Every year, quite some females migrate to the southern or middle belt of Ghana to undertake activities such as being head potters, locally referred to as “kayaye” in Ghana.
The main focus of undertaking these activities is to obtain funds to cater to their various living expenses.
There have been stories of once “kayeye” girls who ultimately made it in the pursuance of their dreams and aspirations in life.
Among them is Teni Agana who went from being ahead potter to becoming a graduate from Ashesi University, one of the prestigious universities in Ghana. Similar to Teni is Bariya, who primarily did this job during school vacations to sort her school bills right through to her final year in the tertiary institution.
Before this knowledge, African Post Online decided to obtain enough information about the pregnant/ teenage mothers who are “kayeyes” and their main motive in undertaking this activity.
To obtain enough information about these ladies, African Post Online toured the Tema Station Market, the CMB Market and the “Konkomba” Market in Accra to further understand these girls and why they do what they do.
Our first point of contact was Eliasu and her friends- Saada, Selina, Salima, Sayina, Latifa and Kruba. Eliasu is a teenage mother, 16 years of age and comes from Koforidua in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Eliasu voluntarily left her hometown to seek for a better life for herself and her son. She sleeps under a yellow tent at the Tema station market together with her son. She explained to us that, even though the money she obtains in a day is not sufficient, she is still able to manage the funds for herself and her son. She obtains revenue ranging from ₵5 to ₵20 per day, which oftentimes is based on the number of clients she gets in a day.
Eliasu, who willingly got married to her husband at the age of 13 years, has no education about her reproductive health. According to her, she happens to be the only person who provides for her son. She has aspirations of transitioning to owning a store stuffed with goods for sale once enough funds are gathered by her. Deep within her heart is the dream of going back to school. She does not only believe that school has value, but also believe that the returns are numerous. Eliasu informed us of her passion for returning to Koforidua once she saves up sufficient funds for her transitioning business.
Most of these ladies sleep under tents or in open space in the market. Hence, when there is rain, a lot of them will have to bear the consequences of no shelter. The amazing part about their place of residence is that very few rape cases occur to them at night. However, they encounter quite some challenges such as theft cases. Another challenge they face has to deal with customers not paying the full amount due to them.
Quite a number of them complained of the fact that this activity is hectic and as such, stresses and generates pain in their various body parts. And few of them are acquainted with knowledge about their reproductive health. A lot of them, however, do not undertake this activity when it rains or they fall sick and most of them do carry their babies along even as they perform their jobs. The majority of them desire to venture into other businesses like selling clothes and food once enough funds are generated by them.
A lot of them sleep around 8 in the evening and wake up as early as midnight to commence their job. Some rise as early as midnight and walk approximately 500 meters to the market place, to begin with, their duties for the day.
Some few benefits they obtain from the “kaya” business have to do with the funds they accumulate to cater for their day-to-day expenses and those of their kids. Also, some are fortunate enough to receive gifts like clothes and slippers from generous clients.
Inside the CMB Market, we came across a number of them. Among them were Kumema and Fati, from Yendi (in the Northern part of Ghana). Both Kumema and Fati decided to come to Accra to seek for better opportunities. Kumema, 16 years of age, sleeps at the Konkomba Market, specifically at the “Korle Gorno” and has a son aged two and a half years. Her husband, who lives with her at the Konkomba market, happens to be an “okada rider” (men who transport people on a motorbike for money). Fortunately for Kumema, her husband supports her and their son with funds. She explained to us that she will transit to selling “waakye” (a local food in Ghana made of beans and rice) once she gathers enough funds. She obtains revenue ranging from ₵20 to ₵90 per day.
According to her, she can manage her funds well enough even to the point of saving some. As a mother, Kumema wants the best for her son by desiring him to go to school even though she never had that opportunity.
Similar to Kumema is Fati, 30 years of age and has a son aged one month old. Even though she used to be a tailor in the Northern Region, she was not generating enough funds. Hence, she decided to migrate to Accra for her to acquire sufficient funds from the head potter business. Fati generates revenue from ₵20 to ₵100 per day and works with clients numbering from 10 to 15 in a day. Fati, however, has dreams of going back to the North once she gathers enough funds to expand her tailoring business. Fati and Kumema told us how fortunate they were to have a safe place to sleep in.
Inside the “Konkomba” Market, we came across Nfatima, a pregnant and teenage mother who is 12 years of age and comes from Tamale where she experienced some level of education. Fatima, just like Fati and Kumema, sleeps at the “Konkomba” Market. Her husband, however, resides in Tamale. Nfatima happens to be the sole provider for herself and her son. She has been in the head potter business for a year and obtains revenue accruing from ₵15 to ₵30 per day. She selected the “Konkomba” market as a place to undertake her business activities because of proximity to where she sleeps.
Her firstborn is three years and two months old while her unborn child is seven months old. She primarily does the head potter business to secure enough funds to venture into the tailoring business. Nfatima, like some of the teenage head potter girls, were forced into marriage at an early age by their families. She expresses her deep concern in returning to the Northern region as her current residence in Accra deprives her of important information from her family.
Even though women empowerment has become the talk of the day, a lot of these ladies do not obtain support and help from authoritative figures and institutions. Occasionally, these ladies are bypassed in the market place even though most of them are in desperate need of help and support. It is, therefore, our hope that other well-sustained institutions will take up the initiative to help address the challenges faced by these ladies who, for want of a better life, migrated to Accra to engage in the head potter business.
By Francis Abban -African Post Online
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