IU connections in Ghana

During our last few days in Ghana we were able to spend time with the families of two Ghanaians who are studying at Indiana University. Nana is a PHd student at IU's Near Eastern Languages and Cultures department and has been back with her husband and two kids at the University of Ghana this summer. Also living with them are a few teenagers that they have taken into their home. Nana invited us to her home on the campus. In typical Ghanaian fashion, she had fixed enough food to feed an army. She presented us with two popular Ghanaian dishes. Red Red and peanut butter soup. Red Red is a bean dish with fried plantains that quickly became a favorite for all of us on the trip. Nana was able to shed light on many of the questions we had regarding women's roles in Ghana and the challenges that face them.

After a great visit with Nana we spent the next day with the family and coworker of another IU student, Ebenezer Ayesu. Ebenezer is in the African History department at IU. His friend, named Ebenezer as well, co-owns and manages some small businesses with Ebenezer about 25 miles outside of Accra in a town called Nsawam. "Eben 2 farms" as they have called their business works in everything from poultry to dress making. Ebenezer took us on a tour of their operations around Nsawam. We visited a few small dress making shops where the ladies running the stores were trained by Ebenezer. Ebenezer's dress makers are mostly made up of students rather than employed workers. When their skills are competent they graduate from the program and move on to develop their own small businesses or go to work for other employers. Over the last twenty years, Ebenezer has trained over 220 dressmakers.

These two visits were unique in that we were able to personally connect with people who have a direct relationship with Indiana University. To see and be a part of their world drew us closer to the Ghanaian people and their lives. As we had seen in many situations before, most people supplemented their incomes by having numerous different jobs or small businesses. It gave us much to think about and consider as we move forward in planning a program that will create a sustainable impact for the clients the MBA students will be engaged with. The culture and the practice of the people as well as the daily challenges they face in carrying out business will affect the way we move forward.