Two Ghanas?

I'm sitting in an internet cafe as sleek as any you'd find in the US, with faster broadband than Rev House has. I'm staying an 8-min walk away at a large, well-kept house owned by a family of lawyers and other white-collar professionals, which has regular blackouts and running water for only a few hours a day. And in between, I walked through an area very comparable to the poorest DC slums (pictured) -- though my impression is safer, at least during the day!

That's Ghana for you.

Unemployment is high here -- much like many of my friends in DC, it's common to be overeducated and jobless. For instance, the driver my host family procured for me during my stay has a master's in finance from a university in China. His course was in English but he obviously speaks Chinese now as well from living there for two years. So, he is proficient in the two most important languages in the world and has a master's degree in a practical field that is generally in demand, and he still can't find a job.

But, somewhat paradoxically to American ears, crime is very low -- and Ghanaians seem extremely proud of that fact, several having mentioned it to me independently. It seems at first blush to me that family ties are a big part of that. You may not be able to find a traditional job, but while you are looking, you are living with your parents or brothers and caretaking or running errands for your cousins/nieces/nephews/uncles/aunts -- and generally making yourself useful.

Gotta run -- off to meet the former VP of Ghana :-)