Villages of Ewe families who made their livelihood through fishing lined the banks of the Black Volta River on its northern and southern shores during the 20th century. Viewed here from the south bank, looking northward from Agbegikrom South, is the fishing village of Agbegikrom North. Because their homes were located a short distance downstream from the site of Bui Dam, villagers in both settlements were relocated beginning in 2008 as construction on the dam began. Agbegikrom North, 7 October, 1982.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Agbegikrom North
Subjects:
Relocation
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Black Volta River; Fishing villages; Ewe (African people); Housing
Work in progress at the Bui Dam site by Sinohydro, a state-owned Chinese hydropower and engineering company. Here they grate the southern mountain that will serve as part of the dam's infrastructure. To the left, the cleared site of the former Ewe fishing village of Agbegikrom is visible. Looking downstream, the braiding of the Black Volta River below the dam site is visible. Bui Dam site, 7 July, 2009.
A basketry fish trap (exa in Ewe) made and used by Ewe fishermen in the Banda area, Ghana. Traps like these were used for fishing between the months of August and November. They were effective in catching different types of fish three inches in length or longer. Agbegikrom South, December, 1982.
Sinohydro, a state-owned Chinese hydropower engineering and construction company, began construction on the Bui Hydroelectric Dam in 2008. Here on the north bank of the Black Volta River at the base of the mountain which became the dam site is an Ewe fishing village, Agbegikrom. The village was leveled after its inhabitants were resettled. Two views, one showing a road under construction along the south bank of the Black Volta River at the dam site. Bui Dam site, 28 June, 2008.
Standing on the edge of Bui Lake, northwest of Bongase. The lake waters rose behind Bui Dam after 2012, transforming local fishing practices. For generations local Ewe families used the type of canoe pictured here to fish on the Black Volta River. But these can only be used for near-shore fishing on Bui Lake because the lake's unpredictable winds and waves make them unsafe. Trees still stand in shallow waters along the lake's edge. Three photos. Bui Lake, near Bongase, 18 June, 2016.
Young Ewe fishermen from Akanyakrom paddle a group of tourists visiting Bui National Park upriver to see the park's resident hippo population. Thick riparian forest lines the banks of the Black Volta River. Akanyakrom and these upstream areas were flooded by Bui Lake as water levels rose behind Bui Dam after 2012. Hippos were driven upstream by flooding and locally made canoes could no longer be used to ferry tourists because of the lake's winds and waves. Upstream of Akanyakrom, 12 June, 2009.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom
Subjects:
Bui Lake; Bui National Park
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Hippopotamus; Canoes; Riparian forests; Black Volta River; Ewe (African people); Tourism
An Ewe fisherman from Akayakrom works part time as a guide for tourists visiting Bui National Park. Here he readies a boat to take a group up river to view the park's resident hippo population. Akanyakrom was among the villages flooded by Bui Lake as water levels rose behind Bui Dam after 2012. Hippos were driven upstream by flooding and locally made canoes could no longer be used to ferry tourists because of the lake's winds and waves. Akanyakrom, 12 June, 2009.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom
Subjects:
Bui Lake; Bui National Park
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Hippopotamus; Canoes; Riparian forests; Black Volta River; Ewe (African people); Tourism
Dzobo Sebastian, an Ewe fishermen from Akayakrom, works part time as a guide for tourists visiting Bui National Park. He paddles a boat carrying tourists up river to view the park's resident hippo population. Thick riparian forest lines the north bank of the Black Volta River. Akanyakrom and these upstream areas were flooded by Bui Lake as water levels rose behind Bui Dam after 2012. Hippos were driven upstream by flooding and locally made canoes could no longer be used to ferry tourists because of the lake's winds and waves. Akanyakrom, 12 June, 2009.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom
Subjects:
Bui Lake; Bui National Park
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Hippopotamus; Canoes; Riparian forests; Black Volta River; Ewe (African people); Tourism
Young Ewe fishermen from Akayakrom work part time as guides for tourists visiting Bui National Park. They await a group of tourists making a trip up river to view the park's resident hippo population. Thick riparian forest lines the north bank of the Black Volta River. Akanyakrom was among the villages flooded by Bui Lake as water levels rose behind Bui Dam after 2012. Hippos were driven upstream by flooding and locally made canoes could no longer be used to ferry tourists because of the lake's winds and waves. L-R: Michael Dzobo, Williams Enam, Davis Lumor, Gordon Kumordzi. Akanyakrom, 12 June, 2009.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom
Subjects:
Bui Lake; Bui National Park
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Hippopotamus; Canoes; Riparian forests; Black Volta River; Ewe (African people); Tourism
A village of fishing families established by immigrant Ewe people on the margins of the newly formed Bui Lake, June, 2016. Many fishing families were drawn to Banda by opportunities created as Bui Lake formed behind the newly built Bui Dam. The villages consisted of tightly clustered houses, many with tarp roofs, located a short distance from the newly formed Bui Lake. Banda, June, 2016.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Bui Lake
Subjects:
Bui Lake
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Fishing; Ewe (African people); Fishing villages
Sinohydro, the state-owned Chinese hydropower engineering and construction company, began constructing the Bui Hydroelectric Dam in 2008. Here on the north bank of the Black Volta River at the base of the mountain is the cleared site of an Ewe fishing village, Agbegikrom (two views). The village was leveled after its inhabitants were resettled. Bui Dam site, 7 July, 2009.
Canoes belonging to Ewe fishing communities rest on the south bank of the Black Volta River near the Bui Dam site. Prior to the construction of Bui Dam, these canoes were used to ferry passengers between the north and south banks of the river and for fishing. Opposite, riparian woodland lines the river's north bank. Dam Site settlement, December, 1982.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Dam Site
Subjects:
Dam Site
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Canoes; Riparian forests; Black Volta River; Ewe (African people)
A canoe belonging to an Ewe fishing community rests on the south bank of the Black Volta River near the Bui Dam site. Prior to the construction of Bui Dam, these canoes were used to ferry passengers between the north and south banks of the river and for fishing. Opposite, a path leads to the Ewe fishing community of Agbegikrom. The mountain behind formed part of the gorge where the Bui Dam was later built (from 2008). Dam Site settlement, 1990.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Dam Site
Subjects:
Dam Site
Subjects Facet:
Bui Dam (Ghana); Canoes; Black Volta River; Mountains; Ewe (African people)
Canoes like this one were the boats long used by Ewe fishing families on the Black Volta River in this area. These can only be used for near-shore fishing on the newly formed Bui Lake because winds and waves on the open lake are dangerous to small boats. Visible in the lake are the trees inundated as lake waters rose behind Bui Dam. Bui Lake, near Bongase, June, 2016.
An outboard motor-powered fishing boat used by commercial fisherman on the newly formed Bui Lake. The Ewe families who fished the waters of the Black Volta River in this area before Bui Dam was built fished from small canoes. Those small boats are unsafe on the lake formed by Bui Dam because of the lake's unpredictable winds and waves. Fishing on the lake therefore requires access to capital that many local fishermen lack. Trees inundated by the rising lake waters are visible in the background. Two photos. Bui Lake, near Bongase, June, 2016.
The Ewe fishermen who supplied local and regional markets with freshwater fish from the Black Volta River traveled in locally made wooden canoes. Several are moored on the south bank of the river near the Dam Site settlement, a short distance downstream from the projected site of the Bui Dam. Dam Site, 7 October, 1982.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Date:
1982-10-07
Location(s) Facet:
Dam Site
Subjects:
Dam Site
Subjects Facet:
Fishing; Canoes; Ewe (African people); Black Volta River; Rivers
Ewe fishermen Maxwell Gbadago (left) and Dzobo Sebastian (right) use knives to remove knots and shape bamboo sticks that they will use in weaving a basketry fish trap. A number of unsplit bamboo stalks await processing. A large blue industrially made fish net is laid out behind where they sit. Akanyakrom, 18 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom (resettled)
Subjects:
Men's work
Subjects Facet:
Bamboo; Fish traps; Handicrafts; Ewe (African people)
Ewe fisherman Dzobo Rubben weaves the top section of a basketry fish trap. He uses cordage to bundle bamboo sticks and narrow the trap toward its top. In lower rows, individual bamboo sticks are separated by two twists of rope. As the weaver nears the top, he reduces the twist between sticks to one, narrowing their spacing. In the next row he bundles two sticks separated by one twist. He then bundles four, then eight, creating a cone-shaped trap. Behind, another in-progress trap with narrower spacing between sticks stands upright against a shed. Akanyakrom, 23 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom (resettled)
Subjects:
Men's work
Subjects Facet:
Bamboo; Cordage; Fish traps; Handicrafts; Baskets; Ewe (African people)
A partially finished basketry fish trap made from bamboo and vine cordaage sits upright in the Ewe fishing village of Akanykrom. This resettled village was established after the community was displaced by construction of Bui Dam. Fish traps like these can no longer be used downstream of the dam because of reduced water flow, nor can they be used on the lake behind the dam. Akanyakrom, 23 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom (resettled)
Subjects:
Men's work
Subjects Facet:
Bamboo; Cordage; Fish traps; Handicrafts; Baskets; Ewe (African people)
Ewe fishermen Dzobo Sebastian (center), and Dzobo Rubben (left) weave the tongue (exa woade in Ewe) of a basketry fish trap. They use vine cordage to secure the bamboo sticks. This portion of the trap is inserted into the woven cylindrical trap body, allowing fish to enter but blocking their exit from the basketry trap. Maxwell Gbadago (right) uses a wooden mallet to pound a vine that has been twisted and dried in order to remove its bark and make it pliable. The resulting rope will be used to weave remaining parts of the fish trap. Akanyakrom, 23 July, 2022.
Ewe fisherman Dzobo Rubben holds the woven triangular bamboo-and-rope cover to the basketry fish trap as Dzobo Sebastian secures it in place. This cover can be removed to access fish in the trap. Akanyakrom, 26 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom
Subjects:
Men's work
Subjects Facet:
Bamboo; Cordage; Fish traps; Handicrafts; Baskets; Ewe (African people)
Ewe fishermen Dzobo Rubben (left), Maxwell Gbadago (center) and Dzobo Sebastian (right) stand alongside a bamboo fish trap that they made from locally harvested resources. The trap is oriented in the way it would be placed in the water, braced by two long sticks that would be driven into the river bottom. The trap would also be secured by a rope anchoring the trap to a nearby tree or other secure object. Akanyakrom, 26 July, 2022.
Ewe fisherman Dzobo Rubben uses a cutlass to smooth a stick that will be used to make the interior hoops that open and brace the inside of basketry fish trap. Akanyakrom, 26 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom (resettled)
Subjects:
Men's work; Cutlasses
Subjects Facet:
Fish traps; Handicrafts; Baskets; Ewe (African people)
Ewe fisherman Dzobo Sebastian forms a hoop from a flexible stick. He uses his feet to secure the stick as he makes a hoop of the right size to stretch and brace the bamboo sticks of the outer body of a basketry fish trap. Akanyakrom, 26 July, 2022.
Ewe fisherman Dzobo Sebastian uses rope made from a vine to secure bamboo sticks as he weaves a basketry fish trap. He has woven a first row, now secured by pegs, and is moving in the opposite direction as he weaves a second row. He uses his feet to secure the bamboo sticks as he twists the cord between sticks. Behind him is a wooden mallet used to process the cordage. A large blue industrially made fish net is stretched out behind him. Akanyakrom, 21 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom (resettled)
Subjects:
Men's work
Subjects Facet:
Bamboo; Cordage; Fish traps; Handicrafts; Baskets; Ewe (African people)
Ewe fisherman Dzobo Rubben weaves the top section of a basketry fish trap made of bamboo and vine cordage, securing the trap with his feet as he works. He uses cordage to bundle bamboo sticks and narrow the trap toward its top. In lower rows, individual bamboo sticks are separated by two twists of rope. As the weaver nears the top, he reduces the twist between sticks to one, narrowing their spacing. In the next row he bundles two sticks separated by one twist. He then bundles four, then eight, creating a cone-shaped trap. Akanyakrom, 23 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom (resettled);8.246709, -2.244840
Subjects:
Men's work
Subjects Facet:
Bamboo; Cordage; Fish traps; Handicrafts; Baskets; Ewe (African people)
Mawell Gbadago (left), Dzobo Sebastian (center) & Dzobo Rubben (right) pictured with a basketry fish trap (exa in Ewe) that they made as part of a British Museum Endangered Material Knowledge Programme project to document Indigenous technologies in the Banda area. In his right hand, Sebastian carries a length of coiled stick (afɔtasi in Ewe) like that used to force open the trap body; a bundle of twisted vine used to make the rope with which the fishermen weave the bamboo trap; and a wooden mallet (ɛka fokpo in Ewe) used to pound the vine (adzɔ in Ewe) as they process it into rope. Akanyakrom, 29 July, 2022.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Akanyakrom (resettled)
Subjects:
Men's work
Subjects Facet:
Bamboo; Cordage; Fish traps; Handicrafts; Baskets; Ewe (African people)