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Title: | An examination of the cultural and socio-economic profiles of porters in Accra, Ghana |
Authors: | Yeboah, Muriel Adjubi Appiah-Yeboah, Kwame |
Year: | 2009 |
Periodical: | Nordic Journal of African Studies (ISSN 1459-9465) |
Volume: | 18 |
Issue: | 1 |
Pages: | 1-21 |
Language: | English |
Geographic term: | Ghana |
Subjects: | porters labour migration gender inequality |
External link: | https://njas.fi/njas/article/view/225/213 |
Abstract: | This paper examines the cultural and socioeconomic profiles of porters in Accra, capital of Ghana. Porters, commonly referred to as 'kayayei' for women and 'truckpushers' for men, are individuals who carry goods in and around markets and commercial centres in cities for a fee. A majority of the porters migrate from northern or rural parts of the country to live and work in southern cities. Though porters perform a vital role in facilitating trading activities in the cities, their living and working conditions make them vulnerable. The question addressed in this study is why anyone would leave home and risk life and limb to make subsistence living in a hostile, faraway place. It examines the socioeconomic and cultural factors that compel individuals to migrate from their villages to work in the cities as porters. The findings of the study, which was conducted from the middle of June to the middle of December 2005, indicate that porters have very little or no education and are from very poor socioeconomic backgrounds. Male porters tend to be slightly older, have a little education, are married and living with their families in Accra. Female porters are younger, temporary porters, and in addition to low socioeconomic background are affected by cultural factors. Bibliogr., sum. [Journal abstract, edited] |