Kumasi, view from the Sanbra Hotel. 35/2.8 (1/40) [Yes, that is a preacher at the corner with loudspeakers and a sizeable crowd.]One of my chief research interests is democratization and political organization, particularly at the local levels. This past week, I had the opportunity to interview a government official in charge of rural cooperatives and conduct a focus-group session with a farming cooperative in Fomena, a small village about 40 miles south of Kumasi. The government official, unlike many portraits of African civil servants, was incredibly passionate about his job, and let me talk with him candidly for more than an hour. He basically gave me an overview of the history of Ghanaian cooperatives, and furnished some rather humorous quotes, the best of which forms the title of this post.
Cooperatives are a rather interesting institution--and something of a buzzword in the NGO world. I am currently focusing on farmers' cooperatives, which vary greatly in terms of membership and quality. In short, these cooperatives are democratic groups of farmers that help each other out; such help could come in the form of information sharing, resource pooling for capital acquisition, hardship support and enhanced political efficacy. The democratic nature of these cooperatives is what fascinates me the most. How do democratic practices in these cooperatives arise, especially in the context of traditional village hierarchies? Why are some cooperatives run as fiefdoms (the one-eyed men amongst the blind)? If cooperatives can provide the benefits listed above, then what prevents them from being formed? These questions all drive at democratic capacity at the individual level--something that has important implications for governance and policy efficacy throughout the developing world.
The visionary. 35/2.8 (1/100)The Fomena cooperative I visited showed me the pinnacle of what a rural cooperative could be. At first, I was a bit skeptical. I was with Frank, who masterfully conducted the focus group in Twi, and a local government official working with the Department of Cooperatives, who happily assembled this focus group for us. Upon entering, the cooperative--about 15 were present, all the officers (6) and other members (9)--was, for the most part, wearing their official uniforms--a white t-shirt with the co-op crest--and, as soon as they saw us enter, they all stood up, practically saluting us, and shook our hands in line. The only thing missing was the red carpet.
The charter. 35/1.8 (1/13)However, this intense formality loosened up after a few minutes and members talked openly and freely about the issues we posed to them, even as the cooperatives official looked on--in fact, after the focus group, he came up to me and Frank, and said that he had learned so much from that exchange and would improve his work! A couple things in particular really fascinated me about this group. The first was that women took an active role in the discussions, and the treasurer for the group was a woman, a rather rare event in these kinds of organizations. Secondly, even with all the officers present, the cooperative had a flat structure, and members did not speak in fear, officers did not become upset when we passed over them. Overall, this group liked each other.
The farmers' cooperative and Joe. 35/2.8 (1/640) [Photo by Frank.]Above all, this cooperative showed great initiative and wanted to get more things done to improve their community. The main issue, however, is credit constraints. Village-level projects can be rather slow-going in Ghana, and these farmers expressed a great desire to go beyond their own wants and address public needs. When prompted, numerous farmers chimed in and volunteered potential projects, ranging from replacing streetlight bulbs to building cocoa sheds that the entire community could use.
Talking with this farming cooperative was an incredibly enlightening experience for me, and it was refreshing to see democratic decision-making, and action, working so well in rural Africa. These people were making their lives better and doing it with their own initiative. I realize that this cooperative is basically a model one, and that most others throughout Ghana do not approach the professionalism of this one. But seeing that it could work well and that lives could really be improved gives one hope. No longer will the blind have to be led by one-eyed kings.
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This past weekend, David and I attended a Ghana little-league practice out at Tema with a baseball NGO, which was a really fun experience. Lots of great pictures from that outing. I hope to have a post on that tomorrow.
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