Ghana is hard!!!

Last week I went for a meeting with the Ghanaian community and I was pleasantly surprised to see a former church member in there. He is based in Ghana and he sometimes comes to the USA for holidays and I was excited to see him because I could catch some Ghana news from him. So after the meeting when we were socializing, I went over to greet and indulge him in a little conversation. I asked him how Ghana was doing and he instantly replied that “eeii Ghana, e no dey bee kraa…..things are very hard now”.

 

In a bid to empathize with him, I told him that things will be better and that it’s the same everywhere including the United States. He instantly disagreed with me, citing a situation where he met a former classmate, who told him he didn't money but was able to give him $100. According to him, if someone claiming he didn't have money was able to give $100 on the spot, then 'good' going things must be happening over here. He proceeded to tell me that he had decided to stay here for some time to hustle. He explained that he had left his transport business to a friend to manage for some time, and that he had decided to stay and work here in the US.

I am talking about a man of over 50 years, with a wife and kids, who has decided to somewhat start life afresh in a foreign land, all because of the economic situation in Ghana.  I wanted to tell him how I didn’t think it was a good idea, but stopped when I saw the resolve in his eyes and voice. He had already made his mind and no amount of convincing from me would make him change his mind.

Now living in the states is not as easy as most think, and paying of bills alone would leave you frustrated. Nothing comes for free over here, and even family members would expect you to contribute to the rent when living with them.  It got me thinking if the situation was so bad in Ghana that someone would consider taking this drastic step. Yes, prices are rising in Ghana, but people should know that the cost of living here is higher. You might get paid a lot over here, but most of the money ends up going into paying for water, electricity, rent, garbage, car, phone bills and so on.

So I would employ anyone who is thinking of moving over to the western countries to hustle to give it a second thought, especially if you are advanced in age, because it is not as rosy as it may seem.