Ofosu, Yaw (2002) Migrant child labourers in Accra : a case study of the making of an adjustment generation. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

This is a study of child labour as a social consequence of structural adjustment
policies (SAP), the economic ideology of the 1980s and 1990s in Ghana. SAP
certainly had its positive sides. However, the systematic process of
impoverishment through redundancies, the high costs of living and declining
state support in basic welfare worsened people's lived experiences. It is therefore
argued that political and economic changes, epitomised by the long years of SAP,
have burdened families, monetised social relations and increased the pressure on
children. But, while child labour at the family level is an old phenomenon in
Ghana, these problems have transformed some children into a new category of
labourers who migrate to the cities to take up some of the numerous informal
sector activities as a way of mitigating their poverty. Against this background,
three broad findings regarding their motivations, lived experiences and the
implications of their actions emerged in a programme of qualitative research.
Firstly, the pervasive poverty, dwindling opportunities and the influence of
returning migrants in the rural areas act as both the motivation and catalyst for
their migration. Secondly, even though Accra offers some relative hope, the
children operate in adverse and hazardous conditions that have certain
implications for their future. Thirdly, some children's agency are enhanced by
the roles they assume in their families and the ability to plan for the future,
especially in relation to education and training. Since economic growth and
development appears to be elusive, it is concluded that child migration will
continue. However, children's education should be repositioned at the centre of
social policy because as a preventive measure, any hour spent in the classroom is
time spent away from work.

Item Type:	Thesis or Dissertation (PhD)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Child labor -- Ghana -- Accra, Ghana -- Economic conditions -- 20th century, Rural-urban migration -- Ghana
Official Date:	July 2002
Dates:	Date Event July 2002 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of Applied Social Studies
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Mizen, Phil
Sponsors:	Association of Commonwealth Universities ; University College of Education (Winneba, Ghana)
Extent:	ix, 299 leaves
Language:	eng
URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/3646

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