Decision-Making Processes of Young African Migrants Seeking to Enhance Their Livelihoods in Accra, Ghana

Young people are increasingly migrating within their own countries and across different countries to enhance their livelihoods. These migrations are often driven by economic factors, with young people seeking to take advantage of opportunities that are less available at their places of origin. At the centre of these migrations are the range of decisions young people go through, which are often not entirely taken by themselves alone. In this context, we explore via a qualitative investigation of young migrants in Accra, Ghana, the decision-making processes these young migrants engaged in to understand the complex system of interactions involved. Data collection employed in-depth interviews and focus group discussions among migrants of 15–24 years from within Ghana, and other neighbouring West African countries, bound together by the ECOWAS Protocol on free movement; namely, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Niger. Our findings reveal that for young migrants, ‘independent’ pre-migration decision means less dependent on household parents but often linked to supportive roles including funds provision by their peers, parents and other close relatives abroad that concretize their final decisions to migrate. Considering the complex decision-making processes young people traverse, our paper broadens the scope of researching young people's migration decision-making architecture in Western Africa to be understood within the context of the New Economics of Migration Theory where migration decisions are more collectively taken to maximize income and employment opportunities while minimizing risks.