Ghana: Old manpower devices are back in vogue

There is a saying that necessity is the mother of all inventions, and Ghanaians struggling with the constant lights-out are certainly putting this into practice, with manpower appliances increasingly taking the place of electrical-powered goods.

The Saturday Statesman visited some places in Accra such as corn mill shops, clothing making shops, vulcaniser shops to find out the state of business in the current energy crisis. Innovation, and a return to the electricity-free methods of our forefathers, is how many Ghanaians are making ends meet.

Isaac Anoh, a resident of Awoshie and a corn miller, says he has been doing this job for four years now and uses the electrical corn mill machine. It helps him do the work early and quick, but because of the energy crisis he has taken to the use of the man power machine.

“When the light goes off I use the manpower machine and it helps us a lot because it makes us serve our customers. It is difficult using the man power machine because one has to peddle for so long before it starts to operate.

The Statesman