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We just signed a 3 year contract in Ghana...any decent safaris/hunting there?

Nobody has answered this question yet so here's a lead.

The current issue of Sports Afield has an article about mixed bag hunts in western Africa. I don't believe it mentions Ghana but if you would Email the author, he might know something about your question.

I just checked "African Hunter II". There is no mention of any hunting in Ghana. There is hinting in two countries that border Ghana: Burkina Faso and Benin. Maybe you could avail yourself of the hunting in either of those countries.
John

Keep in mind that the whole area up there is occupied by insurgents of one type or another, I would be carefull to say the least...Stay out of the Congo is always good advise IMO....

Around 35 to 25 years ago, I hunted extensively in Sierra Leone, which by then had a prolific game population, inclusive forest elephant, forest buffalo (bush cow), bush pig and leopard. As an extra bonus, the country teamed with birdlife, which gave possibility for some very good bird shooting. Ten year of civil war in the end of last century, has seriously depleted the game population, but some was spared, and even a very few elephants are left.
Ghana can boast of a fauna close to the one found in Sierra Leone, but has also experienced its own trouble, especially in the North. Depending on the local security situation and the authorities feeble cooperation, I would expect some rifle hunting might still be possible, with Bushbuck and Baboon on top of the list (forget the few elephants!!).
Bird shooting, however, might be the most likely possibility for a spot of good bush bashing. And that could be done rather close to the capital Accra.

A friend of mine, was born in Ghana. He visits there quite regularly to visit his mother and other relatives. According to him, the only game hotspots left in the country are in national parks. Although, occasionally they do slip out of parks (similar to what happens at Kruger), safari hunting is not an established industry.

Still situations change, and contacting the Ghana government via e-mail or though their websites, might be the best way to get the latest information on sport hunting.

Good luck.

I was three years in country back in the 80's (Peace Corps) and do not remember organized safaris of any kind.

However "bush meat" hunting by the locals WAS common practice, and Topi, Bushbuck, "Bush Cow" (buffalo???) were present on the more sparsely populated plains. Didn't occur to me at the time, but had I wanted I prob'ly could have wangled a trip with the local hunters (they used single-shot Martini-Henry action 12 gauges and various endemic muzzle loaders.

I believe I have heard of organized hunting trips for foreigners in the neighboring state of Togo.

At a 25 year Ghana Peace Corps reunion just last weekend, I spoke to a gut still working in-country, it appears Ghana is STILL one of the friendlier and more accessible of African nations.

Birdwatcher

My niece spent a year there on a linguistics educational trip. She traveled quite a bit inside Ghana. She also speaks "Tchwi" (sp) the local language. When I asked about hunting she said the only hunting she saw was a group of enthusiastic young men chasing and clubbing a large jungle rat, a real treat in protein poor Africa.
They have little hunting that would be suitable for foriegners. They do however have a very friendly, English speaking population. The South is predominantly Christian and the North is Muslim. Their chocolate is some of the very finest in the world but the best of it is not exported. The quality control is a little shaky at times. Marijuana is very common there and of high quality. She said it was similar to California. There are penalties for possesion that might be pressed on foriegners but not on locals. All mail goes through a central post office in Accra. This slows incoming mail (packages) to a crawl. Prices are low and food is good but different. There is a good night life in Accra but hunting would be in a different country. I doubt that firearm possesion is feasible as they were a British colony for a long time.

Not much going on there according to the local tennis pro who was born and played Davis Cup for Ghana.

FYI, there is information on hunting Ghana in the newly released issue of Don Causey's The Hunting Report (September 2008, Vol. 28, Number 9). They mention that hunting there may be opening up, mostly for royal antelope, Maxwell's duiker and black duiker. They claim they may be taking hunters by February but that pricing was not yet available. The guy to talk to is Steve Kobrine in South Africa at 011-27-823-44-2396 or email him at stevekobrinehotmail.com. Apparently there are photos of Kobrine with royal antelope and a Maxwell's duiker on the Hunting Report website, but I haven't looked myself. Hope this helps.
Test

Yes, Ghana has been opened for Trophy Hunting. I have been following this thread with some interest but had reserved comment until now, as there are still too many unknowns right now.

I have become involved with a group that is trying to establish a safari operation there. We are looking at an area in northern/central Ghana, near Mole National Park. This is a transitional area where forest begins to meet savannah. The species permitted so far include West African Savannah Buff., Dwarf Forest Buff., Western Kob, Western Hartebeest, Sing-Sing Waterbuck, Warthog, and the Duikers mentioned above. Ghana has Roan and Bongo but these are not allowed currently. There are Leopard and Lion as well but these are also protected.

Mr. Kobrine is focused on an area that is in the southern part of the country where it is more forested and where these small antelopes are more abundant.

Now for the Bad News: Just because the Ghanaian authorities have approved Trophy Hunting does not mean there are not a lot of details that need to be cleared up. Realistically (yet optimistically), I do not believe we will be ready to start accepting clients for at least three or four years. There are so many things that need to be addressed. For example, we don't know how to get hunter's firearms into the country or their trophies out at this point. We also don't have any accommodations or facilities near the Hunting Zone yet. Things like taxidermy and packing and shipping firms do not exist at this point either. CITES and USF&WS regulations regarding Ghana need to be researched further, et cetera and so on.

Now the last two posts provided some good info. Thanks.