Class Formations and Inequality Structures in Contemporary African Migration by Arthur John A.;

Author:Arthur, John A.;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: undefined
Publisher: Lexington Books
Published: 2012-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

Conclusion

In this chapter, we have described the social class compositions of Ghanaian migrations. Our aim was to insert and give context to the class formations and configurations that dominate Ghanaian migration during specific time genres. Throughout the analyses, a common thread that was noticeable was that each era or epoch of Ghanaian migration is characterized by its own set of structural underpinnings which can be traced to local as well external social and economic factors. We found that social, cultural, and economic inequalities within the Ghanaian contexts intensify the motivation for people to migrate. That is, macro-structural changes and improvements in Ghana continue to influence not only class and inequality relationships, but also migration. In this regard, we find that the intensification of social differentiations highlights and accentuates forms of social inequalities for which social actors have to find temporary or permanent solutions. In the case of Ghanaians, the solution to the intensification of social differentiation generated by inequalities of social stratification lie, in part, to the search for a better standard of living outside the borders of the country. Our current understanding of Ghanaian international migration, particularly to the advanced countries, ought to be positioned within the broader contextual intensification of economic activities in the country as well as the continued widening of the gap of inequality brought upon by desire or motivation to seek globalized incorporation via the instruments of work or labor force participation in world employment markets.

The weakening of the apparatus of state government caused by the intensification of economic and political conflicts invariably weakened the existing structures of civil society in Ghana. The political arm of the government did not establish that it was in its interest to promote the stabilization of civil structures to ensure the social stability of the country. Instead, sharpened class divisions promoted sectionalism and interest groups whose goals did not coalesce around a commonly defined theme. The inability of varied interest groups to find a common ground for forging national consensus on how to resolve the country’s problems eventually led to the political demise of one government after another. For the ruling military elites during the period in the country’s history, the acquisition of material wealth did not easily translate into the emergence of a distinctive class structure comprising of top military or police officials. On its part, the civil society which were contesting the arbitrary rule of the government were not able to come to terms about their shared status of inequality let alone to use this status as a unifying factor to oppose the military elite class. The solution, as attested, was structured in terms of the prospects of migration or leaving the country altogether.

Our findings revealed that the Ghanaian class structure system is highly diversified. While the extent of the diversification could form the subject of a separate research inquiry, some preliminary findings are warranted. The first is that the Ghanaian class system is not monolithic and it is practical, for all intents and purposes, to speak

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