Accra Hustle Life

The amount of money you can make in Accra if you can quiet your conscience and put aside morality.” – Zubaida A-Rahman (Blogger)

Ghana is rife with young people who are wondering what their next step is going to be or how they can make ends meet. The majority of these people have taken up varying means of survival regardless of whether or not such means are frowned upon by society and its moral codes.

Though the section of the Ghanaian populace that is comprised of the youth has voiced their opinions regarding the current state of the country and how it affects them and the entire population, not much has been done about it. Notable among these is the Fix-the-country movement.

As a university student hoping to graduate at the end of the year (2022), one of the thoughts that have taken up residence in my mind is “What happens after graduation and National Service?”. Several graduates before me have been plunged into the abyss of unemployment that plagues the country and while some have resulted in certain actions that require you to “quiet your conscience and put aside morality”, others are holding on to morality as it is probably the only thing keeping them sane.

Let's not even get into the stories of people who are actually working. What was supposed to serve as means of livelihood seems to have become an obligation that only results in more pain and troubles. Surprisingly, it is unavoidable because it is a 'means of livelihood'. Side hustles may exist for a select few but is that really enough to sort everything out?

Life in Accra is not for the weak and the past few months have proved this to be nothing but the truth. I wouldn’t be surprised to know that the major thoughts of many young people in the country include thoughts of engaging in fraud or any other activity that will ‘secure the bag’ and the undying need to flee the country.

Another important thing to know about Ghana’s seemingly extravagant capital is that “It’s all about branding”. Everything is indeed excessively pricey and everyone is definitely complaining about it but that doesn’t stop us (the citizens) from living ‘lavish’ lifestyles or maintaining the brand we have built for ourselves in society.

Many people say that there are a lot of opportunities to make money in Accra and while I can’t confidently say that is true, I am 55% sure that it's true. I believe this because while some citizens are constantly complaining about the current standard of living, others are also living their best life and it makes me wonder if its really true that there are two types of Accra. Maybe, it's all branding.

The question here is “Are you ready that put aside your moral codes and that of society as a whole in order to make money?”

Accra is a beautiful city but only a few know what lies beneath all the glitter that makes it so.