Ghana - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

Culture Smart / Cultuur Bewust

by Ian Utley

The “Gateway to Africa,” Ghana welcomes around a million tourists, aid workers, and business travelers a year—visitors who invariably come away with glowing reports of a fertile land, tropical scenic beauty, rich culture and traditions, and many first-rate tourist attractions. It is, however, the Ghanaians themselves who make the biggest impression. It is through their hospitality and love of peace that Ghana has a claim to be the safest and friendliest country in Africa. Ghanaians are welcoming to foreign guests, respectful to each other, strong followers of tradition, and have deep familial and communal values. For most visitors, Ghana comes as a wonderfully refreshing change, with valuable lessons to teach the outside world.

Ghanaians like to do things their own way, and Ghana is a proud country that does not cater exclusively to tourists but rather expects them to fit in with the Ghanaian pace and way of life. Thus a visit to Ghana is not without its downsides, and visitors can experience frustrations and barriers. This revised and updated edition of Culture Smart! Ghana explains the complexities and nuances of Ghanaian society with clarity and humor. Visitors are expected to be sympathetic to their customs and beliefs, and their hosts will have no hesitation in saying, “We don’t do that here,” should a faux pas be made or a taboo broken. It is important to Ghanaians that they, and their guests, follow certain rules and codes of conduct. Culture Smart! Ghana describes these rules, explains where they come from, helps to disperse the frustrations and barriers, and offers the reader an opportunity to enjoy more fully all that this beautiful country has to offer.

Genres: Nonfiction, Ghana, Travel, History, Africa

168 pages, Paperback

First published March 24, 2009

About the author

I have been in love with Ghana since 1998, when I worked as a teacher trainer with the charity Voluntary Service Overseas. I am fluent in the country’s main language, Twi, and occasionally entertain Ghanaians by appearing in Twi language TV and radio shows. I am also the author of Culture Smart! Ghana- The Essential Guide to Customs and Culture.

I left the classroom in 2007 to concentrate on travel writing, language teaching and ecotourism in Ghana.

Reviews

[Ian Utley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of course I'm going to say this book is excellent- I wrote it!
Welcome to Ghana

[Andrew Maxwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up when I thought we’d be adopting a kid from Ghana, but our circumstance meant Ghana was closed to us. (No matter: Ukraine is open and willing!) This is a brief, practical guide to the people of the first African country to gain independence from its colonial overseer (Britain in this case), in 1957. Designed for travellers (ubronis). The book contains a lot of information for its size! There are phrases and jokes peppered throughout. Being a teacher, I particularly liked the following Ghanian proverb pertaining to education: “When a yam doesn’t grow well, we don’t blame it: we blame the soil.” Some might say that the sentiment absolves people of their personal responsibility, but any educator knows the truth in those words. The advice is very down-to-earth; for example, “Fufu, which is swallowed without chewing, is notoriously difficult to eat for first timers.” I enjoyed reading the book.

[Pchu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I expected too much from a less-than-200-page book, but I didn't find this to be all that good. The conversational, casual tone will definitely appeal to some people, and this book does have some good insights generally, but there were times when I found the casualness to be off-puttingly strange. To put that in context, here's an example: on a page of "Do's and Don'ts", one of the "Don'ts" was simply "Never display any racist views". What...am I supposed to do with that tidbit, exactly? And is that something...unique to visiting Ghana/Ghanaian culture...?? That example was the most glaring, but there were other moments in the book that made me have the same sort of "Wait, what?!" kind of reaction.

[Donald Max Henzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good country guide to get a quick overview

The guide is up to date and covers a wide range of facts. The rich illustrations and tables make it vivid and interesting. Can be highly recommended.

[Amanda Misiti · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read. It feels a bit out of date and out of step with the times, but as a very initial primer for people visiting or studying in Ghana for the first time it is useful.

[Jeremy Gerbrandt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of good resources and insight, excited to read it again to study up on my plane ride over.

[Kenlee Funk · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun guide with lots of great tips for learning the customs of Ghanians. My fiancee is from Ghana and agrees this guide is fairly accurate but a little outdated.

[Valerie Aveni · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is missing a lot of details and is not particularly objectively written. That’s not necessarily a bad thing - it’s good to get opinions - but it means it’s not a particularly balanced view and if you are not from the author’s culture, there may be things that don’t click.

[Noel Arnold · Rating 3 out of 5]

book #22 of 2023: Ghana - Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture (2021) by UK teacher and tourism advisor Ian Utley. this small format book is a fast 195-page read covering the usual vast range of topics in a travel book: history, geography, values, religion, customs, family life, social life, entertainment, transport, cuisine, health and safety, business, communication, languages, etc. the author provided useful, experienced insights with a light touch. even though I read this book seeking information and i think it achieved that purpose, I’m looking forward to more anthropological content on the various local tribes and their customs, as well as places to go and things to do. this was a useful book, but maybe it tried to cover too much and a bit too lightly.

[Frank Calberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Takeaways from reading the book:

How is the geography of Ghana?
Page 12: The Southern part of Ghana is forested due to high rainfall, and the Northern part of the country is drier savanna. Further north and into Burkina Faso, the Sahara desert is slowly encroaching. The most mountainous area of Ghana is in the Eastern part of the country along the Togo border.

How is the political structure of Ghana?
Page 12: Ghana consists of 10 regions. Each region is subdivided into districts. There are 138 self-administrating districts.

What languages are spoken in Ghana?
- Page 16: About half of all Ghanaians come from the Akan tribe and speak varieties of Twi.
- Page 156: Ghana has over 50 different languages.
- Page 156: The national language of Ghana is English.
- Page 156: Because Ghana has several francophone neighbors, French is also heard.

How do people in Ghana get from A to B?
- Page 127: More and more people in Ghana have cars. As there are relatively few roads in Ghana, there's a problem with congestion and accidents.
- Page 127: Minibuses called tro-tros are popular in Ghana.

What are some innovation opportunities in Ghana?
- Page 95: In Ghana, much focus in education is put on memorizing. There a relatively strong need to help people improve the way they learn.
- Page 141: In Ghana, there is a need to improve toilet facilities and waste management.

What else characterizes the culture of Ghana?
- Page 55: Ghanaians dress well and put emphasis on personal hygiene.
- Page 156: There's a relatively strong group mentality in Ghana, for example due to tribes and relatively large families.
- Page 156: Religion is an important part of the culture in Ghana.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this to gain insight into a friend of mine, but as the book says, it's difficult to get to know Ghanaians well. Picked up the names of a few authors and musicians to look for, and learned a few other tidbits: One half of the 2 million Ghanaians are under 16. Life expectancy is 56 years. National Motto is Freedom and Justice. Ghanaian language has 8 different words for slavery. Many values can be summed up in proverbs like "If you want to say something to God say it to the wind." A Ghanaian who tells you he is "hot" has no money. Good feathers are what make a bird beautiful. A married man without a girlfriend on the side can be seen as abnormal. "I love you" is more akin to "I fancy you."

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am completely unable to vouch for the accuracy of the information in this book, never having been to Ghana, so I can only say that I found the book interesting and enjoyable to read. There are a few sections where the writing was a little choppy, but for the most part it was very readable and it kept me wanting to read more, even though I have no immediate need for this information. People are interesting, cultures are interesting and this book was concise enough to let that shine through. Obviously, as the author freely admits, there are quite a few different cultures within Ghana and such a short book cannot represent them all thoroughly. Instead, the book gives a little flavor and a little guidance and encourages the reader to go to Ghana to learn more.

[bellatrix begins · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book has helped me a lot in gaining insight to the likes and dislikes of Ghanaians, the do's and don'ts for a foreigner. I learned some basic history as well (which I think was just enough). Easy to read, thanks to the writer for that - and for some witty comments that made me smile.

This is not a tourist guide, though, and if you expect it to give you restaurant tips or detailed maps, you would be disappointed.

[Budd Margolis · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading Ghana - Culture Smarty I feel as if I can go to Ghana and not insult just about everyone I meet. There are some good references to the customs, traditions, methodology behind the people of Ghana that provide a good picture of what to expect. I learned. a lot, enjoyed the writing style and the organization was logical. This is a small book, just 200 pages with several occupied by photos so its a quick read, I found it well worthwhile!

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very helpful guide to understanding Ghanaian culture and not making a fool of oneself or unwittingly breaking taboos. Nice to have it on my Kindle, so I could go back and search for entries on specific things like tro-tros (mini-busses) and grasscutters (gigantic cane rats that are reportedly good eatin').

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good stuff, much much more simple than the Bradt guide. Easy to digest, and gives a good though not entirely comprehensive overview of the country and its culture and customs (as the title suggests). An easy airplane read.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I purchased this book in preparation for a visit to Ghana and found it full of information in a format which was easy to understand and digest. It covers a range of topics for the visitor and the book has many excellent reviews.

[Ckelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read which gives one a really good feel for the country. Learnt lots about the country,its people and culture and why Kofi Annan is named as such(fourth boy son, born on a friday).
In the words of one Ghanian: "Ghana is cool...and hot!"

[Denise Tyson A. Mensah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice read. It was informative and often funny. I verified many of the writer’s observations with my Ghanaian husband who confirmed they were accurate. If you are planning to visit Ghana, this nice light read will keep you excited.

[Clair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indispensable!