Evaluating the relationship between the formal and informal economy in Ghana : a case study of Koforidua in the Eastern Region (original) (raw)
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Re-theorising the role of the informal economy in Sub-Saharan Africa: some lessons from the Gambia
This paper aims to evaluate critically the rival representations of the role of the informal economy which is variously portrayed as a leftover from an earlier mode of production, a direct by-product of late capitalism, an alternative to the formal economy or a complement to formal work. Reporting evidence from a survey of 500 participants in the Gambia, the finding is that although each and every representation of its role is valid in relation to particular populations and/or specific types of informal work, no one representation fully captures the diverse and multiple roles played by the informal economy in contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa. The consequent argument is that only by using all of them can a finer-grained and more comprehensive understanding of the multifarious roles of the informal economy be achieved. The outcome is a more multilayered and nuanced understanding of the role played by the informal economy in contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa.
Re-theorising the role of the informal economy in Sub-Saharan Africa: some lessons from Gambia
This paper aims to evaluate critically the rival representations of the role of the informal economy which is variously portrayed as a leftover from an earlier mode of production, a direct by-product of late capitalism, an alternative to the formal economy or a complement to formal work. Reporting evidence from a survey of 500 participants in Gambia, the finding is that although each and every representation of its role is valid in relation to particular populations and/or specific types of informal work, no one representation fully captures the diverse and multiple roles played by the informal economy in contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa. The consequent argument is that only by using all of them can a finer-grained and more comprehensive understanding of the multifarious roles of the informal economy be achieved. The outcome is a more multilayered and nuanced understanding of the role played by the informal economy in contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa.
80 percent of the Ghanaian workforce is employed in the informal sector. The sector is characterized by underemployment, bad working conditions, uncertain work relationships and low wages. The majority of people are living with high income insecurity.
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2005
The global research-policy-action network Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO) Working Papers feature research that makes either an empirical or theoretical contribution to existing knowledge about the informal economy, especially the working poor, their living and work environments, and/or their organizations. Particular attention is paid to policy-relevant research, including research that examines policy paradigms and practice. All WIEGO Working Papers are peer reviewed by the WIEGO Research Team and/or external experts. The WIEGO Publication Series is coordinated by the WIEGO Research Team.
Review of African Political Economy, 2024
Introduction 'Chop bars', as informal street food caterers are known in Ghana, are a ubiquitous feature of its urban landscape and provide the cheapest street food to urban poor people. A 2016 survey by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) found that there were about 3,300 chop bars in Accra, employing almost 4,300 workers (FAO 2016, 7), although, given their informal nature, this might well be an underestimation of the size of the industry and of its workforce. This article explores the significance and drivers of socioeconomic stratification in the sector, as well as chop bar operators' dynamics of political organisation and interaction (or lack thereof) with the Trades Union Congress (Ghana)-hereafter, TUC (Ghana).
The African revolution : urban commerce and the informal economy
2008
KEITH HART has taught on both sides of the Atlantic: a long time was spent at Cambridge where he was Director of the African Studies Centre but he has also worked at Yale, Chicago, Michigan, West Indies University, McGill, Manchester and East Anglia. He spent two years in Ghana between 1965 and 1968 preparing his PhD in social anthropology, Cambridge University. This gave rise to the informal economy concept which contributes to the studies of development. Since then, he has also worked as a consultant, editor and “gambler”. He has conducted research in the Caribbean, Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong and South Africa and has published extensively in the area of economic anthropology, and particularly on the importance of money.
The Journal of Modern African Studies, 2007
Economic crisis and structural adjustment in Ghana have put large numbers of formal sector employees and civil servants out of work. This informalisation process has gendered consequences. Unemployed people, rural-urban migrants and school-leavers of both genders seek employment in the urban informal economy, and increasingly take up ' female' occupations -particularly in retail trade. Overcrowding in women's economic domains thus occurs. This study examines the livelihood strategies of informally employed men and women in Accra. It is argued that gender ideologies regarding appropriate occupations for women and men are continuously adapted in response to a changing political economy. Thus, even if female traders face competition, declining returns and a heavier dependency burden, frustration with government policies failing to create decent jobs (for men) is more prevalent than gender antagonism and ridicule of those who find gender-atypical ways of eking out a living.
The implementation of neoliberal economic reforms with its resultant effects on rural agricultural economies has facilitated the migration of young girls from northern to southern Ghana to seek for alternative livelihoods in the urban informal economy as head porters (Kayayei). Using semi-structured questionnaires and interviews with 45 Kayayei in Makola and Agbogbloshie Markets, Accra, this study examines how migration as a livelihood strategy contributes to an improvement in the living conditions of young girls and their families. The paper also looks more closely into the pathways through which the livelihoods of these young female migrants may contribute to local economic development. The study highlights that Kayayei contribute to local economic development through market exchange and revenue generation, also there is significant perceived positive impact of head portering on standard of living of these young girls through improved access to income, health care and asset accumulation while their families benefit from remittances. The study concludes by advocating for the need to provide access to credit and skills training in enhancing the livelihood of Kayayei.