Info or Intox?

In a previous post I talked about the elections for 2020 in the region ...  However we never realised the world would see a pandemic in the meantime, COVID-19 has brought bitter hardship to many.

Guinea went to their polls on Sunday, it got a little heated but nothing too bad.  However today there has now been a video circulating and according to the BBC Minister of Foreign Affairs Mamadi Touré denounced as "completely false" a video circulating online claiming to be a recording of a phone call made by President Alpha Condé conceding defeat to his rival Cellou Dalein Diallo.

This weekend on Sunday 25th October, the small archipelago state of Cabo Verde off the west coast of Senegal will go to the polls.  With a population of 600,000 or so, it would be hoped that the information coming from there is correct!  However they have suffered due to the pandemic as most of their income is from tourism and finally managed to open their airspace on 12th October,a day they reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases since the outbreak of the pandemic.

At the end of the month, Sunday 31st October Cote d'Ivoire will go to the vote.  This election has become a conflictual debate due to the running of the third term of President Outtara.  However, it appears the population forgot that he had put in his former Prime Minister, Gon Coulibaly to replace him.  Sadly Gon Coulibaly died on 8th July 2020 so the President found himself standing again.  There have already been demonstrations in pockets of the country against the 3rd term, intox is spreading and a small minority of the population seem to have forgotten the events of 2010-2011.  Most of the population would like to continue in peace!

Just three weeks later, it's Burkina Faso's turn on 22nd November, like Cote d'Ivoire it can go to a second round.  Burkina has had a few years of terrorism now with the jihadists trying to take over this beautiful country.

December 7th is the day the hotly contested seat of President in Ghana is up for grabs.  12 candidates have just been accepted by the electoral commission.  Word is that on the ground things are tense with people ready to go to the polls.  Ghana seems to be very much a two party nation between the NDC & NPP but a third party 'PPP' with a female candidate Brigitte Dzogbenuku is rallying voters around her.  After Ellen Sirleaf-Johnson of Liberia, it would be a positive move to have a fresh female face leading a country in the sub-region!

With the Nigerian #EndSARS movement taking an awful twist today with several shot and killed at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos, the region is getting somewhat edgy!

Answering endless requests about the region

It's been a while now that I've been online on various travel forums under my pseudonym 'Kira' ... the name came from Kira-cho, a town in Aichi-ken, Japan where I spent 15 months living and working there for my degree.

I digress ... but on several occasions I've met people and talked to them over the years of travelling around the sub-region and then been asked 'Are you Kira?' ...

So I've set up a group on Facebook to cover all things West African related to travelling, without any touts hopefully!  The group can help and advise others who are in the region.  It's open to all heading that way or who are already there!

Join us by clicking here: West Africa Travellers on Facebook

There's nowt so queer as folk ...

Part of my student life was in Sheffield in Yorkshire, UK the other part was in Japan; both cultures were full of expressions and I believe this old Yorkshire one sums my feelings up totally!

I've come across so many fantastic people travelling in the sub-region or indeed settled here on a more permanent basis.  We all exchange information, encourage each other, share food and drink and part on terms that feel like you've known the person for years.  This is so true of quite a few friends of mine including some who were in Nigeria, arrived in Cote d'Ivoire for a holiday back in 2009; gave their daughter a beautiful name from a memory whilst in CI.  I've since been to stay with them when they were posted to Bujumbura, Burundi.

THEN, there are the 'others', generally the minority but they do come past and leave impressionable memories; I've already mentioned a few in this earlier blog about backpackers and volunteers in Ghana.  However, the situation when I reflect back on it has become farcical in some respects, chatting to a friends online who also live in the region we've been exchanging notes.  There are a few people involved in the tourism business in the sub-region who all know or know-of each other through another connection.

There were the Nordic overlanders who turned up unannounced, as usual I knew they were somewhere en-route, maybe a few days away, but they suddenly called and told me they were outside the gate!!!  I, meanwhile, was at a birthday lunch with a few friends, I asked them to wait a few minutes and I'd return.  No quicker than we said hello, one of them made a dash for our only 'throne' and proceeded to spend 30 minutes in there.  It turned out that some sort of virus had joined the expedition, so a hotel was sought and with genuine hospitality I made sure they weren't short of anything.  They left 2 or 3 days later without a word since our initial meeting and introduction at the hotel; I received a text after they'd left town to say goodbye ... and a very odd mention of their stopover on their blog!

The Europeans who were helped every kilometre of the way via WhatsApp (something I happily do for others regularly!) with any little query or getting past customs posts without paying.  They arrived and made rather snide comments about the operation in Cote d'Ivoire via WhatsApp; they had no knowledge of the situation at that time apart from one of our members of staff giving their version.  They left without explaining themselves, refusing to answer WhatsApp but creating their own unfounded opinion about the circumstances!  

In New Zealand/Australia, you call them bludgers; I remember the word well and was proud to hear that I was as hard-working as an Kiwi and 'no bloody bludger' ...

In West Africa we could possibly re-name them "parasites".  These parasites move from place to place, gathering information, using other people's names to get favours (mine in one instance after a 5minute chat in Casablanca airport when I suggested somewhere to stay in Accra, Ghana)!  They lean on others to organise their onward trip, pleading poverty to avoid paying meals, internet, phone credit or a night's stay and in true parasitical fashion have other travellers pay their drinks!!! They don't bother to try to learn about the culture or local languages.  However they don't think twice about splashing out for sports lessons or food shopping in a western supermarket under the noses of those who have helped them that have to shop in the local market as they can't afford to spend so extravagantly! 

Travelling is all about community, in the sub-region the majority of travellers that pass through are open, friendly, keen to learn about the area AND it's genuine and reciprocal.  Unfortunately the parasites that upset others, are talked about via messaging services and the word spreads prior to their arrival ...

There's nowt so queer as folk ...

18,366 Kilometres by Road

If you're afraid of flying, getting home to see Mum in Nigeria when you live in the UK, can't be easy!

A year ago I was contacted by Chinedu for help and advice about a trip to Nigeria from the East Midlands, UK.  I was a bit confused by the situation, here I was telling a Nigerian how to get home, but he'd never been home or attempted a long overland journey!  There were so many questions, particularly in regards to being fearful of completing the trip; however many times I promised him he would love it, he was convinced he was about to travel to hell.



He made the trip, had some wonderful experiences, met a lot of people, travelled many thousands of kilometres and finally made it home, taking scrupulous notes along the way!

The result is a wonderful book of his experiences, the reality of obtaining visas, dealing with transport and having the time of his life.  He didn't just go to Nigeria by road but he returned by road too!

I've never plugged a product on this blog, but Chinedu deserves as many sales as he can get, it's on Kindle as well as a beautiful paperback copy that's sitting proudly in front of me!

https://www.amazon.com/18-366-Kilometres-Road-Adventure-ebook/dp/B01M8MB3J9

Proud to have been able to help him, hoping to see him on a trip south soon!

Proud, is too poor a word ...

Last week I was in Accra, to host the 3rd Annual Conference of Women Aviators in Africa - wafric.org

Despite a lot of difficulties, the conference was a massive success!

Students came from Ghana, Nigeria & elsewhere ...... professionals flew in from Seattle, USA, Dakar, Senegal & Germany, Ireland & other locations - it was a strong show of support both male & female to get more youngsters into aviation; but particularly female aviators from W.Africa.

Proud, is too poor a word.

There were ladies with us who had got there by bus from Lagos, endured hours of surgery for a disablement I've spoken about before; others who had flown in from South Africa, the USA via Nairobi & other locations to meet us and drive forward the presence of women in the avition industry.

Air Commodore Kwame (Victor) Mamphey, Director General of Ghana Civil Aviation Authority made the keynote speech, well received by all, followed by a strong address by Dr John E Tambi, NEPAD (African Union) trying to demystify the concept of women entering the industry.  Following this Patricia Mawuli made an impact on all present with her story of entering the industry & mentoring the three pilots that followed up with their stories.

http://avtechacademy.blogspot.com/2011/10/avtech-at-wafric-conference.html 

Jessica Cox the 'armless' US pilot confirmed at the very last moment on landing at Kotoka, Accra's burgeoning airport and arrived 20minutes later!  Her speech & presence had a profound effect on everyone there.   To see Jessica meet Lydia Westi who had already spoken during the morning session, watching this young 16 year old Ghanaian pilot with one good arm meet Jessica had me in tears.

Lydia is a student at the AvTech Academy, part of www.waasps.com and proving to everyone that if you can dream it, you can believe it, as WAFRIC's President Kajuju Laiboni instills into everyone!  After two days at the Accra conference kindly sponsored by Ghana Civil Aviation at the Fiesta Royale Hotel the third day was an outing for the delegates.

The AvTech Academy www.waasps.com hosted the most incredible day at their Kpong Airfield having been an integral part of our logistics & other crazy matters to get this conference on the road.  It had people talking prior to our arrival and now for days afterwards.  One of the delegates forgot it was his birthday due to the love of flight.  Six international delegates were sponsored by www.waasps.com to fly with their crew!

A few press reviews:

http://www.modernghana.com/news/353540/1/three-more-international-airlines-to-ply-ghanas-ai.html  

http://www.modernghana.com/news/354796/1/gcaa-improves-infrastructure-to-reflect-status.html

http://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2011/10/02/we-must-see-beyond-people%E2%80%99s-physical-disabilities-%E2%80%93-jessica-cox/ 

The WAFRIC board are so proud of what has been accomplished, to get more young women into aviation, West Africa will be the first WAFRIC chapter with a determined team behind them!

Special thanks have to go to all the ladies in Ghana, Jonathan Porter of www.waasps.com  http://bradtghanaupdate.wordpress.com/2011/10/06/flying-near-akosombo/, Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, Boeing, Aelex Law Firm, Landover (Nigeria), Charles Sablah of 'Put Jah First' & his walking tours of Nima, Accra  http://bradtghanaupdate.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/walking-tours-in-accra!  

Without their support, West African aviation lovers particularly the ladies might not stand a chance of getting their passion across!!!

My only hope is that C.R.E.E.R will get established soon to provide mechanical engineering to youngsters who might want to move into aviation at a later date.