extend to other traditional cotton producing areas in Malange, Bengo and Benguela provinces and will ultimately employ about 10,000 families.

The initiation and growth of the cotton-growing history in Angola has interesting American roots; from the seeds to missionary involvement - read on! As early as 1820, the Angolan colonial government, ruled by Portugal, tried to promote cotton cultivation by promising to buy all cotton produced in the colony. The raw cotton materials was to be exported to Portugal to supply its burgeoning textile industry.  Under the initiative of the royal government, cotton seeds were acquired from America to distribute to Portuguese farmers in Angola.   

The outbreak of civil war in America in 1861 gave added urgency to the initiatives of the Monarchy and provided a stimulus to colonial producers in Angola to increase production. The war interrupted cotton supplies flowing from the Southern states of America to Portugal and sent international prices spiralling upward some 300%. Industrialists' fears about shortages of raw cotton and cotton cloth supplies from America and high international prices moved the Monarchy's Conselho Ultramarino (Overseas Council) to allow Governors General of Angola to offer concessions of up to 1000 hectares for cotton production, to spend 20 contos a year for a three year period on seeds and gins and to give ten-year duty exemptions on imports of machines, utensils, and means of transport destined for use in cotton production. Three years later, a decree of 14 May 1864 offered bonuses to Portuguese settlers if they grew cotton.  Twenty-five years later, the government offered to exempt Africans from serving military duty in the Portuguese Army if they produced 150 kilos of cotton. 

Though there was a plethora of legislative directives from early 1800s to the mid 1900s, these efforts did not foster any sustained cotton production in Angola. Only when international cotton prices were sufficiently attractive, as in the American Civil War and World War I, were any serious attempts made to produce cotton on a commercial basis.

Poor farming methods and the ambivalence to the crop affected cotton production over the years.  Unlike cocoa and coffee, cotton did not fit easily into subsistence patterns and African peasants therefore were reluctant to adopt it.  According to the local mindset, the plant was not of course edible, ant it occupied and exhausted soil which could not be interplanted with the local cereal staples. Moreover the seasonal labour demands of cotton are quite extensive, and coincide with the time when both men and women are needed for planting, weeding, and harvesting savanna food crops.

 

A chronicled turnaround in the cotton industry in central Angola was marked by a missionary who revolutionized Angolan agriculture and assisted the struggling cotton industry.  This missionary was Sam Coles, an Alabama African-American who went to Angola in 1923 as an agricultural missionary. Trained in agriculture and industrial arts in Talladega College, Samuel served for 30 years in southern Angola among the Ovimbundu.  Though he introduced new crops such as wheat and fruit, he was instrumental in teaching the Portuguese farmers and Ovimbundu people in the 300-mile area around his mission station how to improve their cotton crops and to farm it on previously unused land.  He introduced  the plow and taught Angolans to train cattle to pull the plows, to carry water, to stump trees, and to transport logs. 

(Adapted from SOWING THE SEEDS OF FAILURE: EARLY PORTUGUESE COTTON CULTIVATION IN ANGOLA AND MOZAMBIQUE, 1820-1926 - Journal of Southern African Studies and from Samuel B. Coles, Preacher with a Plow, Boston 1957)