Puplampu, B.S.2023-10-062023-10-062021-12http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh:8080/handle/123456789/40355MPhil. Migration StudiesThe outbreak of the coronavirus disease spread to many nations of the world such that many people have been infected leading to several of them losing their lives. In the attempt to control the spread of the disease so these deaths are minimized, different forms of control measures were put in place by governments of nations around the world. These control measures in handling a health crisis may have unfortunately done more harm than good as other sectors in the economies of countries around the world have been affected. The activity of transnational trade has particularly been affected because, due to the restriction in the movement of persons across borders, transnational traders were unable to engage in their multiple trips to other countries to access and import the goods they trade in. Also, the initial shock of the spread of the coronavirus disease slowed down production in many of these destination countries leading to the delay and shortage in the supply of some goods to these transnational traders. This study, in its contribution to the growing literature on Ghanaian Transnational Traders, focuses on these traders in the Accra Metropolitan Area (AMA) of Ghana and its environs who trade between Ghana and China by examining the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic on them. This study looks at the coping strategies these traders have had to employ to keep their businesses thriving and to make ends meet during the pandemic. In doing this, the study pays attention to the activities these traders engage in that qualify their trading activity to be transnational in nature and why the pandemic affected them and their businesses that much. The four specific objectives of this study were to first, assess the socio-economic activities these traders who import from China engaged in before and during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic; second, to examine the coping strategies of these traders who import from China as a result of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic; third, to examine the challenges and adjustments agents in Ghana that facilitate transnational trading activities to and from China have had to make due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic; and lastly, to review Ghana’s response strategies to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic concerning transnational trading generally in the country and make recommendations. Using the concurrent triangulation mixed-methods design approach grounded in the pragmatic philosophical worldview, this study employed the use of multiple data collection methods to gather data from its seventy (70) respondents at different levels. Among these respondents, fifty (50) were administered questionnaires and for the remaining twenty (20), semistructured interviews were conducted. Documents from relevant organizations were also solicited to aid in this study. Guided by the transnational migration theory and the sustainable livelihoods framework, key findings revealed that in the activity of transnational trading among transnational traders in the AMA, where those involved are to make multiple moves across borders and/ or import from various destinations to Ghana, there exists three distinct categories of transnational traders. These categories of transnational traders were identified based on their frequency of transnational movement and their frequency of importation. Additionally, not all the coping strategies employed by these traders due to the impact of the control measures (put in place by the Ghanaian government) due to the pandemic were favourable. Also, the outbreak of the virus not only impacted transnational traders but also impacted agents who facilitate the movement of the traders themselves and their goods across borders. The Ghanaian government nonetheless also put support strategies in place to help businesses impacted by the pandemic but unfortunately, due to the nation’s Ghana Beyond Aid Agenda, most of these transnational traders did not qualify for support. A transnational trade pattern model, summarising the major findings of this study was developed. Through this model, the emphasis on transnational trading as a livelihood strategy was made. However, bearing in mind the many considerations these traders have to make and the obstacles they have to overcome to not only make a living but also provide goods for consumption in Ghana, they should not be sidelined. Even in the endeavour to create a Ghana beyond aid, it should be a collective process involving all and sundry, so through the progression towards a self-reliant nation, all citizens including transnational traders would embrace the results and work towards the success of Ghana’s agenda.enSocio-Economic ImpactsCovid-19 PandemicGhanaian Transnational TradersAccra Metropolitan AreaGhanaThesis