The world according to me

Ernest Owusu - A boy's life in Ghana

I first met Ernest Owusu in April, when he accompanied his friend Michael Kwakye on a visit to my house to pick up money for school fees. While Michael was preparing to pay his tuition for the third term of his year of Senior Secondary School (SSS), Ernest was considering his options. He was also in need of school fees. Since students can only attend once the term has been paid for in full, Ernest missed about half the term while his parents worked to put together his tuition.

When he returned from the third term for his summer vacation, he learned that his mother had fallen ill and had been moved back to Ernest’s hometown, the village of Oda in the Eastern Region. Normally she is a petty trader, selling kontomire (a leafy green vegetable). She is currently unable to work due to her sickness. For a number of years she has endured periods extended illness fairly regularly. When she gets sick she is normally treated at the hospital. Since the family is uninsured, her bouts of illness are a double-edged sword: rather than generating income, she brings home hospital bills.

Meanwhile, Ernest has been living at his family’s home in Madina, a suburb of Accra. He normally lives there with his parents and his older brother in a rented single room of a compound house. The compound has had neither power nor running water for over a year. The family’s room has no kitchen facilities, and they do their cooking outside. For bathroom facilities they walk to the nearest public toilet.

Ernest’s brother is 19 and was fortunate to have both parents available to support his education. He attended SSS all the way up to final examinations. Unfortunately, his family was unable to come up with the examination fees, so he could not sit for the tests to earn his diploma. He now sells car batteries in Madina.

In addition to the income earned by his brother, Ernest’s father supports the family by working at the airport in Accra. He had held a good job there as a baggage porter; but midway through his employment the airport hired more porters. Some of these turned out to be crooks who knowingly allowed the contents of passengers’ luggage to be stolen. When the criminal activity was uncovered by airport management, all the porters were fired. Now Ernest’s father spends his days at the airport working as a freelance travel agent, offering to arrange tickets for domestic travelers who arrive without reservations. The work is not very steady.

Ernest remains upbeat. His friends know him to be a keen debater and an argumentative sort; Ernest would like to be a lawyer. For now he is in the General Studies track at SSS—each term he takes eight courses: four core required courses, plus geography, economics, government, and Christian religious studies. Of these, government is his favorite. He hopes to join the school’s Debate Team. At the moment, though, it appears that the tuition money simply will not be available.

About 120euro would pay for the coming term, including tuition, boarding, books, and all other fees.

Labels: Michael

# posted by Thilo @ 11:44 AM