Unraveling the health-related challenges of women in the informal economy: accounts of women in cross-border trading in Accra, Ghana

Abstract

The majority of urban informal sector workers lack basic health and social protection services and work in an unhealthy and unsafe environment. Women in cross border trading are one such group. Even though they contribute significantly to and are an important component of many economies, they do so at their personal and economic risks. As these women travel, they experience health hazards which add to their existing occupational exposure. Using in-depth-interviews and observation, this paper unravels the health-related risks that women in cross-border trading face. The most common physical health complaints were musculoskeletal problems such as body aches, back pains, waist pains and swollen feet as a result of long hours of travel and poor road networks. In addition to limited access to information on sexually transmitted diseases, women also go through psychosocial problems arising out of constant thinking and ‘worrying too much’ about their safety in the vehicles, the cash they carry along, the activities of gendarmes and armed robbers, untrustworthy customers as well as the safety of the children they leave behind. It is recommended that more attention should be paid to the work of women in the informal economy and cross-border trade in particular so as to unravel the ways in which women’s work affect their physical and mental health. It is only through this that policies could be put in place to address the health-related challenges of women in the informal economy