Institute of African Studies
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Item The Bureau Of African Affairs In The Kwame Nkrumah Administration From 1951 - 1966 With a (Descriptive) Guide For Its Archives(University Of Ghana, 1990-09) Mensah, T.J.JThe events that took that place of African Affairs may be said to have been motivated by the realization that new states if Africa, though independent, were constrained by the international environment, but that within those constraints ( and others dictated by physical resources and human capabilities), there remained a degree of choice for African leaders to fashion their government,s policies to meet continental demands. Consequently, Kwame Nkrumah establish the Bureau of African Affairs in order to expedite the Fulfilment of the pan-African dream for the achievement of the total liberation of Africa from alien rule and domination, and for the enhancement of the dignity of the blackman anywhere in the world. Strictly speaking this study is not yet another thesis on Kwame Nkrumah. Rather, it is a b study of an almost forgotten, but nonetheless important political institution established under his administration in pursuit of his African objectives. Inspite of the acclaimed achievements of the bureau of African Affairs in the sphere of African liberation, the organization collapsed with the government which gave birth to it. It dubbed as an organ of Nkrumah,s subversive activities in Africa. The discusses the evolution of the burean in Ghana and Shows the impediments it encountered in adapting its methods to face the challenges of the changes envisaged by the pan-African ideal on the continent. In addition, the records drawn up or used during the bureau s administrative or executive transactions have been appraised and described in this study. Finally, the study makes a number of conclusions regarding the fashioning of the bureau to play the role of coordinating aid to African Liberation MovementsItem The Depiction Of Women In The Struggle For Cultural, Political And Economic Freedom In The Works Of Some Selected African Writers.(University of Ghana, 2016-07) Agu, T.A.Gender stereotypes have existed in African societies for a long time. In these societies, it is generally believed that women are the weaker sex, subservient to men, objects of sexuality, and incapable of taking critical decisions affecting their own lives and those of their communities. Following these assumptions, male writers have often been accused of projecting these stereotypes in their works. Indeed, this is true to a large extent as many male writers seemed to play down the role of women in the African society. While Cyprian Ekwensi presents the city girl as a prostitute, Oyono, in Houseboy, depicts Madame and Sophia as beautiful sexual objects fit only for male consumption. But at the same time that most male authors and indeed some female writers were presenting female characters as second-class human species, others had begun to see the potential in women to assume roles previously thought to be exclusive to men. One of these is Sembene Ousmane. God’s Bits of Wood (originally Les Bouts de Bois de Dieu) is a protest novel that has been given a contemporary political setting, and tells of the strike along the Dakar – Niger railway in 1947/48 in demand for better working conditions. Though they are beaten, murdered and tortured by the white employers, they win in the end with the women playing active roles. There is also Asiedu Yirenkyi’s Kivuli from which he has Blood and Tears which also unearths the wind of change that is blowing with the strong desire of women fight for equality and freedom. We can also make mention of the late Efo Mawugbe in his novel In the Chest of a Woman, which also exposes us to the wind of change in issues concerning women from male perspectives. Mention can be made of Wole Soyinka in his Kongi’s Harvest and Chinua Achebe’s Anthills of The Savannah which are some of the selected texts for this research. This study seeks to examine the economic, political and social roles played by the female characters to alleviate the privations of the daily sufferings they encounter in the society. This will be done by library research involving primary and secondary texts.Item The Role of Civil Society in the Democratization Process in Ghana, A Case Study of the Ghana Bar Association(University of Ghana, 1997-11) Appiah-Mensah, A.The aim of this study is to examine the role of the Ghana Bar Association in the democratization process in Ghana. A sample of 100 comprising 30 lawyers and 70 members of the general public were selected by purposive sampling from diverse occupational and professional backgrounds. It was made up of 69 males and 31 females . The interview schedule (questionnaires) was the method used to collect data from respondents. Additional data were gathered from documentary sources namely; the records of the Ghana Bar Association.The results of the study revealed that in terms of the social background characteristics, occupation was diverse and males and youth dominated the sample. A great majority of respondents were married and the literacy level was very high. With respect to the importance of the legal profession it was found out that in the public·s eye the profession is important because it deals with the law and the law affects everyone; that the nation cannot do without lawyers. As far as the role of the GBA in the democratization process in Ghana is concerned it was discovered that the Association has contributed positively to the process since independence and continues to play a major role in varying degrees involving national development, freedom and justice, human rights, as well as democracy and constitutionalism in general. finally, the following problems were identified to have impeded the effectiveness of the association. These include lack of commitment from governmental interference, lack of discipline among members, internal fragmentation of the Association, as well as anti- GBA sentiments from a large section of the public. Among the recommendations made were that the GSA should have structural re-organization involving the mode of membership induction, discipline, commitment and look for full-time personnel for both national and regional offices. It was also recommended that the General legal council should surrender its statutory powers over lawyers to the GBA to enable it bring order and discipline into the Association; that there should be a vigorous public education on legal matters. In addition, to these the GBA should work in close collaboration with the rest of civil society as it maximizes the power of its presence. as representatives of civil society, on many state bodies The researcher is hopeful that if the recommendations offered here are adopted many of the problems associated with the GBA and other segments of civil society will be minimized. if not entirely eliminated.Item The Secular Aspects Of Afa Cult And Its Relationship To Communal Life In Anlo(University of Ghana., 1997) Toppar, S.A.Among the Southern Ewes known and called '"Anlo," Afa is a religion. It has an organised worship system in it, headed by a well trained body of prIests called '"Tgboko'" in their individual performances of their religious rites as priests. Although there is the belief in the "Supreme Being" known in the Jewish and Christian religions as '"God", the ‘Supreme Being' is approached through myriads of delegated mediums who are considered subordinate gods or dieties called simply in the Ewe Language as 'Vodu'. Hence, some people call this religion variously as 'Afa' or 'Afa Vodu'; meaning, the Cult of Afa. Each 'Vodu' exercises its own delegated powers within the confines of horoscopes in their major and minor modes known among Anlos in the Ewe Language as "Du" and 'Kpoli" respectively. There are 16 major horoscopes, further replicating themselves to permuted minor horoscopes. In effect, the permuted horoscopes number up to 256. However, researchers like Abiinbola, Wande nd Bascom, William researched well over one million horoscopes or dities in Afa (Ifa). According to the above scholars, divination by way of geomancy is the main method Ifa (Afa) speaks to Its adherents. All essential characteristic feature about this religion is that it has no canonised literature about its do's and don't's as known among Christians and Muslims as the Bible and Koran respectively. Only the priests of Afa relIgIon have the singular duty of disseminating the do's and don’t's by way of geomancy in their divination practices. Even here, priests exercise the greatest circumspection with the messages received from deities to their clients, since priests could incur the displeasure of the gods, should they proclaim they proclaim falsehood. This is why the training of Afa priests is not only long but arduous as observed by Ottenberg, Simon (I960), in hIs work, "Culters and Societies of Africa" This study is therefore, an attempt to look at both the content and context in Afa religion in order to discover its secular dimensions which enable it to serve as props of social cohesion that always engenders the desIred communal spirit prevalent in Anlo. In the content, we shall look at incantations, spells, witty expressions as well as long and short stories contained in some horoscopes. This will help us discover how the daily life of the society is affected by Afa through its literary corpus. In its context, we shall discover how painstaking admirers of this religion become infused with the expert knowledge and use of the entire folklory in Afa, becoming the best adjudged members in Anlo society in terms of the use of the local language . In the study, we shall also discover that Afa contains in It a prolific sense of industry In the form of petty trading, agriculture, tourism, drumming and dancing etc . We shall finally note that Anlo Community appears enmeshed with the entire Afa religion since the belief is cogently shared in Anlo that there is nothing that precludes identification and recognition of Afa : even the names of all herbs and plants are believed to be the names of Afa deities.Item Sacred Spaces and Women: A Case Study of Okomfo Akosua Atuobua in the Koankre Shrine(University of Ghana, 2019-07) Aduako, H.BThe pivotal role of priestesses in traditional religious shrines is not as heavily researched as that of their male counterparts. These shrines regularly adhere to socially constructed gender roles, which reinforces patriarchy. Shrines such as Koankre have male priests who are often the primary focus of many studies on traditional African religion. This is because of cultural norms that prescribe gender roles and responsibilities for men and women in society. Nevertheless, there are shrines that are run by priestesses who defy the traditional concept of womaness in their communities. This dissertation interrogates the role of priestesses in the traditional priesthood institution based on a case study of Okomfo Akosua Atuobua operating at Koankre shrine in the Eastern region of Ghana. The study examines how her gender impacts her ability to perform the diverse roles that she is obligated to execute as the ultimate spiritual leader in the Koankre shrine and Ohene Akura village. The study is based on field work that consists of interactions with 34 respondents from the Koankre shrine and Ohene Akura village. The research indicates that even though she operates in a patriarchal shrine, she is equipped by deities to perform her roles and duties without being confined or subordinated. The complexity of being a priestess in a predominately male dominated institution presupposes that the priestess must alternate between “genders” to perform her roles to varied groups of people and in diverse spaces. Finally, it suggests that the institution that is male dominated allows limited spiritual space for women to serve as priestesses.Item 20TH and 21ST Century Literary Voices on Colonialism and Beyond: The Case of Adichie and Achebe(University Of Ghana, 2019-07) Opare, P.D.Colonialism and its aftermath remain a perennial theme of modern African literature. This theme has attracted a lot of comments from literary critics: there have been concerns that African literature has sacrificed art for politics, that it has remained imaginatively timid and dull. African literature of the 21st century is expected to have a new face, a new face it will have, perhaps, by putting behind her the dark past of colonialism, racism and marginalization so that she can be more imaginatively aggressive and expansive. Yet the theme of colonialism remains, sitting side by side with the new concerns that 21st century African writers address in their works. This thesis seeks to examine the perennial theme of colonialism in 20th and 21st century African literature. I examine the peculiar approaches that Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie adopts in writing stories about colonialism and beyond, comparing her works to Chinua Achebe in a bid to identify where they converge and diverge in telling the African story. I also examine how the concepts of transnationalism, cosmopolitanism and interstitial postcoloniality impact the commitment a writer takes in telling stories of colonialism and beyond. The study argues finally that the bold new approaches that Adichie has adopted in telling postcolonial stories are as a result of the heritage of Achebe as a forerunner in African literature, and more importantly because of her expansion of her work through extra-territorialism and cross-cultural initiations (Bhabha, 1994.)Item Popes’ Complicities in the ‘Negro’ Slave Trade, 15th Century to 19th Century.(University Of Ghana, 2019-07) Mensah, I.S.N.Catholic Church historians and the Papacy had claimed to have vehemently condemned slave trade at every instance. Catholic historians and scholars like Luigi Conti and Panzer have done their best to grant an intellectual absolution to the seat of the Pope by carefully whitewashing the ugly part of their history and eulogizing the Catholic Church for being at the forefront of the abolitionist movement. I contend that a thorough analysis of Papal bull, treaties and the classic works of scholars like John Francis Maxwell 1975, Howard Erskine-Hill 1998 and Pius Onyemechi Adiele 2017 and other published works would bring to bear the involvement of the Pope in the process of the enslavement of the ‘Negro’. I will advance this debate to show the authority of the pope in medieval European politics by examining archival sources on the alliances, diplomatic relations and international treaties ratified with such European countries concerning the slave trade. I will extend this debate further to show that not only did the church blessed and supported the trade, but the Church directly purchased African slaves in Rome. This work also takes a closer look at the extent of the papacy’s direct and indirect involvement in the Negro slave trade. An analysis of the financial system and fiscal policy of the Catholic Church in medieval times and assessment of largest Slave Corporation in Maryland by the Jesuit Order based on archival materials from Georgetown University Slave Archive show that not only was the leadership of the Church involved in the trade but also benefitted from the trade.Item Corporal Punishment And The Rights Of The Child: A Case Study Of Some Public Schools In The Koforidua Municipality(University of Ghana, 2002) Theo-Thad, M.In recent years there has been tension between parents and teachers as a result of the use of the cane as a disciplinary tool in schools. The passage of some legislative instruments on the rights of the child has to a large extent contributed to the debate as to whether corporal punishment should be administered in schools or not. The legal position is that the child should be protected from all physical or mental violence, injury or maltreatment. Teachers also contend that without the cane, discipline in schools would be ineffective. The current study therefore examined the use of the cane in schools in the New Juaben Municipality and the extent to which it is used. The study relied on both primary and secondary materials. There was also personal observation and interaction with education authorities. It was found out that hundred percent (100%) of teachers favoured the use of the cane as a necessary disciplinary tool in schools. The indiscriminate use of the cane in the study area led me to conclude that teachers are unaware of children's rights under the laws of Ghana and are therefore constantly violating laws that forbid the physical infliction of pain or injury on children. It is necessary that special orientation on the fundamental rights of the child be put in place for teachers.Item An Analysis of Vote Selling and Its Impact on Voting Behaviour in the Ashaiman Constituency(University of Ghana, 2018-07) Appiah, E.A.The thrust of this study was to analyze vote selling and its impact on voting behaviour in the Ashaiman constituency. Specifically, it sought to examine the reasons why voters sell their votes, explore how vote selling transactions are conducted and analyze the implications of vote selling for Ghana’s democracy. The study adopted the qualitative approach within which the case study design was used. The population comprised all voters in the Ashaiman constituency. The targeted population numbered 136,989. Using purposive sampling 60 voters were selected. In the end 45 respondents were interviewed. From the study, it was found that voters sell their votes because after elections politicians fail to fulfill their campaign promises, low level of incomes and readiness of politicians to spend money on their campaign and their strong support for the party. It was also found that voters approach politicians through agents (local champions) who use it as a way of making money for themselves. They also appear in a form of organized groups and or on individual basis to make pledges for immediate reward in order to throw their support at the polls. The study again established that vote selling does influence voting behaviour since after receiving their packages most voters felt they had to hold their end of the bargain. Also, it was established that vote selling leads to larger public deficits and public sector inefficiencies and higher levels of corruption in government. It is recommended that a serious nationwide education is embarked on against vote selling by the EC, NCCE and IPAC especially in the run up to elections. Voters should also be educated on the core business of MPs in order to remove the burden of campaign promises from the shoulders of aspirantsItem Environmental Discourses, Charcoal Production and Plantations in the Kintampo Area(University of Ghana, 2018-07) Owusu, S.The study involves farmers, charcoal producers, and plantation developers in Weila, a community in Kintampo, a district in the Brong Ahafo region of Ghana. Plantation suggested as a sustainable alternative for charcoal production does not support other rural livelihoods and rural inhabitants are excluded from its development due to the high capital required. The nature of integration between farming and charcoal production and tree plantation is investigated. Also the study examines the access available to rural inhabitants in engaging in charcoal production and plantation development; as well as the contribution of the three livelihoods to the rural inhabitants. The study comprised 180 farmers, charcoal producers and plantation developers from Weila, who were interviewed concerning their livelihood and its impact on the environment. The study revealed that charcoal production successfully integrates with farming while plantation after 3-4 years displaces farming and other livelihood in the same environment. Also, farming is the most important livelihood to the rural inhabitants. While access to capital is the main challenge for developing plantations since plantations demands a lot of capital hence limiting rural inhabitants’ access to large-scale plantations. Access to sacks and transportation are the major limitation to rural inhabitants in having maximum profits from charcoal production. All the same charcoal production is a low entry activity which is easily accessible to most rural inhabitants, particularly, the youth. It is noted that woodlot plantations can cause food shortage, and affect the sustainability of the environment. Woodlot plantation may not support the state’s goal of sustainable charcoal production and sustainable environment. Importantly, the rural inhabitants are likely to be denied or segregated in benefiting from charcoal production should regulations be introduced by the state. Therefore, rural inhabitants should not be compelled to use woodlot plantation for charcoal production. Advanced regeneration methods should be encouraged. Regulation of charcoal production should be reconsidered. Finally, there is the need for area specific study of the impact of plantation development.