From Sunrise to Sunset: Male Out-Migration and Its Effect on Left-Behind Women in the Builsa District of Ghana

The practice of adult males moving from rural areas into urban centres is a common phenomenon in Ghana. The result is that there are a series of consequent impacts on areas of origin especially on households and families. Using in-depth interviews, this paper discusses the economic, social, psychological and emotional effects that women experience as a result of the absence of husbands. Some major findings were that women were expected to work on the farms, feed their children and at the same time support their extended family households. As a result, women experienced different forms of distress arising out of material and social circumstances of their lives, yet not much has been done to address this situation. The paper recommends that interventions for rural women must take into account the experiences of left-behind women. Particularly, the emotional needs of these women must be considered by providing counseling services in addition to the economic empowerment programmes.