Celebrating the Women of the Informal World of Work

The theme of inclusivity for this year’s International Women’s Day inspired me to write about my late maternal grandmother, who raised me and loved me dearly. Grace Odorkor Otoo, called “Mama”, was the most industrious and disciplined woman I know. She had no formal education and was married to my grandfather who was educated up to Standard 6. Like many women in Ghana, Mama was also self-employed, having a petty trading business for over 50 years. She ceased the opportunity to obtain a United African Company (UAC) pass while her husband worked with the company and worked hard to establish a petty trade in goods that were in high demand.

Over the years she had been involved in trading food items and other household goods from “garri” to cooking pots to textile prints. She sold local and imported groceries that were in demand and seasonally available - what we call “provisions”. Till her fifties, she plied dangerous road networks to sell her ware at Yeji. She used the proceeds of her sales to buy dry fish, corn, and other produce that she could sell in Accra. Her industry enabled her to contribute financially to the Otoo household which included 6 of their children and others from less privileged families who were under their care.

The 70s and 80s were times of hardship and austerity for many families in Ghana due to the prevailing economic recession at the time. My mother however recollects that they were always well fed during these times due to Mama’s resourcefulness. “None of us had the “Rawlings chain,” she beamed with pride. (The term “Rawlings Chain” was coined at the time to describe the visibly defined collar bone - a sign of weight loss due to malnourishment.) Mealtimes were a communal affair because Mama welcomed neighbours to her home and cooked enough to feed everyone.? From their humble chamber and hall at Kakramadu, my grandparents, through determination and hard work, saved enough to build a simple 6-bedroom home where the family relocated to in the late 80s.?

Mama was very much involved in the raising of her children to be responsible, respectful, and resourceful in their community. They supported her business from an early age by selling some of her ware on a head pan within their neighborhood at Kakramadu. This practice was common at the time. Because of this, her children had early lessons in entrepreneurship. She was however a disciplinarian and never an over-indulgent parent. My mother and her siblings recall that none of them ever dared to be lazy or mediocre with their chores when Mama was around. As a Christian mother, she taught them to be kind to others even when they had little to spare. While I grew up under her care, there was always room for visitors who sometimes became a part of the family and lived there because of the generosity of my grandparents.

Stories of women like Mama do not always come to mind when we celebrate strong women. We forget the hundreds of women who put the needs of their families first and go out every day to hustle and grind. Sometimes they face temporary setbacks that put them out of work but often bounce back with a renewed drive and determination to make ends meet. With very little social support and hardly any government handouts for housing, food, or clothing, it is a wonder how they survive at all.?

Not every woman would be a CEO or great businesswoman, however, every woman deserves to be given opportunities to be as productive as they can be at work while having enough flexibility for personal, and family obligations and relaxation. A better world should provide fair remuneration and social support that allows them to at least enjoy decent living conditions, and afford healthcare and other essential services.

Because a majority of women in Ghana and many developing countries are employed in the informal sector, it is often difficult to hold their employers accountable for enforcing policies that are inclusive of the unique needs of women in the workforce. Additionally, the large number of women who are self-employed in occupations such as petty trading, artisanal farming, sewing, and hair-dressing are at a higher risk of losing their livelihoods because they have less protection from the loss of their capital and less access to social protection and security in the event of illness, disability or death.

The women who brave the uncertainties of working in informal sectors of the economy should not be dismissed as lazy or complacent because, against all odds, many of them have been caring for themselves and their loved ones under hostile economic conditions. They have kept on going despite the unrelenting inequalities and the high cost of living. Some have built their businesses from scratch and proceeded to elevate their families out of poverty.

Inclusivity for all women means policies that encourage their protection from abject poverty, more education opportunities, and easily accessible loans and grants for their businesses. Most importantly, sustainable solutions for childcare would be beneficial to many women because the growing difficulty and cost of childcare prevent many women from participating in paid work. An example of such a solution is the mobile childcare concept introduced in Burkina Faso a few years back. Mobile child care provides mothers of young children with safe and organised childcare, allowing them to participate in paid work. These mobile centres could also increase the children’s access to services like vaccination.?

The rousing celebration of International Women’s Day, while it raises awareness of the contributions of women everywhere, is a reminder of the many inequalities that continue to persist. As a people, we need to be mindful of the plight of women in informal sectors of the economy as well as those who are unable to participate in paid work because they have inadequate access to social support.

Do you know any strong woman who is hard-working, resilient, and resourceful and yet does not fit into the description of an ideal career woman in the formalised world of work? ? How can we be innovative and inclusive in supporting women, especially those in the informal sectors of our economy to become more fulfilled and effective members of our society?