Hot!
Changing gender roles: Meet ‘Papa Tilapia’ the gentleman ‘competing’ with women in fresh fish business
● Rapheal dress a tilapia
While women are being encouraged to take up responsibilities or professions considered the preserve of men, some men also seem to be making a statement by venturing into businesses which ordinarily would have been tagged as a woman’s job.
Examining how men and women are swapping roles, this reporter caught up with a budding male entrepreneur at Dansoman in Accra who has taken up the sale of fresh tilapia and continues to match women in the business boot-for boot.
JOURNEY
28-year-old Raphael Nanevi Nanavaiaa hails from Ada Foah in the Greater Accra Region and is known in his business circles as “Papa Tilapia.”
He used to help and run errands for his mother who traded at Darkuman-Kokompe market while he was still a student at Ada Senior High Technical School.
After studying Business and completing in 2019, he and his elder sister had to cater for the family after their mother’s business was razed down by fire.
Rapheal and his sister took up the challenge to revive their mother’s business. After an intensive house-to-house advertisement, he decided to run his business at Dansoman.
The journey in the last four years, according to him, had been rewarding yet rugged as he continued to receive both encouraging and disparaging comments from some members of the public.
He said some people considered his consistency and dedication to the business remarkable while others thought he was “wasting his time.”
“A man approached me and told me to use my stature for something better, and that a man like me should not be selling fish. He proposed other businesses which I did not pay attention to.
“Other business owners within the enclave where I operate have tried to sabotage me by asking the area taskforce to kick me out, but I have always handled the situation with tact and humility,” he noted.
He maintained that his calm disposition and prompt delivery continued to attract more customers to the business located at Dansoman-Asoredanho.
PATRONAGE
Apparently, the idea of selling fish did not sit well with his mother who wanted him to rather take up a white-colar job. However, he said, some of his relatives have come to terms with what he currently does to earn a living.
According to Papa Tilapia, sales in 2022 and the early part of this year, has been favourable despite the current economic challenges.
“The demand for food commodities continues to increase. Though customers complain of hike in prices, my prices are relatively lower compared with prices elsewhere.
“I communicate and relate well with my customers so my stand has become the choice for many tilapia lovers in my area.
In spite of the hurdles, Raphael is hopeful that his hustle would produce greater result in future.
“Drivers and other pedestrians encourage me to keep up the spirit and I know with determination and sacrifice, it is possible to derive the best out of this business.
“I know my strength is in business and marketing because I am able to convince customers to patronise my service. This skill of mine has earned me a lot,” he added.
Raphael used to sell sim cards before delving into the tilapia business. He admitted that his “aggressive” marketing strategy sometimes irritated customers but he had to adopt that approach especially when sales were low.
“I would call any driver or pedestrian to alert them I had fresh stock. I remember annoying a woman because I had ‘pestered’ her several times on one of my busy days.”
FUTURE
Papa Tilapia looks at becoming a well-establlished entrepreneur and a farmer in the future. He believes that Ghana has arable lands when utilised judiciously, can help reduce unemployment.
He said with the needed support, he would expand the business and employ people to deliver fresh tilapia to clients at restaurants, offices and hotels.
He advised the youth not to wait for favours but strive harder for their needs, adding that it was important for them to first discover their potentials.
“If you are waiting for someone to give you money, that person is also waiting for gift from someone. If we push harder, others would help,” he said.
By Yunusah Essandoh
The professor who spends his days exploring the intricacies of African languages found himself at the centre of a different kind of lesson on Friday, October 2, 2026. 
This time, there were no lecture notes, academic arguments or university classrooms. Instead, there was the weight of tradition, the rhythm of a community celebration and the solemnity of an oath at a royal palace.
Professor Ọbádélé Kambon, a full Professor of African Linguistics at the University of Ghana, was enstooled as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene of Akuapem Mampong in the Eastern Region in a ceremony that brought academia and traditional authority together.
For the professor, the occasion was more than a new title. It was a moment that connected his academic interests in African languages and indigenous knowledge with the living traditions of an Akan community.
The day’s events unfolded through a series of customary observances. Kambon was first taken to the compounds of the Ɔkyeamehene and Gyasehene, where the preparations for his installation continued.
Then came the application of hyire, the white kaolin powder associated with traditional rites.
With the customary proceedings underway, the new chief was lifted onto the shoulders of celebrants and carried along the main thoroughfare of Akuapem Mampong.
The procession transformed the streets into a public stage for a ceremony rooted in the community’s traditional institutions.
There was something striking about the image, a university professor, accustomed to the measured language of academic discourse, being carried through the town in a display of traditional recognition.
Yet the celebration was not complete with the procession.
A ram was sacrificed at the Mamponghene’s compound before Kambon was taken to the palace, to swear the oath associated with his new offices.
The ceremony brought him formally into his roles as Apagyahene and Sunsum Ɔsahene.
Beyond the colourful proceedings, the titles themselves carry layers of historical meaning.
Kambon in his research explores the historical connections between Apagya and Akan political and military organisation.
Accounts cited in his work linked Apagya to an asafo, or military company, while historical writing traces an Apagya stool in Asante to the reign of Opoku Ware I in the eighteenth century.
These historical associations offer a glimpse into the institutions that have shaped Akan society over generations, although they do not automatically define the precise responsibilities of the office in Akuapem Mampong.
Kambon’s own professional life reflects a similar interest in preserving and examining African knowledge.
His work encompasses Akan language structure, naming practices across the Black world, proverbs and indigenous intellectual traditions.
Through Abibitumi, the platform he founded, he also promotes language learning, scholarship and cultural engagement.
But tradition was only one part of the story that day.
When the formal ceremony gave way to a reception, the occasion expanded into a celebration of three milestones: Kambon’s enstoolment, his promotion to full professor and his daughter Ama’s admission to the University of Ghana.
The gathering therefore carried a personal significance that went beyond the honours bestowed on one man. 
It celebrated professional advancement, the continuation of family aspirations and a connection to cultural heritage.
For a father, seeing a daughter gain admission to the same university where he holds a distinguished academic position offered another reason to celebrate.
For the professor, the moment placed family achievement alongside his own professional and traditional milestones.
Kambon had already established a place in the traditional life of Akuapem Mampɔn through an earlier installation as Banmuhene Kyidɔmhene, recorded in 2017.
His latest enstoolment adds another chapter to that relationship.
In Akuapem Mampɔn, the day brought together the university, the palace and the family table in one celebration. And for Kambon, the journey from the lecture room to the traditional procession showed how scholarship, cultural responsibility and family achievement could converge in a single memorable occasion.
By Enoch Ntiamoah Siaw
SKIP THE QUEUE, TAP THE NEWS
You can now read the Ghanaian Times and The Spectator newspapers from the comfort of your device via TimesNewsPlus.
Join our WhatsApp Channel: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBElzjInlqHhl1aTU27
Intercity STC Coaches Limited has interdicted a driver captured in a viral video allegedly hitting a Sprinter bus during an overtaking manoeuvre at Pokuase before driving away from the scene.
In a public notice, the company described the driver’s conduct as unacceptable, stressing that it did not reflect the safety standards and professionalism it upholds.
Management said it had commenced an immediate investigation into the incident and identified the driver, who has been interdicted pending the outcome of the disciplinary process.
The company added that it was awaiting an official report from the Pokuase Police Command to help establish the facts surrounding the incident.
STC reaffirmed its commitment to passenger safety and responsible road use, while thanking members of the public for bringing the incident to its attention.
Management assured the public that appropriate action would be taken following the investigation.
By: Jacob Aggrey
