Bolgatanga, located in the Upper East region of Ghana, is distinctive in its landscape, its culture, and its rich history of craftwork. Although farming is still crucial to the livelihood of villagers, in the last few decades basket-weaving has transformed and elevated the local economy. The following gallery provides a window into daily life in Bolga, where traditions hold strong even amidst an evolving way of life.
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Steve en route between villages Whether traveling by motorbike, by local bus, or by foot, navigating the roads of West Africa is always an exercise in being patient and embracing the adventure. Here, Steve, the owner and founder, waits to receive help from local weavers, who shared a different route to get around an impassable road.
Roads between villages get washed out Dirt roads and walkable paths form a well-used network of routes to get from village to village. Sometimes the roads get washed out, especially during the rainy season, as seen here. There are always ways to adapt and improvise though, and it speaks to the ingenuity of the local people who travel these roads daily.
Steve embracing the moment Steve, the owner and founder, loves every trip he has taken to Africa over the last 3+ decades, each journey showing him a different side of a vast and ever-fascinating land and culture. Unpredictable situations are a part of the experience, as seen here, as he waits to find an alternate route to a nearby village, smiling and in his element.
Children sharing fresh-picked fruit from the trees In the rainy season, the countryside is alive and abundant; children gather up fruits and vegetables all around. Here, after stopping at a huge tree to grab some fresh fruit, the local kids were already in action, having climbed the tree! They dropped several fruits down, a sweet gesture of kindness.
Wells are a cornerstone of village life The village well is the center of activity and is vital to daily life. Around 20 percent of the population living in the rural areas of Ghana do not have access to clean drinking water sources. To help address this dire shortage, our new non-profit, Weaving Hope Together, will create many new wells in these communities.
Retrieving well water requires immense effort In many villages, people spend hours every day walking miles from their homes to fetch water. The weavers have expressed that wells are one of the most important projects that we can focus on, as children often miss school because they are needed to gather water each day. Because they are pulled away from school to help out with such daily tasks, the primary school enrollment rate in Ghana is only 80 percent. By building more wells, we hope to help address this pressing need.
Arriving back at the village home as night falls A classic village scene, as children arrive back home with water in the evening. During the rainy season, every family home is engulfed by maize, guinea corn, cassava, and millet growing towards the sun. The village paths are carved among the growth, forming protected walkways from home to home and connecting to outside roads eventually.
Firewood, millet, and guinea corn are staples Every home has a firewood pile and, depending on the extent of the family home, there may be a roofed kitchen space or it may be outside, as seen here. The dried millet stalks, shown on the left, are used as kindling and for fires that don’t need to last long, as firewood is precious and used judiciously by all. The tall plants, surrounding the home on all sides, are guinea corn.
Farming takes priority during the rainy season A dam feeds an extensive farming area surrounding Bolgatanga and many villagers have plots where more water-intensive crops are grown year-round, such as rice, peanuts, and tomatoes. During the rainy season, farming is often the top priority and baskets take a backseat to the rhythm of nature, which cannot be denied or delayed. Planting time shuts down basket production, as does harvest time, but once the seeds are planted, basket weaving resumes full-scale until harvest time.
Steve joins a local funeral procession Steve, the owner and founder, shares the following story describing the scene pictured: “One evening as were riding motorbikes through the villages to check in with weavers on the eve of a market day, we heard wonderful music lilting over the plains and, following the sound as our guide, we came upon a family house where a funeral was in progress. We were enthusiastically welcomed to join the celebration, and against my initial hesitation, we were obliged to join. It was really interesting to join the dance, shuffling through the home’s courtyard for some time before heading back on our journey.” When asked why they would welcome an outsider like him to join their funeral, the villagers told Steve that it was “an auspicious sign that a white man had appeared” and that they most certainly wanted him to be a part of the occasion. It was an unforgettable moment and experience, no doubt.
Kitchen interior of a village abode The interior of a kitchen in a traditional family home, decorated with natural pigments. A typical family home may shelter 25-40 people spanning 3 or 4 generations. Traditionally, the people in this region are polygamous and there can often be 3-6 wives per husband, leading to many different nuclear families under one roof.
View of the bright moon rising A beautiful moon rising over the Baobab trees, which dot the landscape throughout West Africa. This picture was taken after Steve, the owner and founder, had spent the whole day with a master dyer, a person who can mix any colors, and who plays a pivotal step in the basket-making process. As Steve returned to the home village on the back of a motorbike, the moon was slowly rising into the warmth of the evening sky.