From Frying Pan to Fire: The Kayatie Journey

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

Article & pictures by William Yaw Owusu & Atkilt Geleta

Saturday February 5, 2011.
HUNDREDS OF young people mainly from northern parts of Ghana make dream moves down south in search of non-existent jobs and other economic opportunities but whilst in Accra and other cities, they begin to realise that all is not rosy after all.

Jamila Sulemana, 25 is one of several hundred young women who embarked on a “journey of hope” to seek sanctuary from the harsh economic conditions up north.

She tells DAILY GUIDE that as she travels down south from her Tumu hometown in the Upper West Region, all she is thinking about is to “work hard in Accra and save some money to feed my twins who are in the care of my mother.”

Porters known in local parlance as Kayayie have become human couriers that roam Accra, especially the Central Business District (CBD), bearing all the loads and indignity of a pitiless city.

A day in the life of the Kayayo begins at the slightest ray of light from the morning sun and ends when all the noise and dirt have settled after dark.

They are identified by their sweat-soaked glinting bodies. The mothers among them are normally lightly clothed and sometimes strap up with a thin calico to hold their emaciated babies to their bodies.

Their swollen feet tread the rugged terrain of the city; fighting the existing hazards with sheer human endurance as they walk along the broken walkways and roads.

They live in the slums of Accra, places where survival is the only element they are forced to pursue. A majority of them are nursing mothers and their babies go through the same ordeal.

The areas they live in are sprawling communities of shacks created out of necessity rather than deliberate urban planning. These unplanned communities or slums lack the basic amenities like sanitary facilities.

They share single rooms that they are crammed into like sardines. They pay exorbitant fees as weekly rent, ranging between GH¢20 and GH¢25.

Their babies go through hell, routinely having to wake up between 4:30 and 5:00am daily except maybe Sundays. The children are deprived the basic rights of a decent living, education and health.

“You have no option but to join your colleagues very early in the morning, comb the streets looking for loads to carry in order to earn some money. You cannot survive if you are lazy. Everyone in this trade is working hard but the income is very low,” Jamila says.

On days when business is good Jamila says she can earn between GH¢3 and GH¢5 but on the average, the highest a Kayayo could earn in a day is GH¢2.

“In the past you could get between GH¢10 and GH¢15 but nowadays it is difficult because we are too many. Business people do not come to the markets to buy as they used to do,” she says indicating the biting effect of the economic crunch.

Mohammed Salifu together with others has set up a small organization called Kayayo Youth Association to coordinate and see to the welfare of all Kayayie in the metropolis.

He tells DAILY GUIDE from the association’s modest office at Old Fadama in Agbogbloshie, Accra “we have 12 branches in all the major markets in Accra. We want to coordinate their activities to ensure that they are somehow safe.”

He says: “Our goal is to ensure that they are safe and also to sensitize them on the need to return home but we want to give them vocational training before they go back.”

He says the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) being established to bring development to the north should target and empower the youth to stem migration to the south.

Ordeal
Jamila says, “As you move around with loads people use all sorts of unprintable language for you. Sometimes you feel like you are not a human being. They treat you with contempt, disdain and scorn. You can be in a bad mood the whole day.”

“We carry heavy loads yet owners of the loads do not appreciate our effort. They insist on paying paltry fees for our services but because you have nobody to speak for you, you accept it as it is.”

“Sometimes when a load is available, the owner insists on allowing young girls among us to carry them. The idea is to cheat them because they know an older girl would challenge them. You can carry a box of tomatoes to cover about two miles only to be given GH¢1 for the service.”

“In the course of your work if any accident occurs and your customer’s goods are destroyed, you are not spared. The owner makes sure you pay for the damaged goods, otherwise it will land you in a police cell.”

“Three weeks ago Khadija, one of our colleagues, died at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital after a box of tomatoes she was carrying fell on her. The owner of the load immediately asked another Kayayo to carry the load. She left Khadija to die. Doctors later said her spinal cord got damaged,” she lamented.

At sunset, the curtain is drawn on the day's work and the stage is set for a more terrifying scenario which awaits them in the slums. Some get raped while others are robbed and physically abused.

“Sometime, when you wake up you find out that criminals have expertly cut your clothing around your abdomen to remove either your money, mobile phone or any personal effects. Those who are not lucky are raped. You do not know how they do it but we are suffering at the hands of these bandits,” she grieves.

Asked about her current intentions, Jamila echoed what the majority of Kayayie have been saying: “I would gladly go back to resettle in my village if I can get a bit of support. I now realise that it is not worth embarking on such a journey. It is dangerous and wasteful and does not serve any purpose.”

The Migration Issue
There is a huge developmental gap between the northern and southern regions. Inadequate and inaccessible education and limited employment opportunities drive proactive young people to the south in search of better standards of living.

“It starts with an assumption and it grows into a belief and a possibility” says Frank Doyi of Amnesty International, “so they come in search of, we say, unavailable jobs.”

Additionally, agriculture is the sole source of income for most families in the north, but recent rainfall patterns and extended periods of dryness during the Harmattan, followed by periodic rains and sporadic flooding, have diminished agricultural opportunities. In a farming culture where child bearing is seen as an effective social safety net, large families are left financially burdened.

Protracted conflicts in the northern regions also compound the migration issue.
There are also cultural, tribal and traditional motives for relocating. Some young women flee forced marriages, while others seek adventure in metropolitan areas. A few claim to have fled from witches in their home communities.

With limited or no education, and lacking skills in specific trades, young women find work carrying loads for peanuts in Accra and other major cities.

Kayayei fill a crucial vacuum in overly congested city centers and market areas where transporting goods proves difficult or at times impossible by vehicles and wheel barrows. The porters can flexibly navigate between cars, stalls, pedestrians and buildings with goods placed on their heads. With a basic knowledge of Twi, they are able to secure work in the markets without any application.

Consequently, the business community has built a dependence on the female porters, a comparatively inexpensive form of transport relative to taxis and trucks. With the demand for more workers, increasing numbers of young women have moved south.

The AMA Factor
Conditions in Accra are hardly welcoming for Kayayei. Ninety per cent of Kayayei reside in Accra’s largest slum - Old Fadama – popularly referred to as Sodom and Gomorrah, a name which Amnesty’s Frank Doyi says was ascribed to the area “in an effort to dehumanize and degrade its residents.”

City authorities have made multiple attempts to decongest the area. The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) is determined to forcibly remove or relocate the more than 79, 000 occupants, some of whom have lived in the area for more than 30 years.
Repeated forced eviction attempts have been made in the past few years. Civil society groups and NGOs have intervened on the slum dwellers behalf.

“The last time they went on a sit down strike, businesses stalled within the city. People couldn’t buy,” says Abdul- Mujeeb Salifu of People’s Dialogue on Human Settlements, stressing the importance, numbers and organizational capacity of Kayayei.

Paradoxically, while the AMA has been trying to remove slum dwellers including Kayayei from the city, it has been collecting daily tolls from them. However, it does not provide even the most basic services to assist with their living and working conditions.

They have become a vital component in the chain of distribution of goods and an indispensable part of the local economy yet due to their large numbers they are officially and popularly regarded as a nuisance.

Mensah Owusu, Programmes Coordinator at People’s Dialogue says: “Here’s a case where the city is trying to get rid of these people because they’re considered a nuisance meanwhile it continues to collect tolls and other forms of taxes so it’s hypocrisy.”

Human Rights Violations
The policies formulated to facilitate decent work among Ghanaians including the Kayayei exposes the government’s failure to adhere to international human rights standards.

The conditions under which the Kayayei operate are a clear violation of provisions in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which Ghana has signed and ratified.

Also, Ghana has committed itself to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. As such, government has an obligation to promote the achievement of decent work and respect the rights of its citizens to full employment and fulfill its commitment to the MDGs.

Amnesty’s Frank Doyi argues that the MDG goals “have to be planned for, well-orchestrated and put into an effective policy that can be implemented so we can achieve results.”

Way Forward
The Kayayei are a productive and industrious group making vital contributions to the business sector. They are a tax paying group who government has a responsibility to be accountable to.

There’s a misconception that they are disposable, yet much of the city’s business activity is reliant on them. The Kayayei’s informal business activity compliments formal businesses.

“Without the informal sector, the formal sector cannot survive and vice versa. Here we can look at the issue of Kayayei as an example,” says Mensah Owusu of People’s Dialogue.

The Kayayei, their community and the organizations that work with them all stress the need to promote dialogue between city authorities and Kayayei.

Kayayei Youth Association, People’s Dialogue and Amnesty Intentional have all suggested alterative income generation schemes including vocational training centers, continuing education and micro-finance schemes.