By The increasing cost of living in Ghana is severely impacting workers, particularly those in the informal sector. This surge is pushing many into extreme poverty as prices for essential goods and services such as food, transportation, and housing continue to rise, putting immense pressure on the budgets of low-income families.
As a result, many are forced to adopt more austere lifestyles to manage the financial strain.
According to the latest report from the non-governmental organization, The Women in Informal Employment Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO), titled “Navigating Inflation: Impacts of the Cost-of-Living Crisis on Workers in Informal Employment in Accra, Ghana,” this stark reality is becoming increasingly evident.
In essence, the cost of living crisis has escalated dramatically, and informal sector workers are appealing for support from government entities.
The report underscores the heightened difficulties encountered by informal sector workers as they grapple with meeting their fundamental needs amid surging food prices and other living costs.
Numerous individuals interviewed for the report expressed distress over the unsustainable levels of money they now allocate to food, which is depleting their already modest incomes and diminishing their ability to make purchases.
To alleviate the detrimental effects of the soaring cost of living, these self-employed individuals assert that the government must initiate policies to bolster their livelihoods.
Demands
But what specific assistance are they demanding? They are asking for financial assistance from the government to alleviate their financial burdens and improve their economic resilience.
“Workers in informal employment need cash grants and soft loans. The central government should expand existing loan programmes to include soft loans with low or no interest and establish an application process that is simple, accessible, transparent and open to all”, the report recommended.
They also want the government to intervene by controlling inflation on essential items such as utility bills, essential food items and transport.
Aside from this, these low-income earned workers expect the state to provide livelihood support, including food aid, access to secure housing close to places of work, and educational assistance through scholarships and support in childcare enrolment while calling on the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection to support income-generating and livelihood adaptation activities.
In addition, the government must begin recognizing the workplaces of workers in informal employment – including public spaces and landfills – as legitimate sites of work.
Beyond that, there is also a clarion call on government to invest in the Occupational Health and Safety of workers in informal employment:
Among the findings, the report shows how food security has deteriorated amid rising prices, with direct consequences on the physical and mental health of workers.
More importantly, to improve the health status of the workers, the Ministry of Health is being encouraged to remove all financial and administrative barriers to registering for the National Health Insurance System.
“NHIS registration should be free and simple for all workers in informal employment”,
