Kayayei or Kaya Yei is a Ghanaian term that refers to a female porter or bearer who possibly have migrated from a rural community to any of Ghana's urban cities in search of work.
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Historical meaning
The term Kayayei (sing. Kaya Yoo) is broken down into two words, Kaya, meaning load, luggage, goods or burden in the Hausa language, and Yei, meaning women or females in the Ga language, as the role is almost exclusively carried out by females in Ghana.
Traditionally, Kaya have historically, and continue in contemporary times, to be used as manual labour, exploited to transport goods to and from markets, particularly agricultural goods.
Current meaning
Kaya Yei still toil away in markets in Ghana today, often in poor conditions and with minimal income. Occasionally, Kaya are brought into private homes to perform domestic tasks, and the income from private homes is at a slightly higher rate. The Kaya are often transient, and often without basic sanitation. Basic hygiene & nutrition conditions are also poor.
Loads are almost always carried in a large pan which is carried on the head of the Kaya, often only with a moistened coil of cloth to act as a buffer between the pan and their head.
In larger cities such as Accra & Kumasi, Kaya are often migrants from remote regions who have come to the cities in search for better employment prospects.