Abstract
It is important to stress that, the Akan amongst many other cultures in Africa by their beliefs and practices, emphasize the individual and the societal wellbeing. Primarily, their idea of wholeness is seen to have been focused on mostly the material and spiritual needs of the human; that is, the complete satisfaction of all members of the community. The people of Amansie West Traditional Area, therefore, view poverty as undesirable and is frowned upon by society. However, the communities should help ease the stress and trauma of the poor. Such insight conforms with an old adage, wo yƆnko da ne wo da, which could in a way be literary translated as, “A friend in need is a friend indeed.” It is essential, then, to probe into the relationship that ever existed between the religio-cultural thoughts on poverty and the perceptible impact of poverty on the living conditions of the people in Amansie. The study consequently applied both qualitative and quantitative methods to extract relevant data from respondents. Semi-structured questionnaires were administered to relevant persons; an interview guide was developed to facilitate the personal interviews conducted with traditional leaders, townsfolks, religious leaders, opinion leaders, and other stakeholders. The findings among others were that poverty has a religio-cultural dimension; it is a spiritual and moral misfortune. The study recommends a Religio-Cultural Renaissance as a possible avenue to resuscitate and strengthen what otherwise looks like a dearth of religio-cultural practices of the community. A collaborative effort is therefore required by religious leaders and adherents, opinion leaders and townsfolks for sensitizing the people against cultural practices that promote poverty. Keywords: Poverty, African Traditional Religion, Traditional leadership, Natural resources and Amansie West
Highlights
Ghana, like many African countries, has issues of poverty and this is due to the economic hardship, issues of unemployment, the lack of opportunities among others, which have served as a driving force of most communities into poverty
The study revealed that the factors that contribute largely to issues of poverty in Amansie were; the state of unemployment, activities that lead to environmental degradation; increase in the population growth due to the spate of high teenage pregnancies; lack of community support and the lack of interest in Agriculture, which serves as a great source of income
The state of poverty, according to 90% of respondents, had led to the abuse of the natural environment, and this confirms the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) findings that, the causes of the state of the global environment is strongly linked to poverty and other critical issues of development
Summary
Like many African countries, has issues of poverty and this is due to the economic hardship, issues of unemployment, the lack of opportunities among others, which have served as a driving force of most communities into poverty. In the Amansie West Area which is a typical traditional setting, the definition and the perception of poverty is influenced by economic and financial factors and socio-cultural and religious factors. With regards to the reports of ongoing environmental degradation in the community, it is clear that these perceptions have informed how some of the indigenes treat the natural environment. Based on this background, the study sought to investigate the Traditional Religious thoughts of the people and the impact this has had on the state of poverty and the livelihood of the people
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