Breaking cultural barriers in Africa through visa-free movement – Kenyans in Ghana

The Dipo ceremony of girls initiation by
the Krobo tribe in Ghana. (File: Author's
photo album)

In 2013, African leaders, at the African Union summit adopted a 50-year policy document on the vision of accelerating the sustainable development of the continent. They named it the AU Agenda 2063. Its main aim was a drive towards a common visa policy and a single continental passport that would enable Africans free movement within the borders of Africa by 2018. This initiative is already bearing fruit in accelerating interregional trade, economic development as documented in the UNCTAD report (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) which was held in 2018. The report was on migration for structural transformation: Economic development in Africa report 2018. However, this report did not capture the implications of increased exposure to host cultures by migrant populations which will be the reigning discussion in this article as the writer takes you through how Kenyans are managing life in Ghana. Hopefully this is a representative of what other African migrants in African countries encounter.

There is still many Kenyans who do not know that they need no visa to travel to Ghana. Interactions with Ghanaians who have shown interest in travelling to Kenya equally reveals the same lack of knowledge that Ghanaians need no visa to Kenya. Furthermore, a good number of local people in Ghana barely know which side of Africa Kenya is. On the other hand, most Kenyans, including myself – (before travelling), think that Ghana borders Nigeria, until we travel and realise this beautiful anglophone country, richly endowed with cultural diversity, is sandwiched between three francophone countries. Cote D’voire (Ivory Coast) to the left, Togo to the right and Burkina Faso to the top. Interesting, right? 

Having lived in Ghana for about six years, manoeuvring the cultural richness in the country is a daily routine. Yet, like any other Kenyan in the country, continue to be baffled by these cultural encounters. Speaking to Kenyans while carrying out research for my postgraduate program revealed this uniqueness in expressions and values between Ghanaian and Kenyan cultures in their day to day interactions, offering important insights on the implications of visa-free travel within the continent, specifically on intercultural communication. Let’s use some of the experiences shared by Kenyans to understand how they manage their identities while working, living and schooling in Ghana.

Reasons or motivations for travelling from Kenya to Ghana 

A group of Kenyans in Ghana during a get together.
(File: Kenyans in Ghana Facebook page)

While interviewing Kenyans in Ghana, several reasons guided their travels into the country, but what stood out was moving to Ghana because of work, school and marriage. This derives the very importance of being prepared to mingle with people of a different cultural orientation from your own. It shows the importance of cultural understandings or cultural interaction in a world that would eventually become one if visa-free movement is encouraged. Cultural barriers will be broken through these adventures and lead to a more accommodative world where one does not feel intimidated by another person’s culture or feel inferior being away from their own cultural comforts. The visa free agreement between Kenya and Ghana enabled the process of Kenyans moving to the country less strenuous. These are some of the responses given by interviewees when asked the reason and motivation behind their coming to Ghana. 

“I came primarily for work but was motivated by the urge to know and explore the nation.” 

“I worked with the same company at Westgate Kenya. It was a transfer and who wouldn’t want a change in life.” 

“I chose a course that would lead me to studying my masters in Ghana. I had never travelled there before but was curious about it being the first African country to gain independence, gold and cocoa.” 

Knowledge of visa-free policy as factor to visit Ghana 

One thing that stops people from the thought of travelling to venture into new experiences is the difficulties they might experience in acquiring documentation for the travels. Stories of denied visas are not pleasant to the ears and thus when one finds a destination that is an exception, they jump into the adventure. Most Kenyans interviewed expressed how relieving it was that this diplomatic understanding between Kenya and Ghana existed. What people may not know is that most of this information is available online. One can just look up countries that offer visa free entry for Kenyan citizens. Such were the responses received: 

“I knew a few things about Ghana, but before travelling, I checked stuff online on dos and don’ts when travelling to Ghana. Yes, so I did. I checked online on the countries one can travel to without visa.” 

“I had done enough research on the travel requirements. I went ahead and called the Ghanaian office in Kenya for confirmation.” 

A side note: whenever you are not fully confident of the information provided on the internet it is advisable to seek further advice from the consulate of the country you desire to travel to. You can do so online or walk into their offices if they have one in your country. I am glad to note that Kenya, since early 2020, has an embassy in Ghana and thus Kenyans in Ghana no longer must go the longer way to Nigeria to enjoy such services. 

Prior cultural expectations 

A traditional ceremony in Ghana. (File: Google images)

We all have certain stereotypes about certain countries based on the information given in books, social media or mass media. For example, the assumption about all white people being racist which stems from a historical background of colonialism or how most white people assume Africans to all hail from one country and have one culture and even know each other. Some assume that Africans live in forests and open fields with no electricity and internet connections. All these are gathered from films, literature works and mass media. Such information is very limiting and may cloud one’s judgement of the people and culture they are about to encounter. The Kenyans in Ghana were not spared these expectations as well. Being a country in the west of Africa, most Kenyans had a predefined assumption of Ghanaians being no different from Nigerians. It is even more confusing because actors from these two countries often work together from time to time, their music seems to have a similar lyrical and beat pattern, their dressing seems to be similar as well. One must even listen very closely to realise that the Ghanaian pidgin is not like that of Nigeria, their food may have similar names but be entirely different. Here are some of the responses from the interviewees: 

“Ghanaians are louder than Kenyans, very stylish, loved functions and events, quite intelligent. I had seen this in Ghanaian movies and was same as I am experiencing now.” 

“I was largely guided by the single story of Africa as a country. I didn’t expect Ghana to be very different from Kenya, after all it was in Africa. However, that changed due to cultural shock and exposure. I also felt I knew much about West Africa based on the Nigerian movies. Also, in Kenya, using the right hand is a sign of respect but when you subconsciously make the use of left hand it’s never that serious. However, in Ghana the use of the left hand is culturally unacceptable. People often apologise whenever they unavoidably use the left hand. Also, the Ghanaian meals are mostly prepared using pepper which is very different from the Kenyan ones.” 

“From the Ghanaian movies I saw prior to coming to Ghana, I had thought that Ghanaians mostly speak English. Upon my arrival in Ghana I discovered that the Twi language was common, and English was largely used in formal settings.” 

“The internet is limited with information about people’s culture. The first time someone greeted me on the streets I felt very awkward because I don’t see that in Kenya. Eventually I adopted the habit as it sounds very respectful and caring for someone to ask of your well-being. The internet does not provide this kind of information.” 

“I always thought that Nigeria is Ghana. Especially because they feature in most movies together. However, I found that Ghanaians are different from Nigerians in several respects; for instance, Ghanaian older people do not speak much Pidgin English as one will find in Nigerian movies.” 

From the responses it is evident that one cannot rely on information online as a guideline to preparing themselves for the country or the people they are going to encounter in the country they visit. An open mind towards culture will play a larger role in one settling in or enjoying the most of what each country has to offer. One sure thing is that you will always find something that works for you, whether someone you can comfortably relate to or food you can enjoy or a neighbourhood that makes you feel safe. If not, there is always the option of finding fellow countrymen who already live in that country to help you in the first few days until you are comfortable enough to venture on your own. 

Experience with Ghana Immigrations

The immigration is often the most dreaded part of a travelling experience. One is never sure what to expect. The ball of contention in the visa-free agreement is the limited number of days that one has within the country they are visiting. In Ghana, one has 90 days of visa-free visiting. If one intends to stay longer than that they must apply for a visa or get a residency permit that is renewed on a monthly or annual basis. Most Kenyans interviewed said they had no issues with the immigration services. They assumed it could be because they are foreigners. There was no interview done on the Ghanaians and thus the researcher cannot speak about how the citizens view the immigration. The key element in dealing with immigration is having the required documents to stay in the country. Here is what some Kenyans noted: 

“The reception was warm. I thought it was because I was Kenyan and not Ghanaian as I saw the long queues. I presented what was required. In renewing residential permit, the immigration office usually gives me a call when it is ready.” 

“I have found that they are very friendly and accommodative once they learn that I am Kenyan. From the encounters I have had, they hold Kenya in high esteem because perhaps I thought they believed we are more advanced in terms of development, education etc. Also, they have seen the wildlife and tourism on TV and are very impressed. Barack Obama also helped” 

Attraction to visa-required country

The author, at the Kakum National Park in Cape Coast in Ghana,
with friends from Kenya who had come for a visit. (File: From
author's album)

Even as the African union continues to champion for visa-free movement, we hope that this becomes effective as soon as possible. Interviewing Kenyans highlighted their thoughts on visa-required countries. 

“South African embassy was a hustle and expensive. But it wasn’t as bad as European or American country.” 

“The experience of travelling to a visa required country is rough particularly with French speaking countries in Africa where corruption is the order of the day. Corruption of officials and the preparedness of travellers to make offers is the main reason visa required countries are quite difficult.” 

Such restrictive measures encompassing visa is the main reason why Africans should be able to traverse the continent without a hustle. Think of the unity, economic, political and cultural benefits that this might bring across. 

Integration in Ghana

Waakye,  one of Ghana's many delicacies, from Northern Ghana.
(File: Google images)

The decision to maintain or acquire a suitable cultural identity to integrate in Ghana was a very tough choice for any Kenyans. This is due to the diverse cultural experiences that they were met with while settling in the country. While some preferred to maintain the Kenyan identity by sticking to the Kenyan community in Ghana, others loosened up and mingled with the locals to get the full throttle of the Ghanaian cultural experience. I would advise that if you are going to stay in any country for longer than anticipated, you should be deliberate about interacting more with the locals to help you understand the cultures, enable you live in peaceful cohesion with the citizens as well us reap utmost benefit of staying in that country. There is no promise of uneventful days, those are the memories you will carry along to your next destination and help others know what to expect and how to go about such scenarios. Here are the experiences of the Kenyans in Ghana: 

“I have made a number of friends from Ghana and would spend some time with them especially on weekdays. The culture, I would say it is interesting. The African tradition and spirit are well pronounced. That makes it a lovely culture. I no longer stick to hanging with Kenyans all alone at all times that much because I somehow adapted the accent and got to learn a little pidgin and can relate more easily with other nationals or the Ghanaian locals.” 

“Ghanaian culture is beautiful, e.g. music and pidgin. Yet being Kenyan makes me feel different and that gives me some air of being on adventure all the time. It also makes life interesting to know you are just different.” 

“I still feel foreign because I do not understand the Ghanaian languages and they also do not understand Kiswahili. Though we communicate somehow, I always feel of myself as culturally different. I see Ghanaians also keep much to their identities because they will speak their own language even when I am with them.” 

A visa-free arrangement will certainly make it possible for most Africans to experience each other’s cultures and enable us understand one another better. I hope this article serves as a gateway to more open boarders, better migration services, enhanced cultural understandings and an Africa that is economically, politically, culturally and socially empowered through constant interaction and diplomatic missions. 

Reduction of inequalities in our societies through cultural appreciation

In June, 2018, I was extremely grateful to join a group of African youth from the Kingdom of Eswatini, Zimbabwe, Ghana, and Afroeuropeans from the United Kingdom and Germany on an exchange program in Germany. Through the programme ‘Change Through Exchange: Training Young Change Makers Through European-African exchange’ Farafina Institute sought to support the participating youths to identify common challenges of inequalities facing them in their respective societies, learn from each other and share ideas on ways to confront such challenges. There were a couple of activities lined up for us to enable us achieve the goal of the programme, our theme being derived from Sustainable Development Goal 10: Reduction of inequalities. These activities, exciting as they were, included workshops, a one week internship at a company involved in activities whose goal borders on the reduction of inequalities, staying with an Afroeuropean host family to interact with them and get to know more of how they manage as Africans in Germany as well as visits to historical sites and other extracurricular activities. As a Master student studying communication, with an interest in intercultural communication, this was a welcome opportunity to understand more on how cultural interaction affect capacities and transformation of people. Through interactions via the activities that had been lined up for the programme, there was so much for one to learn in understanding how different societies, particularly Africans could get involved through intercultural learning and sharing with their own societies in contributing to achieving the SDG 10.

The Ghanaian team at the Berlin wall historical site. Front from left: Akonobea and Joyce. Back from left: William, Omusula and Denis. (File: Participate photo pool 2018)

There is a willingness by the African youth to make the world a better place. To promote this, and Africa not being just a homogenous people, it is important to learn about various different countries and cultures to understand, appreciate, and learn something from the uniqueness of the surroundings, culturally, socially, politically, and naturally, within which we are brought up or have spent our lives. There were some similarities but also clear and major differences in how the youths from the various countries approached topical issues on the reduction of inequalities or even activities like the kind of food they preferred or even how they interacted amongst themselves. Thus, the exchange program brought to light these cultural uniqueness as it was evident through our interactions that for instance the youth from the Kingdom of Eswatini could not understand the mannerisms  of those from Ghana, Zimbabwe, United Kingdom or even Germany, and vice-versa, yet we were all African if you like. This underscores the importance of the exchange program as an avenue for the youth to learn from each other and through appreciating the cultural, social, political, and natural differences, come up with ways of addressing inequalities in their societies.

Part of the team arrives in Munich, Germany for one week internship and stay with host families. From left: Moses (Zimbabwe), Tina (Liberia, Germany), Mazwi (Kingdom of Eswatini), Joyce (Ghana), Akonobea (Ghana) and Omusula (Kenya, Ghana). (File: Participate photo pool 2018)

In many instances, Africans have been assumed to be the same wherever irrespective of where they are. While there has been an appreciation of the similarities in the struggles that Africans face, especially in the political history of most African nations, there are major cultural differences between these nations. Before taking the trip to Germany, I was on the preliminary stage of my research of the Kenyan society in Germany and had hoped to gather as much information as I could for this work. However, this was not to be as my research focus changed to a study of the cultural interactions of Kenyans in Ghana. My interactions with fellow Africans in the programme informed my decision to change my research focus to really understand how culturally unique African communities were and how this diversity could be harnessed into developing African societies politically, socially and culturally to the extent of achieving the sustainable development goals.

A display of foods during a workshop session at 

EOTO (EachOneTeachOne) depicting some of the 

cultural diversity we experienced in terms of 

food. (File: Participate photo pool 2018)

Through discussions in the exchange program it was quite clear that there are major differences in the struggles of the youth in reducing inequalities in their communities and not even in the country as a whole. For example, in one workshop where participants were to talk about inequalities in their societies that were gender related, it was a heated debate on how culture shapes the ways gender issues are discussed as every team had something different on how issues in relation to gender could be approached. This particular incident clearly indicated the uniqueness of cultural approach to gender related inequalities. In yet another incident, participants had to write down their experiences throughout the programme and issues raised had to do with discomfort in food, inability to relate with other participants due to cultural differences, difficulty adapting to the environment due to differences in the way of life, amongst other reasons. Politically and culturally, in some countries institutions do not allow for the youth to be actively involved in the development of the countries. For instance, in some countries, cultural and political differences based on tribe divide people and post constraints for young people to effectively contribute to the positive transformation of their societies. It is thus important that the youth identify these hurdles and struggles and find ways to confront them and still get involved in achieving the sustainable development goals.

Beyond the diversity of Africa and uniqueness in the struggles we all face in our various societies, the very aspect of communality and brotherhood stands out as a unifying factor wherever we are in the world. There is a tendency to put aside differences and to harness all this diversity in culture and go for the ultimate goal which is the African Union. In fact, this is the goal of the African Union, as stated in the AU Agenda 2063 document: Diversity [of Africa] (ethnic, religious, economic, cultural, etc.) would be a source of wealth and accelerated economic growth rather than a source of conflict. (AU Agenda 2063; 17). The importance of exchange programmes like this present one cannot be overemphasised. They set the pace for the realisation of the importance of the African unity and harnessing youth capacities and innovations in rethinking and effecting the reduction of inequalities in our societies through cultural appreciation.