Daniel Mawuli Tsikata

Cultural Practices and Exclusion of Girls from Education: the Trokosi System of the South-eastern Ghana Daniel Mawuli Tsikata

This book explores the Trokosi cultural practice insouth-eastern Ghana and its consequence on girls'education from the perspectives of inclusion andexclusion. The Trokosi is a traditional culturalpractice in which a virgin girl is sacrificed to ashrine to atone for an offence committed by a familyor a relative; meaning the girl is not the offender. The minority of the Trokosi girls who are redeemedfrom the shrine after payment of ransom by theirparents are partially included in modern education. As a traditional system, the Trokosi is immersed in fear. The book also highlights the Trokosi system based onstrong traditional belief and due to its efficacy theproponents of the system uphold it and socialize theTrokosi girls into accepting it; thereby acceptingtheir destiny. The traditionalists believe any moveto abolish the system implies destroying theircustoms. The Ghana government, representing modernityis based on scientific principle of rationality, banned the practice by law but finds it difficult toimplement the law. Thus both the Trokosi girls andthe government are caught in between tradition andmodernity as regards inclusion and exclusion inmodern education. This implies that as long as thegovernment remains in dilemma the Trokosi girls wouldbe excluded from modern education or few would bepartially included.