Chapter 4

Empirical Evidence from the Field

Introduction

This chapter describes the methodology of the study, the profile of the area
selected for study, and the research process of the field study. The criteria for
the selection of the area studied and the limitation of the field approaches are
discussed as well.

Profile of the Selected Area

In 2011 I travelled to Ghana to identify possible areas of transnational land-

deal activities. Using an ethnographic methodology, I discovered that foreign
companies engaging in such activities could be found all over the country. My
attention was drawn to the activity of Biofuel Africa Ltd, now Solar Harvest
Ltd, in Kpachaa, Jaashie and Jimle in the Mion district of the Northern Region
of Ghana. The study area lies within the diocese of Yendi. The Mion district,
the project and the three communities were chosen first of all because of the
special situation of the natives, the settlers and the migrant farmers coming
from the capital city, Tamale. Some of the settlers are also migrant farmers who
had come there as a result of the Konkomba and the Dagomba conflicts of the
1980s. They left their old settlement areas in distress, seeking a better and more
peaceful place to live. Little did they know that their newly acquired land for
farming and shelter would be leased to foreign companies in the future, thus
bringing to an end their chances to make a living.
Secondly, this leasing project was selected because of its large-scale planta-
tion model. It was assumed that the community would gain employment and
an improved infrastructure through the project. This particular project was
also chosen because of the complex nature of the traditional power relations
that played out during the negotiation period of acquiring the land. Admin-
istratively, the three communities are under the Jimle electoral area with an
Assemblyman as the political head. Traditionally, the communities are under
the jurisdiction of Tijo.71

71 The chief of Tijo is elected by the paramount chief of Dagbon. The chiefs of the three
communities under study here, however, are chosen by the Tijo chief and they pay al-
legiance to him.

© VERLAG FERDINAND SCHÖNINGH, 2018 | doi 10.30965/9783506788412_006

114 Chapter 4

Thirdly, this particular area was chosen for study because of the company’s
inability to survive longer than two years. The project’s impact on the commu-
nity and why the project did not last longer than two years after its inception
was, therefore, of interest to me.
The Mion district is one of the twenty-six districts in the Northern Region. It
was carved out of the Yendi district in 2012 by Legislative Instrument 2064 and
Act 462. The Mion district lies between latitude 9°–35° North and 0°–30° West
and 0°–15° East. The district shares boundaries with the Tamale Metropolis,
the Savelugu Municipality and the Nanton District to the west, the Yendi Mu-
nicipality to the east, the Nanumba North District and the East Gonja District
to the south, and the Gushegu District and the Karaga District to the north.
There are 20 large communities in the district which has three area councils,
namely Sang, Kpabia and Jimle. The 2010 Population and Housing Census in-
dicates that the population of the Mion district stood at 81,812. Out of this,
40,649 were males and 41,163 were females. It is also estimated that out of the
total population, only 7,278 (8.9%) live in larger communities such as Sang and
Jimle, while the rest of the population (91.1%) lives in smaller communities
such as Kpachaa. The district comprises 8,842 households or compounds with
an average household size of 9.3 persons. The literate population 11 years and
older was 11,090, representing 28.7%, while 34,372 were illiterate, representing
71.1% (Ghana Statistical Service 2014).
The 2010 population census estimates that about 33,287 (92.5%) of the
­population 15 years and older were skilled agriculture, forestry and fishery
workers, while 2,699 (7.3%) were employed in non-agriculture and service
­sectors. It is further estimated that in the agriculture and related sectors 17,021
of the workers were male and 16,266 were ­female (ibid.).
The categorization of various groupings in the north of the country into
ethnic identities started during the imperialist regimes (MacGaffey 2013;
Lentz 2006). Before this period, the constant movement of people caused by
­inter-community wars and slave raiding made it impossible for individuals and
communities to bother about identities, even though clans at the time saw
themselves as one people with the same ancestry. However, after this period
of ‘received identification’ there has been disagreement among the people
of northern Ghana as to who belongs to which ethnic group and since when.
The district is multi-ethnic in nature. The Dagombas are the dominant ethnic
group. They speak the Dagbani language which belongs to the Mole-Dagbani
sub-group of Gur languages. Other ethnic groups include the Konkombas,
Hausas, Chokosis, Akans, Ewes, Basares and Moshies. The Konkombas are the
second biggest group in the district.
Most of the villagers are Muslims because they seem to see Islam as their
ethnic religion. Some of the people adhere to traditional beliefs. In times of