Renowned Ghanaian YouTuber and travel content creator Berthold Kobby Winkler Ackon popularly known as Wode Maya has revealed that he has faced repeated deportations and arrests while filming across Africa in the past.
According to him, those challenges or experiences never broke his resolve or forced him to abandon his work.
Speaking on Starr Chat on GhOne TV and monitored by NewsDesksGH, Wode Maya shared some challenges he has faced in his line of work.
“I’ve been deported countless times from different countries before. I’ve been deported from Zambia, Uganda, for filming, but I never gave up,” he said.
According to him, the impact of his work, particularly in reshaping global perceptions of Africa, continues to motivate him even during difficult moments.
“The impact is what makes me keep going. When I see the impact, despite me being tired, I keep going.”
He also recounted an incident in Kenya, where he said he was arrested shortly after arriving to film a project.
“I went to Kenya on the ticket of the Chinese government to do a video on their new SGR. The moment I landed, the first time I pulled out my camera, I got arrested for filming.”
Wode Maya is a Ghanaian YouTuber and travel content creator whose name translates to “Oh My Mother” in Mandarin.
He is widely known for producing travel vlogs that highlight Africa’s development, culture, and lesser-known destinations, with the aim of challenging negative stereotypes about the continent.
In 2025, he was granted a diplomatic passport by the Ghanaian government, presented by Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, in recognition of his international influence and contribution to projecting Ghana and Africa on the global stage.
