About Us:

FAIRTRADEGHANA.com was conceived in memory of my late father Dr Dan Berko, who did so much in numerous ways throughout his life, to educate, alleviate poverty, and improve the quality of life for so many people in Ghana.
It is a family-run business utilising the extensive relationships, contacts and resources we have available to us, as well as our collective in-depth knowledge of the history and lore of the country.

My name is Michaela, and I live in the splendid county of Lincolnshire, in the UK, with my husband Steve, and our young daughter Alexa. For many years, we have been avid collectors of crafts and tribally-used antiquities from Ghana and many of the surrounding countries in West Africa.

The Tribal Art side of the business, running since the late nineties is now a key part of FAIRTRADEGHANA.com. It is headed by Steve, and is a reflection of his passion for all things tribal - a former Director of a successful IT Consultancy working across Europe, he gave up the corporate life, and now loves nothing better than trekking through the Bush with our team to meet with chiefs and elders in remote villages every few months, in search of hidden African treasures! A very experienced collector himself of Tribal art for many years, he and the team ensure that we have a reliable stream of hand-picked pieces chosen for their style and artistic / historical value.
A few of our finds are put up for auction, and more recently have been appearing on our eBay site alongside some of our craft products.
See our eBay listings here.

Our experienced team (some seen below) have been together for some time and are from various countries in West Africa and Europe. Together, we are able to explore the far reaches of each country and seek out hidden Tribal gems. Between us, there is a vast knowledge of indigenous art and local customs as well as languages.
Of vital importance are:

Jacob Amin - A Co-director who manages much of the business and our aid projects in Ghana.

Ila - A tribal art collector himself, he organises most of the team's searches across West Africa, along with his brothers, and who also heads up our shop.

Jacob - (Name) in Ayi Mensah, our trusted friend who manages our efforts with the artisans in the Aburi crafts village.

Mandela - A renowned authority on authenticity and Tribal art fakes / copies, who verifies ALL our potential pieces for sale! (He is an expert on the origins and types of African wood, and the effects of use, climate, biological factors and insects etc. Please read our 'Fakes & copies' page coming shortly).

ALL the artefacts we sell are GUARANTEED (to the best of our ability) to be genuine and, where stated, 'Tribally used'. If we cannot verify an item's 'true' age with records or accurate information, we may (if claiming it to be pre 'early 19th Century'), have it tested by 'Spectroscopy' at a company we use in Italy, before offering it for sale. We do not carbon date any pieces, or take just word of mouth!

Provenance is a key factor for us, whether it is a Dan initiation mask from Cote D'Ivoire, or a Dogon granary door from Mali - we will know exactly who and where it came from! We sometimes get pieces from other collectors in Africa or from Chiefs and NGO's that we work with in various countries. Apart from selling from our shop in Accra, and our website run from the UK, we supply pieces to some select 'Tribal Arts' antiques dealers in Europe, as well as 'Top Rated' sellers on eBay. This sets us apart from most of our competitors, as does the fact that our aim is NOT to exploit these treasures for mere profit...

The wooden crafts we supply mostly come from the endangered mountainous crafts village of Aburi, near the Ghanaian capital, Accra. It is famous worldwide for its high quality wood carvings and a kaleidoscope of artistic styles. It is truly amazing what these artisans can make from the most basic of raw materials and tools, utilising generations of carving experience, which, sadly, may soon be lost.

Many of the paintings and artwork we sell illustrate life in the coastal villages on the road to Cape Coast; once notorious for its slave fortress, these days, better known as the home of some excellent educational establishments.

The arts and crafts all portray scenes which reflect the everyday life and culture of the various tribes in Ghana.

It is unfortunate that, despite Ghana having a wealth of natural minerals and resources, so much of the population continues to live in abject poverty.

FAIRTRADEGHANA.com is not a charity - we are simply trying to do our little bit, as my Dad did, by aiding these skilled artisans and their families and communities to obtain a better standard of living.

We believe 'Fair Trade' is the answer, and as well as supporting the artisans, we also aim to be competitive in the marketplace - as you will find out.

A large percentage of the sale of ALL crafts and antiquities, will be used to support some amazing charities in Ghana, such as the OSU orphanage in Accra which does incredible work. We actively work with chiefs, helping with medical and educational support where needed, in villages such as Pepease, Aburi, Ayi Mensah and Kokrobite which are close to our hearts.
We plan in the very near future to work with and support various aid programmes in Ghana, and across West Africa, including local NGO projects, as well as Shepherd Food Ministries and the Rita Marley Foundation.

Following the Haiti earthquake, we have felt obliged to divert much of the proceeds from our site and eBay sales to help that devastated country via the BritishRedCross (Haiti Appeal) - after all, a number of the population are descendants of the first West African slaves captured in 1502 and sent to the Island of Hispaniola (now Haiti and the Dominican Republic).

Thanks for your interest.

Michaela.