Providing a safety net for the vulnerable persons in Ghana: Does the extended family matter?

Samuel Owusu and Samuel Baidoo

International Journal of Social Welfare, 2021, vol. 30, issue 2, 208-215

Abstract: Social protection is very important as far as marginalised and vulnerable people are concerned. Ghana has implemented several social protection programmes over the years, aimed at improving the welfare of Ghanaians. However, these programmes have not been as effective as expected due to some challenges in their implementation and in the national economy. Given the ineffectiveness of the programmes, the role of the extended family in improving the welfare of vulnerable people cannot be overemphasised. Notwithstanding, the extended family system is fading away and losing its importance due to modernisation and the rise in individualism. The study sought, therefore, to justify the need for the preservation of the extended family system. Using 1,688 respondents and employing the binary probit model, the results show that the poor, the aged, single parents, the uneducated, the unemployed and rural residents are more likely to live with their extended family. This implies that the extended family continues to serve as a safety net for the vulnerable in Ghana, hence the need to preserve it.

Date: 2021
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https://doi.org/10.1111/ijsw.12446

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wly:injsow:v:30:y:2021:i:2:p:208-215

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