‘Kayayei
Several interventions have been put
in place by various governments as well as other non-profit organizations to
help improve upon their livelihoods but all of them have proved futile.
Humanitarian needs such as the provision of food, sleeping mats, accommodation,
head pans, family planning strategies, and other necessities most often are
provided by the government and through the benevolence of others, yet their
conditions remain the same. For instance, last year witnessed many celebrities
sharing food to ‘Kayayei’ people as part of their humanitarian
interventions. One of these people is a feminist, an author, and an
award-winning media personality, Oheneyere Gifty Anti. Through the help of some
donor agencies and other individuals, she provided hot meals to about 1000 ‘Kayayei’
people on the streets of Accra. This act was widely publicized on the various
media outlets as a way of appreciating the efforts of the philanthropist. It is
important to establish that, even though this act of kindness to a certain
extent satisfies a need, it does not challenge the socioeconomic class
backgrounds that these women found themselves in. It could also be described as
an act of tokenism and false generosity. The kind of intervention given does
not take them away from the conditions they face rather it reinforces their
position and situates them in the space of perpetual dependence. The act only
pushes the celebrity to the limelight. Just as stated in the readings for this
week, such intervention commodifies the celebrity and leads to what is
considered celebrity self-branding (Trauger & Fluri, 2019). It also
exemplifies what is termed as “star/poverty space. Every year we see the number
of ‘Kayayei’ increase, as well as but not much is done to stop the
trend. This is because the interventions fail to acknowledge the various
interlocking social markers such as climatic conditions, patriarchal norms,
gender, and class, among others that have pushed these women and girls into
their current situations. They failed to look at the socio-cultural as well as
the historical backgrounds of these women and importantly, do not include their
voices in the intervention projects. Worthy to note, ignoring such an
intersectional approach obscures the different oppressions these women face,
reinforces inequality, and prevents us from accessing a better approach to
improving their lives (Trauger & Fluri, 2019).
The videos attached tells the story
of the various forms of struggles that a ‘Kayayei’ goes through in her
daily struggle.
The 'Kaya' Struggle
Reference:
Trauger, A., & Fluri, J.
L. (2019). Engendering
development: capitalism and inequality in the global economy. Routledge.
Great post-Ama, thank you for introducing Kayayei. I like and admire these female's determination to migrate and work in other areas so they can earn money and educate themselves or help their families. However, as you discussed, there are many harmful aspects of this work, such as teenage pregnancy, rape, lack of food, etc. The aids and intervention from the UN did not improve anything, as I noticed from the videos. Providing mattresses or a hot meal is a temporary solution only, and it does not end the issue. I agree with you that the intervention fails because of ignoring some other factors, but also I guess the way of providing help was wrong. As usual, NGOs and other institutions ignored the needs of the locals and did not ask them about their needs. The second video provided a magnificent example of the solution, in my opinion. If the NGOs or celebrities provided aid to build schools and pay for teachers or give grants to the people who want to be educated; it will be much better than giving them food.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blogpost as it resonates with most of the topics we have addressed in the past weeks. The issue and plight of Kayaye is a devastating one as it goes to mirror the difficulties migrants experience in many settings. They leave their rural areas (where there are no job opportunities and where they are marginalized and poor) to the urban centers searching for unavailable jobs and end up falling prey to all manner of harsh living conditions. All development projects, businesses, health centers, schools, and so on are concentrated in the urban areas leaving the rural areas with nothing but poverty. In the bid of survival, these Kayaye travel to the cities only to realize that "the grass is not greener on the other side." The most annoying part is when people think that just by providing a one-time meal to these people, they (donors) must be hailed for saving the world. I strongly believe that it is because humanitarian agencies provide items such as clothes, mattresses, food, and other such things to them that the number of kayaye keeps increasing in the marketplaces and on our streets. The provision of these items sends a wrong signal to the kayaye and other people who think life is better on the streets. These acts of false generosity perpetuate the plights and marginalization of kayaye who remain on the street and depend on donor agencies and individuals' benevolence for their survival.
ReplyDeleteThank you Ama for illuminating the struggles of these women in Ghana. I find it absurd that the aids and intervention from the USAID did not think of doing something about where these women sleep. I see some signs of misplaced priorities in their intervention because these videos clearly express the poor living condition of these women. The Kayayei Story brings to light some of the issues raised in chapter 7 of Trauger et al’s book. For instance, the aspect of migratory labor exposing female workers to physical and sexual abuse was raised in this video. We also see that the women and young girls sustain pains from the heavy loads they carry every day. The most important aspect any NGO or humanitarian agency needs to pay attention to in this women's case should be their health. This is because they live in a poor condition and they are low-income earners. Most of them are not educated and barely know what hospitals are because they migrated from rural areas. Hence, if truly these aid agencies want to intervene, they should pay more attention to their health and take them off the streets. Another way to help these women is to engage them in vocational training as the second video suggests. I am sure if these hardworking women have better options, they will quit the Kayayei job.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post Ama! Its soo disheartening to see how these young females suffering in the wake of making a living. Using the case study of Covid alone is enough to show how these kayayei are suffering. Early this year when the Cases kept increasing in Ghana, most of such people tended to go back home but transportation was a problem. I remember watching a trending video where these head porters on their way back home were sent back to Accra because of illegal transportation. Long story short, each of these women received about 90 dollars from the vice president which I was a bit disappointed.
ReplyDeleteI kept asking myself what policy reforms are there to help empower such women who are not educated but have to make a living? As faith suggested, to help these women, vocational training will aid in helping them to have a sustainable livelihood. Also, as Coastal Development Authority (CODA) have rolled out a policy to aid in improving the lives of these head porters, I am hoping this policy will be uphold to help these young women to have a viable sustainable life.
- AISHAT TIJANI