Working Paper T-29 Independent North-South Child Migration in Ghana: The Decision Making Process S. O. KWANKYE*, J. K. ANARFI**, C. A. TAGOE** AND A. CASTALDO*** * RIPS ** ISSER *** Sussex Centre for Migration Research February 2009 Issued by the Development Research Centre on Migration, Globalisation and Poverty The UK Department for International Development (DFID) supports policies, programmes and projects to promote poverty reduction globally. DFID provided funds for this study as part of that goal but the views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) alone. Development Research Centre on Migration, Globalisation and Poverty Arts C-226, University of Sussex Brighton BN1 9SJ Website: http://www.migrationdrc.org Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1273 873394 Fax: +44 (0)1273 873158 This paper may be reproduced free of charge in any format provided the source is acknowledged. 2 CONTENTS 1. Introduction 4 2. Historical Overview of Internal Migration in Ghana 8 3. Methodology 13 4. Demographic and Socio-Economic Characteristics of the Child Migrants 14 5. Deciding to Migrate 19 5.1 Who Decides and Why 19 5.2 Children’s Migration Experiences and Resources 25 6. Children’s Views on Migration 28 7. Travelling to Destination and School Abandonment 30 8. Conclusions and Recommendations 33 References 37 3 1. Introduction This working paper explores the reasons for the phenomenon of independent child migration from the North to the South in Ghana, looking particularly at how the decision for the child to migrate is made, and who is involved in the process. Most of the findings of the research focus on what children themselves think and say about the decision-making processes and their experiences. Whilst migration is neither a new phenomenon, nor specific to any group of people, the trends and dynamics of population movements vary greatly over space and time. Migration in its various forms has resulted in the redistribution of people over space, with migratory flows generally prompted by imbalances in development between origin and destination areas. These imbalances, be they in resource endowment, income levels or access to facilities and services, cause the movement of people at both internal and international levels. However, an understanding of the role of these structural factors should not deter us from looking at migrants’ own agency in deciding to migrate. The literature on migration in Ghana has largely focused on the internal migration of its adult population. Recently, however, the independent migration of children, particularly from northern to southern Ghana, has become a subject of increasing concern for Ghana’s national development. This phenomenon has important implications for the development prospects of both origin and destination areas, as well as for the socio-economic advancement of the child migrants themselves. People migrate for a variety of reasons, including having better access to public services or to recreational options, and/or for economic gain. Therefore, differences in average income or wage levels between origin and destination areas are significant determinants of migration flows between the two locations. Households can make migration decisions to maximise income flows, or to develop the human capital of some of their members. In other cases, migration can be a response to severe hardship during periods of deprivation and economic stress. Research into the decision-making processes behind whether to migrate or not also indicates various non-economic factors or variables at play. Gardner (1981), for instance, identifies a range of macro-level influences on migration decisions, which include societal norms and values about migration, opportunities or constraints and/or perceptions about these, and 4 accessibility. According to Gardner, societal and cultural influences always play a part in migration decision-making. The key role of community-level influences on the decision to migrate is supported by the fact that migration is more likely to take place from communities that have a history of migration, or customs necessitating the migration of some of their members (Findley 1982). This broad theoretical framework is useful to look at the case of Ghana’s northern regions. The perception of greater availability of socio-economic opportunities in the southern regions has over time sustained a continuous stream of migration from North to South. This is linked to the spatial imbalance in the distribution of natural resources between the north and the south and can be understood as a response to the differential in income levels and opportunities between the two regions, with the economic dynamism of the South acting as a ‘pull’ factor, rather than any absolute poverty in the northern regions ‘pushing’ people out. The Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS) reports 3 and 4 for 1992 (GSS 1995) and 1999 (GSS 2000) show, however, that the majority of individuals migrate for non-economic reasons, and it appears that these have not changed much over time. The GLSS 3 (GSS 1995) shows that 18 percent and 43 percent of all migrants cited ‘marriage’ and ‘other family-related reasons’ respectively as their reason for migrating, while 24 percent indicated that they had moved for work-related reasons involving their own or their spouse’s employment. In 1999 however, about 28 percent of the migrants claimed they had moved for work-related reasons, involving their own or their spouse’s employment. Thus, work does not appear to be the primary ‘pull’ factor in migratory behaviour in Ghana, although the percentage of migrants in this class increased from 24 percent in 1991/92 to 28 percent in 1998/99. The Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) also carried out the Ghana Child Labour Survey (GCLS) in 2001, investigating a wide range of issues around Child Labour (GSS 2003). One aspect of the study of critical relevance to our research is an analysis of the region of origin of the street children in Ghana. Whilst not all child migrants become street children, some do, and a study of street children could give us insights into the lives of child migrants. Out of an estimated 6.4 million children (aged 5-17) in Ghana (GSS 2003), the nationwide survey interviewed 2,314 street children and found that over a third of the street children were from the Northern region (38.1 percent) followed by the Upper East (12.1 percent). These two regions stood out as the two most important source regions of street children, and contrasts with the Upper West, from 5 where only about five percent of the street children originate. In the household survey, the data shows that about 2 out of every 5 children in Ghana are working. However, a vast majority (88 percent) work as unpaid family workers or apprentices, or conversely, only 12 percent of all working children are paid for their labour (GSS 2003: xiii-xiv). In studying the relationship between family, child labour and migration in Metro Manila, Camacho (1999), examines the role of the family in making decisions about migration, as well as the economic benefits of the migration of children for their family. She studies the cases of 50 children below the age of 18, who migrated from a province in the Philippines to work in Metro Manila as domestic wage workers. She finds that the majority of the child migrants had reportedly taken their own decision to migrate and work, although many of them had consulted their family members, particularly their mothers. The study found that the major driving force for their wanting to work was the desire to contribute to the income of the family and also to attain some level of education. It was however quite clear that those who migrated were largely following other kinsmen/women and community members as well as friends who had migrated earlier. Such a migration strategy reduced the risks associated with the migration of children. Another study carried out in India suggests that conflict between parents and children – in particular male children – is a determinant in prompting the migration of children (Iversen 2002). These findings raise questions about what responsibility children take upon themselves. Ultimately, without losing sight of the role of external influences, we seek to explore whether it is the parents, the children themselves, both together, or other relatives, who make the decision for the child to migrate. Today, community-level influences appear to affect not only adult migrants but children as well. For example, a culture is developing, particularly among girls from the north, who wish to migrate to southern Ghana at least once in their lifetime, in order to acquire some basic items in preparation for their marriage. Awareness of the decision-making processes that lie behind the north-south independent migration of children would constitute an important basis for the formulation of informed and well-targeted policies that seek to reduce the risks attached to this phenomenon or attempt to enhance its benefits. In fact, despite the generally held view that children’s migration automatically increases their vulnerability to economic – and other types of -- exploitation, Migration DRC research has shown that children’s perceptions of migration remain mostly 6 positive. In particular Hashim (2006:1) uses data collected during interviews with children over 3 months in Tempane Natinga in the Upper East region of Ghana to show that independent child migrants not only choose to migrate but are usually ‘positive about their experiences, as they afforded them the opportunity to develop important relationships or skills, and/or to earn an income that allowed them to buy the things necessary for their progression into adulthood or pay for education’. Additionally, research into adolescents’ independent migration in Burkina Faso shows their decision to migrate is mostly the outcome of their ‘positive aspirations to look for work and urban experiences’ (Thorsen 2007: 6).