Abstract
Migration of the economically active population from northern to southern Ghana is an old age phenomenon sustained by the incessant perception of abundant job opportunities in the south. Recently, young girls and women who migrate to work as head porters have dominated the phenomenon. The purpose of this paper was to examine the reasons for their continuous migration to the Kumasi Metropolis and the conditions under which they live and work. Complementary data from 100 head porters and five institutions revealed that most of the head porters were children (under age 18) living in harsh and hazardous conditions which include poor housing, health care delivery, nutrition, and water and sanitation. The authors conclude that the relentless desire of young girls and women to work as head porters in the south and the associated poor living conditions could be minimised if youth policies are implemented with direct focus on capacity building for the head porters. The long-term remedy to the menace, the authors maintain, lies with socioeconomic development of the rural-supplying areas to bridge the development gap between the urban and rural areas.
Keywords
References
- Adoma, M. O. (2009). The Living Conditions of Head Porters in the Kumasi Metropolis, an unpublished thesis submitted to the Department of Planning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in partial fulfilment of the award of Master of Science degree in Development Policy and Planning.
- Adu-Okoree, B. I. (2012). Let us pause before sending them: an appraisal of the socio-economic condition of return migrants in Tamale, Ghana. Journal of Research in Peace, Gender and Development , 2(6), 149155.
- Agarwal, S., Attah, M., Apt, N., Grieco, M., Kwakye, E. A. & Turner, J. (1997). Bearing the Weight: The KayayooGhana’s Working Girl Child. Centre for Social Policy Studies, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra.
- Awumbila, M. (2007). Internal Migration, Vulnerability and Female Porters in Accra, Ghana . Department of Geography and Resource Development, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra.
- Anzagra, S. & Yeboah, T (2012). Child Migration in Ghana: Unveiling the Realities of Vulnerability and Social Exclusion, a paper to be presented at the KNUST Alumni Conference 29-31 AUGUST 2012 at Elmina, Ghana.
- Baah-Ennumh, T. Y. & Adom-Asamoah, G. (2012). The Role of Women in the Informal Economy of Ghana. Journal of Science and Technology, 32(2), 56 – 67.
- Berg, C. (2007). The Kayayei Survival in the City of Accra. Social Capital and Vulnerability in the Lives of Female Head Porters in Accra, Ghana. Unpublished MSc. Thesis presented to the International School for Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Amsterdam.
- Bilsborrow, R. E., Oberai, A. S. & Standing, G. (1984). Migration Surveys in Low Income Countries . Croom Helm, London and Sydney
- Caritas Internationalis. (2012).The Female Face of Migration; Advocacy and best practices for women who migrate and the families they live behind . Caritas Internationalis working document, accessed from http://www.caritas.org/includes/pdf/backgroundmigration.pdf date accessed 16/07/2012.
- Chant, S. (1998). Beyond Rural-Urban Divide . Journal of Environment and Urbanisation , 1, 5-10.
- Duduchoge, S. (2003). Problems of Rehabilitating Teenage Kayayoos in Ghana . Unpublished MSc. (Planning) Dissertation presented to the Department of Planning, KNUST, and Kumasi
- Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP). (2011). Energy Access and Productive Uses for the Urban Poor , a survey implemented by the Energy Centre, College of Engineering, KNUST in 2011, unpublished.
- Essel, S., Oppong, A. & Salinas, E. (2007). A Look at Accra’s Kayayei, A Special Report in The Statesman, Kokomlemle, Accra. 24 February 2007.
- Feigben, J. (2010). Child Labour and Children’s Education in Northern Region of Ghana: Case study of Bunkpurugu-Yunyoo and East Mamprusi Districts, an unpublished thesis submitted to the Department of Planning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in partial fulfilment of the award of Master of Science degree in Development Policy and Planning.
- Ghana Statistical Service. (2005). Population Data Analysis Report; Socio-economic and Demographic Trends , 1, Accra, Ghana Statistical Service.
- Ghana Statistical Service. (2007). Pattern and Trends of Poverty in Ghana 1991-2006, Accra, Ghana Statistical Service.
- Hashim, I. M. (2005). Research Report of Children's Independent Migration from North Eastern Ghana to Central Ghana, Research Report. Development Research Centre on Migration, Globalisation and Poverty, University of Sussex: Brighton, UK.
- Inkoom, D. K. B. & Nanguo, C. Z. (2011). Utilisation of Irrigation Facilities towards Poverty Reduction in the Upper West Region of Ghana. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa, 13(2), 335 – 351.
- International Labour Organisation. (2004) . International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour . Child Labour, a Textbook for University Students, Geneva: ILO.
- Kese, O. G. (2004). A Study of Programmes for Rehabilitation of Kayayei in the Kumasi Metropolis . Unpublished BSc. (Planning) special study submitted to the Department of Planning, KNUST, Kumasi.
- King, R. S. & Amponsah, O. (2012). The Role of City Authorities in Contributing to the Development of Urban Slums in Ghana. In: Badu, E., Dinye, R., Ahadzie, O., Owusu-Manu, D. (Eds) Procs 1st ICIDA, March 2224, 2012, Kumasi, Ghana 736.
- Kwankye, S. O., Anarfi J. K., Addoquaye, T. C. & Castaldo, A. (2007). Coping Strategies of Independent Child Migrants from Northern Ghana to Southern Cities. Working Paper, Regional Institute of Population Studies (RIPS), Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER). University of Ghana and Sussex Centre for Migration Research.
- Kwankye, S. O., Anarfi, J. K., Tagoe, C. A. & Castaldo, A. (2009). Independent North-South Child Migration in Ghana: The Decision Making Process in Working Paper T-29. Brighton, UK: Development Research Centre on Migration, Globalisation and Poverty.
- Kwankye, S. O. (2011). Independent North–South Child Migration as a Parental Investment in Northern Ghana. In. Boyle, P. J and Findlay, A. M. (edn) Population, Space and Place. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/psp.682
- Lee, E. S. (1966). A Theory of Migration. Demography , 3(1), 47-57
- Lobnibe, I. (2010). Of Jong Migrants and Jongsecans: understanding contemporary rural out-migration from Northwest Ghana. Journal of Dagaare Studies, 7-10, 1-21.
- Martin, P. (2003). Managing International Labour Migration in the 21st Century. South Eastern Eurpoe Journal of Economics, 1, 9-18.
- Opare, J. A. (2003). Kayayei: The Women Head Porters of Southern Ghana . Journal of Social Development in Africa, 18(2), 33 – 48.
- Ravenstein, E. G. (1885). The Laws of Migration. Journal of the Statistical Society of London, 48(2), 167-235.
- Solem, M., Klein, P., Muñiz-Solari, O. & Ray, W. (2011). AAG Centre for Global Geography Education. Available from http://globalgeography.aag.org. Date accessed 14/06/2012.
- Stark, O. (1984). Migration Decision Making. Journal of Development Economics , 4, 239-265.
- Todaro, M. P. & Smith, S. C. (2012). 11th edition. Economic Development. New York, USA, Addison Wesley.
- UNICEF. (2007). Incidence and Nature of Child Labour- The Big Picture. US Department of Labour Bureau of International Labour Affairs. Accessed from http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ghana.html Date accessed 02/03/2009
- United States Department of State. (2009). Trafficking in Persons Report 2009 - Ghana, 16 June 2009, accessed from www.unhcr.org/.../country,,USDOS,,GHA,456d621e2,4a4214b9c,0.htm date accessed 5 April 2010.
- Whitehead, A. & Hashim, I. (2005). Children and Migration . Background Paper for DFID Migration Team.
- Yeboah, M. A. & Appiah-Yeboah, K. (2009). An Examination of the Cultural and Socio-Economic Profiles of Porters in Accra, Ghana. Nordic Journal of African Studies, 18(1), 1–21.
- Yeboah, M. A. (2008). Gender and Livelihoods: Mapping the Economic Strategies of Porters in Accra, Ghana. Unpublished PhD Thesis. Department of Geology and Geography, Morgantown, West Virginia.
Downloads
No downloads have been recorded for this article yet. Figures appear here once readers begin downloading the full text.
How to Cite
Share this article
License
Copyright (c) 2012 Theresa Yaaba Baah-Ennumh, Owusu Amponsah, Martina Owusu Adoma (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Author (s) should affirm that the material has not been published previously. It has not been submitted and it is not under consideration by any other journal. At the same time author (s) need to execute a publication permission agreement to assume the responsibility of the submitted content and any omissions and errors therein. After submission of revised paper in the light of suggestions of the reviewers, the editorial team edits and formats manuscripts to bring uniformity and standardization in published material.
This work will be licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) and under condition of the license, users are free to read, copy, remix, transform, redistribute, download, print, search or link to the full texts of articles and even build upon their work as long as they credit the author for the original work. Moreover, as per journal policy author (s) hold and retain copyrights without any restrictions.
Keywords
Section
Published
Submissions
Have research to publish? Journal of Social and Development Sciences welcomes submissions.
Make a Submission