Gender Ministry will eradicate Kayayei phenomenon – Otiko Djaba

Addressing the media at the Meet the Press series, Otiko Djaba outlined plans by her ministry to address the situation which has taken roots in most market centres nationwide. She explained that 400 female porters have been trained in livelihood and pre-employment skills.

“In the area of social services, the Ministry developed programmes and interventions to eradicate the Kayayei phenomena. A mapping of Kayayei is ongoing in the major markets across the country to gather data to inform decision-making,” she said.

She added that the Ministry plans “to link these vulnerable women to smallholder farming through the Planting for Food and Jobs initiative”. This move, she believes, will aid in the economic empowerment of women in the rural and urban areas nationwide.

“The Ministry has developed a portrait module as the solution after the eradication of the Kayayei phenomena, to link women in rural communities to the government’s initiatives such as the 1 village, 1 dam; 1 district, 1 factory, to ensure that we begin to empower our women economically right from the source so that they don’t come to the cities and those in the cities will protect their rights,” she posited.

In July last year, an Engineering Professor at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Professor Mark Adom-Asamoah hinted of plans to develop a trolley aimed at assisting head porters popularly known as ‘Kayayei’, to transport goods.

Kayayei are mostly women from the three regions of the North who migrate down south to work as load carriers to make a living.