Good Luck Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria!

Out of the six African teams in the World Cup this summer, four are from West Africa. It is the first time that the World Cup has been held on the African continent, and it would be a momentous occasion for its people and African football if one these teams could go all the way. West Africa is a dominant force in African football and regularly produces stars that play for top European clubs. We took a look at the four teams from West Africa and their chances of success in this World Cup.

Cameroon

Also know as the Indomitable Lions, a tribute to their habit of grinding out results, Cameroon have long been flag bearers for Africa on the world stage since their first world cup in 1982.

Cyprian, one of our tour operators in Cameroon feels confident;

“I am almost sure that Cameroon can get to the second round at the world cup, but we still need discipline in the team to produce good results.

Our super star Samuel Eto’o has had some arguments with the management. If this is resolved then he will be explosive at the world cup and his performance could help Cameroon to the quarter finals at least. That is my forecast, anyway, let’s wait and see!”

With a group including the Netherlands, Denmark and Japan it will be challenging, but not impossible. They must find a way of getting the best out of Samuel Eto'o to progress.

Côte d’Ivoire

In Côte d’Ivoire everyone is wearing orange – the colour of the strip of their national team, The Elephants. Hopes have been dampened by the fact there’ll be no Didier Drogba, but they're managed by Sven-Goran Eriksson who may have a trick up his sleeve (some England fans may disagree!).

I read that one hundred Côte d’Ivoire fans are heading to South Africa on an all-expenses paid trip to watch their team. The country's national supporters club, the National Elephants Supporters Committee, drew the 100 names from their membership. Anyone with a $4 membership was included in the draw, touted as a way to thank ordinary fans who would never be able to afford the trip to the World Cup. A local tour operator is offering a similar trip for about $4,000. Whilst this is a nice gesture and will be a great trip for these fans, it highlighted to me how unattainable it is for a lot of local fans to attend the World Cup.

Côte d’Ivoire seems to be attracted to the ‘group of death’ with the best teams in major tournaments. This time round is no different with a group including Brazil, Portugal and North Korea. There will be a chance for the talented Aruna Dindane and Salomon Kalou to make their mark, and the side has strength in holding midfielder Yaya Touré. Sven Goran-Eriksson needs to improve the underachievement of a team beaten by Algeria in the quarter finals of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Ghana

The Black Stars’ appearance at the World Cup in 2006 finally brought international recognition to a team that has long been one of the greats of Africa but somehow never qualified for the big event. They did well in the last finals in Germany with an adventurous style that won them many fans, but ending up losing to Brazil in the second round with key players missing.

Manuel our local expert in Accra says;

“We have hopes Ghana will do well in the Group stage to progress. 2006 was Ghana’s first time at the World Cup and we finished the group stage second. So I am expecting the same this time around!”

Their group includes Australia, Serbia, and Germany. Kevin Prince-Boateng's decision to play for his parents' country of origin means he could face his brother, Jerome, who has been selected by Germany where they were born. Michael Essien is injured so there is little star quality but their powerful style could be troublesome to other teams in their group.

Nigeria

This will be the Super Eagles fourth appearance in the World Cup. Meetings with Ghana in the Africa Cup of Nations have thrown up some epic games, although the Nigerians have lost the last two in the latter stages of recent tournaments. A meeting in the quarter final would be an epic encounter and sure to split the local South African support.

Nigeria will face Argentina, Greece and South Korea in their group. They have suffered a blow with Chelsea midfielder Mikel John Obi ruled out through injury, but with a squad largely drawn from top clubs it should be a confident team. Nigeria will be looking to their gifted attackers Obafemi Martins and Yakubu for goals.

Group B: Argentina/Nigeria/South Korea/Greece

Group D: Germany/Australia/Serbia/Ghana

Group E: Netherlands/Denmark/Japan/Cameroon

Group G: Brazil/North Korea/Côte d'Ivoire/Portugal

Visit the Fifa website for full group listings and fixtures.

The World Cup: Local enthusiasm! Local benefits?

With just over a week to go, millions of people around the world will be watching their team in South Africa competing for the ultimate prize in football, the World Cup. But for many, particularly in Africa, this world cup has taken on greater significance. When South Africa was chosen to host the 2010 World Cup, it was hailed as a chance to 'give something back' to Africa. However, will the biggest event on Earth benefit some of the planet's poorest people?

The event could provide many benefits to local communities through local trade. However, according to an article in The Independent, informal traders who are a crucial part of African economy have been banned from around the 10 stadiums, reducing their chances to gain from the increased tourism. Creating more jobs for local people is also in question. The future of a project to set up public bus transport is in doubt because the government is cautious about standing up to South Africa's powerful minibus-taxi industry.

There are also question marks over Fifa's internet ticketing system that has left most of the continent unable to buy seats. Fifa kept ticket sales online until 15 April when poor sales forced them to open ticketing booths in the host country. Even though there will be a record six African teams in the finals; South Africa, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Nigeria and Algeria, only 11,000 African fans outside South Africa have purchased tickets. Should there have been more effort to include the fans of these countries?

As well as low ticket sales, especially in the northern hemisphere, tourism visitor figures for the World Cup have been revised down to 200,000 – about the same number of people that visit South Africa during an average summer season from November to February. Local airlines and hotels have cut prices for the coming month, and local businesses are worried about the lack of financial benefit the event will bring.

However, there is some good news. Fifa president Sepp Blatter, in an interview, said that the event is about "giving back to Africa what the continent has given world football through its players.” During a press conference, the organisation pointed to the "centres for hope" - 20 football academies that it will build after the cup. These could provide opportunities to African youth to develop themselves not only in football, but also through education. Examples of how successful these academies can be are The Craig Bellamy Foundation set to open this September in Sierra Leone, and the Right to Dream Academy in Ghana.

Elsewhere, organisations such as Oxfam are trying to use this world Cup and football to connect people around the world. Their new campaign calls on fans to upload a video of their tricks to the website, www.dontdropaid.org. The campaign calls on governments not to drop the ball on overseas aid, which helps to pay for kids to go to school and for medicines and bed-nets that save the lives of millions of people who would otherwise die from HIV or malaria.

Charles Bambara, a former player in the Burkina Faso premier league who works for Oxfam in West Africa, said: “Across the continent, from Algeria to Zambia, football brings a massive ray of hope to people’s lives. We want to tap into all of that energy to say: don’t drop the ball, don’t lose sight of the goal, which is to end poverty and make life better for the world’s poorest people.”

However, despite the event being marred by controversy, one thing is for sure, this event will unite Africans from all over the continent during the World Cup. Voice of America spoke to Ben Owusu from the Ghanaian community in South Africa. He says that Africans will be uniting behind an entire continent;

“We all are coming together this time around to support that particular African team that is playing that day. To come together is the only way we are going to come close to winning the Cup. Whatever African team does well, it will be a victory for the whole of Africa. This is Africa’s World Cup.”

“Brazil, Italy, England and Germany and all those other fancy teams must realize when they land here in South Africa that they are not only playing single African countries," he said. "They must know that they are playing against an entire continent, with its population of one billion firmly behind it … the Cup should remain in Africa.”

This is going to be a very exciting month for the players and fans from the four West African nations playing in the tournament. We will update you with information on the Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria teams over the next week for the build up to the big event. For more information on West Africa, or to discover how you can be a part of the World Cup by visiting the continent yourself, visit West Africa Discovery.

Sustainable tourism: Educational field trip for local secondary school students in Nigeria

Having read some shocking stories about Jos town in central Nigeria over the past few weeks, I would like to also bring you some positive news about the country, to counter these generalisations which give the impression of the whole of Nigeria being a violent country.

In Oyo state, in the South-West of the country, our local expert in Nigeria, Fasoranti Oluseyi Taiwo is organising an educational youth project to increase the awareness of secondary school students about the concept of sustainable tourism. This one-day field trip will involve the children in the development of the concept, by introducing them to a set tourism circuit of a historical site, on which they will be involved in workshops, talks and debates covering different aspects of sustainable tourism. They will also participate in a tree planting scheme to promote environmental awareness and conservation of the local natural heritage.

The historical site in question is the ‘Ancient Warlord Palaces of Idaban’, a location of significance for the local storytellers. It is said that Efunsetan Aniwura, the Iyalode of Ibadan, a powerful, rich and influential High Chief, lost her only child during child labour. Gripped by a terrible sense of loss and the stigma of not having a progeny to inherit her legacies, Efunsetan, who blamed God for her tragedy, vented her anger on the very society she had sworn to defend by the oath she had taken on her installation as the Iyalode of Ibadan.

She became a wicked, cruel, callous, bitter, heartless monster, dreaded by the townspeople. It took the concerted efforts of Ibadan warriors led by Latoosa to loosen her grip of terror on the city. It is a heart-rending story that keeps anyone on the edge of their seat during any theatrical performance that narrates it.

It is hoped that this field trip, by collecting the entry fees to the site and by sourcing local products for the proposed lunch, will make the students value the local natural, cultural and historical heritage as being important elements for the development of tourism and subsequently will ensure the conservation and respect for them.

This project, in association with the Oyo State Government, the Oyo State Tourism Board and various schools from different sectors (private, public and special needs) has been received positively and is being seen as a step forward towards the development and diversification of the tourism industry in a sustainable way.

We will keep you updated on the projects progress.

If you desire to know more about this project, or would like a copy of the project proposal please email us at info@westafricadiscovery.co.uk.

To learn more about West Africa and the Responsible Tourism concept, please visit our website at www.westafricadiscovery.co.uk.

You can also follow us on twitter and Facebook to keep up to date with news, photos, videos, discussions and newly listed West Africa based sustainable tourism projects.

A Tribute to the Nigerian Mother… near and far by Iyaniwura Adewunmi

The Nigerian Mother….

She nurtures you from birth, watching your every step.
Your pain becomes hers.
She sacrifices her time, listening attentively to your every worry
Her words act as a comfort blanket with whispers of understanding
Carefully placed words are laced with trickles of wisdom
She breaks down barriers with unconditional love
You want to give up, but she breaks your fall
You’re discouraged but she stands you up ‘TALL’

‘My Mum is the fireplace of my family: The key focal point, constantly providing support, warmth, continuous love and understanding’ Ejiro.

The Nigerian Mother…

There is no Substitute.
She loves you regardless, she disciplines you regardless.
She understands what you can’t or won’t say, slowly piercing your thoughts

You have an opinion; she tells you hard facts.

Her expressions speak volumes:
She smiles, you giggle. She frowns, and you know you’ve been warned…
She nags you, because she can. It’s called ‘Discipline 101’
She is 90% right ALL THE TIME. And you are lucky with the other 10%.

You say ‘I am an adult’! She smiles sheepishly and you catch the twinkle in her eye. At that moment you know you will always be her child.

By Iyaniwura (which translates to ‘Mother is Gold’ in the Nigerian Language of Yoruba)

West Africa Christmas time... Baobab and palm wine

In the UK we usually associate Christmas with family, eating and drinking (often to excess!), giving presents, Father Christmas and a Christmas tree. But how is the tradition celebrated in West Africa, a region of the World where Christianity is at its freshest, where missionaries have only been preaching for about 150 years?

West Africa is a culturally diverse region; comprised of 16 countries, where Islam and Christianity dominate thousands of different tribes speaking hundreds of different languages. Therefore it is unsurprising that Christmas is celebrated in a multitude of different and colourful ways. West Africa is a very religious place. Belief is central to every household whether it is for Allah, Jehovah, Jesus, or the multitude of gods founds in the more animistic religions. Regardless of deity many have been taking Christmas up as an annual celebration where prayer, family, parties and merrymaking play an important role.

All over West Africa, from Senegal to Cameroon, Nigeria to Sierra Leone, parties of different sizes and significances are initiated on either the 24th or 25th December. Even in the poorer countries, an effort is made by all to carry out the tradition and join the celebrations.

According to Afrol News, Sierra Leonean celebrations include partying and ancient local traditions. Like in most countries outside Africa, pre-Christian traditions and popular costumes have been mixed with religious sermons, making the Sierra Leonean yuletide quite unique. Ancient and spectacular masquerades and masking ceremonies now play a major part in Christmas celebrations in Freetown, where the majority of people participate in the colourful party. In the cities, the police musical bands and other bands play Christmas songs in the streets during all December, and nobody escapes the yuletide feeling.

Further North, in Senegal, dominated at 95 percent by the Islamic religion, but with a minority of Christians around Dakar and Casamance in the South, the atmosphere of Christmas is still present.

I remember being in Dakar a week before Christmas, and the local petrol stations and shops had paintings of Christmas trees, Father Christmas and snow on the windows and walls. Decorations were everywhere, and people were greeting me with "Merry Christmas". Maybe the reason for this is because of the increasing presence of televisions in the wealthier households where the most popular programmes are either dubbed American or French sit-coms where Christmas is the main theme during the end of the year. I also heard that even the Islam practicing households hand out gifts on the 24th and 25th of December.

Nigeria, on the other hand, is a country where Christmas is one of, or even maybe the most important event of the year on the festivity calendar because of the high concentration of Christian practitioners.

Taiwo, our local expert for Nigeria, explains how festivities are carried out in his home country:

“Christmas is a unique festival in Nigeria unlike any other part of the world. Christmas Day is a public holiday that is celebrated mainly in the southern and eastern parts of Nigeria.

Nigerians have special traditions they employ to celebrate Christmas. Almost everyone goes to church on Christmas Day. Weeks before the day, people buy lots of hens, turkeys, goats and cows. Children hover around the beasts, taunting and staring at them.

There are feverish preparations for travel, holiday, and exchange of gifts, carolling and all manner of celebrations.

On Christmas Eve, traditional meals are prepared. In Yoruba, such meals usually include Iyan, (pounded yam) eba or amala, served with peppery stewed vegetables. People find themselves eating this same meal three to four times on that day, as they are offered it at every house they visit; and according to Yorùbá customs, it is considered rude to decline to eat when offered food. Other meals include rice served with chicken stew; some families would include a delicacy called Moin-moin; which are blended black eyed beans, mixed with vegetable oil and diced liver, prawns, chicken, fish and beef. The concoction is then wrapped in large leaves and then steamed until cooked.

Another tradition is that of decorating homes (compounds) and churches with both woven and unwoven palm fronds, Christmas trees and Christmas lights. There are the festive jubilations on the streets, the loud crackling of fireworks and luminous starry fire crackers going off, traditional masquerades on stilts parading about and children milling about displaying their best clothes, or Christmas presents.

There are no other celebrations that compare to Christmas festivities in Nigeria, where everyone can personalise their own festival, and one family’s enthusiasm merges with others; both physically and psychologically, creating a universe of fun and bonhomie.”

North West of Nigeria, in Southern Mali, tolerance and community feel dominate the festivities in Dogon country, where Islam, Christianity and African religions exist side by side in most villages. The blending of masquerades from an ancient death cult and traditional songs and dances with midnight masses and a local lamb dish inspired from biblical tales, are common place.

And these are only the tip of the iceberg. West Africa comprises so much diversity that it is impossible to pinpoint every Christmas celebration in the region, however in terms of experiencing them; there is of course the possibility to visit the countries to discover these festivities first hand.

According to a Nigerian blog, “West African rich Christmas traditions even have it in them to become a tourist attraction and should be a serious candidate for Unesco's World Heritage list.” So maybe some of the tour operators in West Africa could think about incorporating these cultural elements into some of their tours, as long as the local communities benefit economically and the destinations heritages are respected.

Visit West Africa Discovery to learn more about West Africa.

Contact me at thomas@westafricadiscovery.co.uk

The World Cup effect: West African role models, Charity and Sports Tourism

West Africa in the World Cup

The 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa next year will give African football teams a great opportunity to shine on the global stage (an estimated 715.1 million people watched the 2006 final). West Africa Discovery greeted news of Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria’s qualifications with big smiles. After some friendly banter amongst the team about who we would be supporting next summer, we setup a poll to ask which team has the best chance of succeeding. My personal vote went to the Nigeria Super Eagles; it is always nice to see the underdogs succeed! The fact that half of the African teams that have qualified are West African goes to show the region’s dominance of African football.

On Friday afternoon I logged straight onto the sports news to check out the draw for the group stages. Obviously I was excited about England’s draw, but also wanted to check out who our West African teams had got. The draw for the group stages could prove to be challenging for the West African teams with Côte d'Ivoire drawing previous world cup winners, Brazil and Portugal, and the less formidable North Korea. Ghana was the only qualifying team to progress past the group stage in Germany 2006. They also have a tough draw facing Germany, Serbia and Australia. Nigeria who only just about qualified, face Argentina, Greece and South Korea. No easy draw for all teams concerned, but with a little luck who knows what could happen.

Of the six African teams, Cote d'Ivoire, with their world class striker Didier Drogba are the favourites for the competition. Didier Drogba plays for Chelsea in the English Premier League and has arguably the highest global profile amongst African players. Anyone who has watched Drogba in action will know that Côte d'Ivoire will be reliant on his strength and pace to get them through to the knockout stages.

Football and Charity

In the United Kingdom Drogba has a reputation of two halves. On one hand he is viewed as a talented player and goal scorer, but on the other he is can be viewed rather more negatively for being light footed and diving too often. Regardless of this, something that is less widely spoken about in the UK is his charity work and role model status for his native country. In 2007 he was appointed ‘Goodwill Ambassador’ by the United Nations Development Programme.

Drogba recently signed a new advertising deal with Pepsi worth £3million. He has pledged the entire amount to setting up a hospital and orphanage in Côte d'Ivoire that hopes to be up and running by the end of 2010. The hospital is part of the Didier Drogba Foundation - set up by the 31 year-old last year - and as well as being able to accommodate upwards of 200 patients the centre will be an orphanage. Unsurprisingly, this has had great support throughout the football and international community. Gestures and actions like these show the positive effect that football and sport in general can have on the communities that most need this investment.

Another footballer working towards helping West Africa is Welsh star Craig Bellamy. Craig Bellamy is infamous in the English Premier League for falling out with referees, managers and teammates, and is generally portrayed in a negative light in the UK media. However, despite his short temper and moments of misjudgement, he has invested time and money to help support West African communities. After visiting Sierra Leone in 2007 he has since setup the Craig Bellamy Foundation. The foundation runs a successful academy that not only teaches sport but seeks to give an education to disadvantaged children in Sierra Leone.

Craig Bellamy’s work sits alongside other schemes such as the Right to Dream academy in Ghana and supports the Score4Africa Living Football scheme which aims to use football to build community centres.

The international sports industry is worth billions of pounds, and by combining with foundations and charities, its key stars are taking the right steps in funnelling some of the funds into development amongst African communities. Let’s hope West Africa continues to produce stars like Drogba who, despite living the high life in European teams, continue to give back to the communities that nurtured their talents.

The World Cup and Sports Tourism

The World Cup in South Africa also looks likely to continue the growing development of sports tourism. Nigeria and the United States have a collaboration that should enable more American tourists to visit Nigeria to watch, and participate in traditional and contemporary sports, and related tourism activities in Nigeria. After hearing about Nigerian sports development I investigated further and read an article in TourismROI. The article describes the construction of impressive sounding luxurious resorts that cater for sports enthusiasts and by the sounds of things will provide jobs and stimulate economic opportunities in the area. However, will constructions on such a major scale take into consideration the environmental surroundings of the resort?

I think the best method for ‘sports tourism’ that will have a direct impact on the community is through grassroots volunteer schemes. There are more and more possibilities for sports ‘voluntourism’ that can help local communities to learn new skills. Projects such as Real Gap allow volunteers to travel to Ghana and help the local community by being a coach and mentor to local kids. If these projects take into consideration the criteria outlined in the Cape Town, Kerala and Belize declarations on Responsible Tourism; then not only will the communities benefit, but also the natural, cultural, social and historical heritages will be respected.

Just as in the UK, the African nation loves football. Hosting the World Cup for the first time can only help to develop community schemes and help the football industry. In 2010 the African nation will be dreaming of their stars holding the cup aloft. Just imagine the size of the party if an African team were to be victorious, an event that would unite the hopes and dreams of an entire continent. With these dreams, we must continue to use sport as a means to secure a better tomorrow for Africa.

Visit www.westafricadiscovery.com

Contact me at harry@westafricadiscovery.co.uk