Teenage girls from northern Ghana, independently migrate to the urban centres of the
south to seek economic opportunities. Most of these teenage girls end up living on the
streets of the urban centres they migrate to and often are at risk of sexual abuse. The
prevalence of pregnancy and childbearing is increasing among these girls. However, little
is known about the experiences and challenges of these teenage girls during pregnancy
and post-delivery. This study, examined the lived experience, the coping strategies and
the factors that influence resilience among migrant teenage girls in Accra. The study
adopted a sequential exploratory design which involved two phases of data collection.
Thematic analysis was conducted on phase one of the qualitative data which involved 20
in-depth interviews and four focus group discussions. Derived themes were built into the
design of a structured questionnaire and administered to 250 respondents through face-toface
interviews that concluded phase two of the data collection process. In both phases of
data collection, respondent-driven sampling was employed. This sampling technique
involved a chain referral and peer recruitment of participants. The results indicate that:
poverty, deprivation and the lack of economic opportunities in northern Ghana account
for the massive drift of teenage girls to Accra. The results revealed that the girls went
through traumatic experiences during pregnancy, childbirth and childcare. The girls lived
in deplorable conditions on the streets and faced difficulties accessing healthcare for
themselves and their babies. They lacked social support and knowledge on institutions
that provide welfare services in the city. They suffered physical and sexual abuses,
exploitation, harassment and severe stigmatization from health workers, the public and
shop owners. In an attempt to manage these problems, the girls adopted coping strategies
in the form of bringing younger siblings to babysit; carrying babies on their back;
rotational childcare arrangements; teaming up with peers to cook; keeping sharp objects
University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh
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and wearing tight jeans to ward-off potential thieves and rapists and picking of boyfriends
as a means to secure sleeping places. Faith in God, adoption of ethnic ties, earning
income, savings and remittances, were qualitative factors that propelled resilience while
quantitatively: jobs in the city, peer support, access to accommodation, age of respondent,
and living with partner in the city, influenced resilience among migrant teenage girls who
live on the streets of Accra. The study recommends that the Ministry of Gender, Children
and Social Protection should adopt a two-generation policy approach that will aim at
addressing issues of migrant teenage girls and their children in Accra. Specifically, the
Ministry should provide teen parenting support centres at major markets and suburbs in
the city where teenage girls could freely receive services including: ‘adult’ learning; skills
training; how to set up micro businesses; professional counselling on parenting; and so
forth as envisaged in the National Youth Policy. These centres should also be designed to
provide services where migrant teenage girls could drop-in with their children, have their
children receive early learning and development, receive primary healthcare and nutrition
among many others. A future study may consider looking at the developmental
challenges of children of migrant teenage girls in the city as a means to inform needs
driven programs as proposed for the establishment of teen parenting support centres in the
major markets and suburbs of the city