Larabanga
on Richard in Koforidua (Ghana), 25/Mar/2009 09:34, 34 days ago
There is, of course, a flip side to Mole. A short distance from the park’s main gate is the village of Larabanga. The creation of the game reserve and later the national park meant that many people had to be relocated. Compensation may have been provided, but it may not have gone to those who deserved or needed it. While it is illegal to kill the animals in the park, this does not stop the animals causing a nuisance when they come to the village. There are four villagers currently in prison because of incidents involving the killing of animals. Sentences can be in excess of five years.Some attempts have been made to tap into the tourist dollars and cedis being spent up the road in Mole. There are a couple of guest houses and the village has its own attraction– its mosque, which is probably the oldest building standing in Ghana. Without written records there is no real way of telling just how old it is particularly as its mud and straw structure needs regular maintenance. I visited it with local guide A.D. He showed me the exterior and the interiorof a building with a similar structure, to give the impression of what I would see inside if I were Muslim. The mosque itself is in the West Sudanese style and was looking very striking after its most recent repair and repaint job against a back drop of blue skies. Its small size, compared to thelarger mosques in Burkina Faso, gives it a more intimate feel and reminds me of the modest Saxon churches in north-east England. A.D. said that the doorways were purposely made small to force those entering into bowing as they did so.I was making mental comparisons between the conditions in Larabanga and those in the Eastern Region cocoa communities. Without the rich soils and vegetation and the abundant if unpredictable rainfall there are few potential sources of income here. There was evidence of charcoal making and I was shown the mill used to process maize and cassava. I was also taken to see a couple of the women involved in turning nuts into shea butter. Public transport is almost non-existent here and even the tourist office has almost entirely collapsed. A.D. believed that education was the key to improving livelihoods. He is studying at the polytechnic in Tamale, about four hours away. There are plans to build an Islamic school. The only school is Christian and the population is entirely Muslim.The Bradt guide to Ghana devotes a few paragraphs to the experiences of visitors to Larabanga. Several were frustrated by the hassle they got from people asking for money and insisting on acting as guides. This behaviour is frustrating but you understand why the locals try it. I was fortunate and was not pestered at all. Maybe things have changed and there is an understanding that this kind of conduct will discourage visitors. Alternatively, there was a big wedding in town and it was Friday, the Muslim holy day. These may have provided a lucky distraction for me.