After 15 years building for government, institutions, and individual clients across Ghana, contractor Lawrence Agbenorku says he’s seen firsthand how “where you come from has a way of showing in how you build.”
In a comic Facebook, Agbenorku said the clients who have truly seasoned him are “ordinary Ghanaians who want to build their own homes.”
He wrote the piece “with the love of God and no apology whatsoever,” telling readers: “If you see yourself here, just laugh. I’m laughing too.”
He described Ga clients who arrive with the full history of their plot and keep watch on site because “this is my father’s land.”
Ashanti clients, he said, want the biggest house on the street, negotiate every line of a quote, and pay on “a timeline that only they understand,” but deliver strong referrals when satisfied.
Agbenorku noted that Fante clients don’t rush, mixing project talks with life and food, and often send diaspora photos asking for “the feeling” to be recreated locally.
Ewe clients, according to Agbenorku, come with folders and red-pen annotations, questioning every quantity because the build is a life savings project; And Northern clients extend trust with a handshake, asking only to “just do it well,” even as “the family is coming” quietly expands a four-bedroom into something much larger.
Still, he insisted the differences are only surface-level. “Underneath, every single one of these clients is doing the same thing,” he wrote. “They’re trying to build something that lasts… Something that says, I worked hard, and this is what it produced.”
He called the work a privilege, despite the challenges it carries, especially early-morning site visits.
The post has since sparked widespread engagement, with contractors and homeowners tagging each other and sharing their own site stories.
