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In Ghana, migration has traditionally been dominated by males leaving women and children behind until thelate 1980s when females begun to migrate independently. Consequently, there is paucity of literature on theexperiences of left-behind husbands whose wives had migrated internally. Using the Nandom Municipality as acase study, 331 left-behind husbands responded to a survey questionnaire while 15 others participated in indepthinterviews. The quantitative data were analyzed using both descriptive statistics and a binary logisticregression while content analysis based on common themes was employed to analyze the qualitative data thatwere transcribed. The study shows that the left-behind husbands, who were mostly subsistence farmers withprimary or no formal education, approved their wives’ decision to migrate based on economic reasons. In theabsence of their wives, most men experienced challenges in cooking, drawing water, cleaning the home,shopping, sowing/planting, weeding, harvesting and carting of farm produce home or to the market for sale. Inparticular, husbands who were older, had secondary education or had younger children experienced morechallenges in the absence of their wives. As a coping strategy, most of the left-behind husbands relied on supportfrom the extended family members in both household chores and some farming activities. From the findings,there is the need to provide children of both sexes with the same socialization process to curb gender division oflabour in the Nandom Municipality. It is also important to promote female education and skilled training toreduce out-migration of females from the Nandom Municipality.

This paper draws on rich ethnographic data and complementary survey research from a three-country study (Ghana, Malawi, South Africa) of young people's mobility to explore the gendered nature of children's journeys to school in sub-Saharan Africa. In most African countries, girls' participation in formal education is substantially lower than boys', especially at secondary school level. Transport and mobility issues often form an important component of this story, though the precise patterning of the transportation and mobility constraints experienced by schoolchildren, and the ways in which transport factors interact with other constraints, varies from region to region. We draw attention to the nature of gendered travel experiences in rural and urban areas, the implications of these findings for access to education, and finally suggest areas where policy intervention could be beneficial. Aquest article es basa en dades etnogràfiques i recerca complementària sobre la mobilitat dels joves, a partir d'un estudi en tres països (Ghana, Malawi, Sudàfrica), per tal d'investigar els viatges a l'escola dels nois i les noies a l'Àfrica subsahariana des de la perspectiva de gènere. En la majoria dels països africans la participació de les noies en l'educació formal és substancialment més baixa que la dels nois, especialment en l'educació secundària. El patró de les restriccions de transport i mobilitat de l'alumnat i les formes com el transport interacciona amb altres restriccions, canvien d'una regió a una altra. L'article crida l'atenció sobre la naturalesa de gènere de les experiències del viatge en àrees rurals i urbanes i les implicacions d'aquests resultats per l'accés a l'educació. Finalment se suggereixen àrees en les que la intervenció política pot ser beneficiosa. Este artículo se basa en datos etnográficos y investigación complementaria sobre la movilidad de los jóvenes, a partir de un estudio en tres países africanos (Ghana, Malawi y Sudàfrica), a fin de investigar los viajes a la escuela de chicos y chicas en África subsahariana desde la perspectiva de género. En la mayoría de los países africanos la participación de las chicas en la educación formal es substancialmente inferior a la de los chicos, especialmente en la educación secundaria. El patrón de las restricciones de transporte y movilidad del alumnado y las formas como el transporte interacciona con otras restricciones, cambian de una region a otra. El artículo llama la atención sobre la naturaleza de género de las experiencias del viaje en áreas rurales y urbanas y las implicaciones de estos resultados para el acceso a la educación. Finalmente se sugieren áreas en las que la intervención política puede ser beneficiosa. Cet article s'appuie sur des données ethnographiques et recherche complémentaire sur la mobilité des jeunes à partir d'une étude dans trois pays (Ghana, Malawi, Afrique du Sud), afin d'explorer la nature de genre des voyages des jeunes à l'école en Afrique sub-saharienne. Dans la plupart des pays africains, la participation des filles dans l'éducation formelle est nettement plus faible que celle des garçons, en particulier au niveau de l'école secondaire. La structuration précise des contraintes de transport et de mobilité rencontrés par les écoliers, et la façon dont les facteurs de transport interagissent avec d'autres contraintes, varie de région en région. Nous attirons l'attention sur la nature de genre des expériences de voyage dans les zones rurales et urbaines et les implications de ces résultats pour l'accès à l'éducation. Finalement on suggère des domaines où une intervention politique pourrait être bénéfique.

In sub-Saharan Africa, young unemployed persons often migrate to the cities in search of employment, especially in the informal sector. This paper focuses on young migrants in the shoe-shine business which is common in Ghana but has attracted little or no research over the years. The study, which is guided by the migration networks theory and a conceptual framework on migration of young people to the urban informal sector, shows that the main motive for migrating is economic. There are migration networks which make it possible for new members to join the business. Most of the young migrants claim they have personally benefited from the business and are able to cater for their households better than before, while others have invested their earnings in various small projects at the places of origin, which has created some employment for others in the community. It is recommended that the government and the relevant stakeholders should occasionally organize entrepreneurship training for the shoe-shine operators to enable them operate effectively and sustain their business.

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is one of the interventions meant to prolong the progression from HIV to AIDS for People Living with HIV (PLHIVs). Although ART was introduced in Ghana in 2003, there is little or no information about the preferences of those on ART services. The main objective of the study therefore was to examine the preferences of PLHIVs concerning ART services. The data were extracted from a nationwide qualitative study conducted by the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC) which covered 12 cities/towns sampled from the three ecological zones of Ghana. Focus Group Discussions (FGD) and In-Depth Interviews (IDI) were the methods used in the data collection. A total of 145 FGDs and 171 IDIs were conducted in all the study sites among a wide range of target groups. The data were transcribed and analysed using NUD*IST (Non-numerical Data* Indexing Searching and Theorizing) version 6. The results showed that the hospital was the most preferred place for ART medications and most PLHIVs preferred to receive ART drugs from health personnel, trained PLHIVs or ‘foreigners’. PLHIVs preferred to access ART services free of charge and abhorred delays at ART centres. The preferences of PLHIVs regarding ART services must be considered in policies and programmes aimed at increasing enrolment, retention and coverage of ART in the country.

In Ghana, decentralization has been adopted as a means of promoting democracy and localgovernance, but the outcomes have been problematic in some cases. This study, which assessesdecentralization and conflict in the Kassena-Nankana West District, collected both quantitativeand qualitative data from the District Assembly staff and community members through bothpurposive and stratified sampling techniques. From the study, conflicts result in heighteneddemand by the Kassena and Nankana for the creation of separate districts out of the existingdistrict. Some of the causes of conflict between the District Assembly functionaries and citizens atthe local level include low participation of citizens in decision making, poor dissemination ofinformation from Assembly members to community members and inadequate financial resourcesfor the District Assembly to undertake development projects needed by the people. DistrictAssemblies need to mainstream peace-building and conflict management strategies into theMedium Term Development Plans to prevent conflicts between key stakeholders.