Improving the socio-economic welfare of women through informal sector activities in Ghana

Charles Peprah (), Veronica Peprah () and Kafui Afi Ocloo ()
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Charles Peprah: Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Veronica Peprah: Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Kafui Afi Ocloo: Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology

Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, 2023, vol. 25, issue 4, No 3, 3005-3028

Abstract: Abstract The importance of informal sector activities (ISA) in reducing poverty among women in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) cannot be over emphasised. However, in LMICs including Ghana, little mixed-methods evidence exists about the prospects of ISA in improving the wellbeing of women across different spatial dimensions. Drawing on the feminist theory with mixed-methods evidence, this study explores the role of ISA in improving the welfare of women who are engaged in informal activities in the Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana. This knowledge-base is critical in contributing partly to the realisation of the UN poverty-related sustainable development goals. This study involved 356 spatially diverse women recruited from six communities in the Kumasi Metropolis using diverse sampling techniques. We found that the socio-economic welfare of the participants has significantly improved after entering into ISA. These improvements manifested in areas such as income, contribution to household expenditure, decision making at home, community participation, nutrition of family, access to education of wards, acquisition of assets and quality housing. The nature of the urban space had a weak influence on the manifestation of improvements. Findings of this study have, thus, demonstrated the potential of ISA in improving the socio-economic wellbeing of women in the informal sector in Ghana. Policy recommendations that aimed at strengthening ISA among women in Ghana have been offered for the attention of policy actors.

Keywords: Spatial perspective; Kumasi metropolis; Poverty reduction; Informal sector; Socio-economic; Women; Ghana (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1007/s10668-022-02161-5

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