The Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change recently hosted a renowned group of visitors from Ghana as part of an ongoing collaboration, marking a significant step in their collaborative project under the IDRC Women RISE initiative. The partnership focuses on action-oriented, gender-transformative research exploring improved understanding of an insufficiently known livelihood activity for women, increased awareness of the issues among stakeholders and policymakers, and mobilizing efforts and resources to enhance the well-being of women participating in the bushmeat trade and the promotion of gender and health equity in Ghana.

The project, "Examining the Socio-Economic and Health Vulnerabilities of Female Bushmeat Traders in the Context of COVID-19 in Ghana," aims to draw lessons to provide input into Ghana’s COVID-19 recovery programme through training and material interventions. Leading this important research are Prof. Yaa Ntiamoa Baidu  from the Centre for Biodiversity Conservation Research at the University of Ghana,  Prof. Joseph Mensah from the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change, and Dr. Emmanuel A. Odame from the Ghana Ministry of Health.

During the project team’s visit to York University, the research team composed of Dr. Emmanuel Ankrah Odame Prof. Charlotte Nana Wrigley-Asante (University of Ghana), Dr. Fidelia Ohemeng, and Dr. Kofi Ampensah-Mensah (Centre for Biodiversity Conservation Research) held meetings with the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation, York International, EUC Dean's Office, Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research, LA&PS Resource Centre for Public Sociology and York's Knowledge Mobilization Unit.

The research team presented their progress and findings on the socio-economic and health impacts of the pandemic on female bushmeat traders. Their research highlights that the pandemic has exacerbated pre-existing inequalities, disproportionately affecting women in the informal sector.

The project uses a mixed methods approach to procure primary data from bushmeat traders operating in Ghana, gathering both quantitative and qualitative data from female bushmeat traders across various regions of Ghana. Preliminary findings indicate a general decline in the bushmeat trade, starting with the Ebola outbreak in 2014 and worsening due to COVID-19. The decline is attributed to fears of zoonotic diseases, market closures, and stigmatization, leading to reduced income, profits, and overall household financial stability. The research team undertook direct observations of bushmeat trading activities to help them better achieve the expected results.

The three-year research project is drawing to a close and the team has drafted some policy proposals and initiated interventions such as setting up a national association for all women in the bushmeat trade and hunters, encouraging local production of bushmeat by animal farmers as a source of alternative livelihood, putting systems in place to deal with women’s mental health challenges and regulating environmental challenges such as “galamsey”, that is, "gather them and sell," a local Ghanaian phrase that means illegal small-scale, gold mining in Ghana.

The rather unfortunate conclusion we are forced to draw from any objective appraisal of life in Ghana, as in many parts of Africa, is that women have serious socioeconomic and health barriers. Not only do they have limited access to land, credit, and healthcare, but they also endure traditional gender roles that create a double-burden of paid and unpaid work. Hopefully, this project will further our understanding of the dynamics, difficulties, and strategies of women in the bushmeat trade during and after the COVID-19 pandemic—Joseph Mensah

Further research will review other factors affecting the bushmeat trade and hopes to provide valuable insights into the livelihood activities of women in this occupation, raise awareness among stakeholders and policymakers, and mobilize resources to enhance the well-being of Ghanaian women in bushmeat trading. The project will also inform Ghana's COVID-19 recovery program by offering training and material interventions to improve bushmeat processing and selling sites, ultimately promoting gender and health justice for women bushmeat traders in Ghana.