Surviving on the streets: Examining the situation of women with disabilities in Central Ghana

This study aims at examining the situation of women with disabilities in central Ghana, Kumasi. The study is exploratory in nature and delves into the everyday lives of women with disabilities making a living on the streets in Kumasi, central Ghana. These are individuals battling gender biases, stigma associated with disabilities, economic hardship of a developing country and many other unfavorable conditions affecting their very existence. Using a qualitative research approach that relies on interviewing women with disabilities making a living on the streets of a major urban center in Ghana, the study unearths some significant themes in the lives of these women: these included their educational status, lack of marketable skills, support systems or lack thereof, being shunned by society because of their disability, and the internalization of the stigma and derogatory labels attributed to them by society. The study also unearths and highlights some factors accounting for the resilience of these women. The powerful voices of the study participants are presented through their narratives highlighted in the findings section of this report. ; February 2023