One of the difficult issues for people in the West as they consider global ministries is the temptation to filter everything that happens in the world through our Western grid of experience and worldview. It is impossible to totally remove oneself from our enculturation. In order to assist people in understanding the Trokosi story, the following questions and answers can serve as a filter and enhancer of understanding:

How long has the Trokosi institution been in existence and is it tied to a specific religion?
The Trokosi practice can be traced back hundreds of years. It has always been connected to the African traditional religion. However, the Volta region, where the Trokosi are located, is also believed by many to be the place where voodoo originated and was exported to North America, through the slave trade.

How is the release of the fetish slaves accomplished? Do you pay a ransom to the fetish priest?
One of the principles that Rev. Pimpong established was that the girls must be released through negotiation and not by placing a price on the heads of the girls. This commitment contributes to a slower process of negotiation and relationship building between the I.N. Network Ghana staff and the fetish priests and village elders. However, the end result of this negotiated release is that the priests and the village elders agree to not take any more slaves and end the practice.

I.N. Network does pay for the costs of a liberation ceremony, which is performed by the priest. It is important for the slave girls to be psychologically released by these liberation rituals since they came into the Trokosi institution through rituals.

What the priest and the village elders come to realize through the negotiations is that the Trokosi institutions not only enslave the girls but they and their entire village is victimized by this evil and destructive practice. Cooperation with the I.N. Network opens their villages up to sanitation, water wells, and education for their children. Gaining opportunities for these types of community enhancements allows the priest and the elders to gain respect and status among their people.

What have been the long-term benefits of the Trokosi Liberation Project?
First of all, the slave girls are released with their children. They are given the opportunity to receive literacy and job skills training, Biblical counseling, medical treatment and placement in a safe environment where they can move from freedom to independence. Over 95% of the Trokosi girls come to faith in Christ.

Their children are also assimilated into the I.N. Network child sponsorship program which provides them with education, medical care and a hot meal each day.

In addition, the villages that free their slaves have done so through relationships with I.N. Network Ghana and that relationship continues with a plan to provide sanitation facilities, wells, and other basic community development tools. Often, an I.N. Network church planter has been part of the negotiating team and is frequently allowed to start a Church Plant in a school in the village. In one former Trokosi village, a 300-pupil school has been built and is being run on ground given to I.N. Network by the fetish priest. The whole culture is being changed a generation at a time.

The school buildings and operating costs are a result of financial support by I.N. Network donors in North America

First time visitors to Ghana are often amazed by the proliferation of Christian symbols and scripture verses on buildings, automobiles and billboards. Does this mean that Ghana is a Christian country?
This impression is deceiving and often leads to high percentages of population designated as Christian. There is about 64% of the population who would call themselves Christian. Of that figure, 33% would be considered evangelical. Unfortunately, there is a high degree of nominal Christianity. The Christian symbols and verses are frequently the equivalent of a spiritual rabbits foot. It is not unusual for people to continue to have idols in their home and consult them in difficult times.

There is also a growing population of Muslims in the North part of Ghana and the term Christian is employed from a political perspective to counter the growth of Islam.

What is the greatest need in the I.N. Network's ministry in Ghana?
Two things:

1. Because the Trokosi institution is rooted in voodoo cults, intercessory prayer on behalf of the I.N. Network Ghana staff is extremely important. They need protection, wisdom and encouragement. Ephs. 6:12
2. The funding of church planters, training of Trokosi girls and the education of their children is necessary to continue this battle against evil.