Migration Status and Alcohol Use in Urban Poor Communities, Accra, Ghana

Abstract

This study scrutinizes the prevalence of alcohol use among migrants and non-migrants and examines whether age, sex, education, occupation, religion, locality and marital status predict alcohol consumption behaviours. Migrants groups include those from all the ten (10) regions of Ghana who have, at the time of the study settled in the three localities. Multinomial regression was estimated using the second round of data collected by the 2011 Urban Health and Poverty Project wave two (EDULINK) in three communities in Accra; (N=915). Results shows that pattern of alcoholic use vary by age, religion, occupation, marital status and region of origin. In addition, non-migrants are directly associated with higher odds of alcohol consumption than migrants. Among the age groups, 15-19 years are 14.585 and 3.407 times as likely to be regular and light drinkers of alcohol respectively as compared to any of the age groups. The study also shows that, the level of education determines the prevalence rate and that respondent with highest educational level consume more alcohol compared to the none educated. I therefore concluded that persons within age group 15-19 years are in their critical life stages that are associated with differential effects of alcohol consumption among non-migrants.