Coronavirus: how it changed the diaspora table in Ghana

A series of letters from an African writer, journalist, and former Ghanaian government minister Elizabeth Okhone, describe how the outlook for living abroad lost its charm during the coronavirus era.

We have been here in Ghana, jokingly half-truth, saying that you can find Ghanaians in every country in the world.

I’ve heard about Ghanaians in Greenland, Iceland and Papua New Guinea. True, I have never heard of the Ghanaians of the Faroe Islands. This is my idea of ​​the most exotic and distant places, but it wouldn’t be surprising if one of us was there.

From the mid 1970s to the end of the 1990s, situations were conspiring to turn us into traveling people.

We’ve been doing that for the last 20 years. It’s not that the things that were used to drive us away still exist, but that they are just a habit and our minds have been adjusted that way.

The middle class is now trying to send a pregnant wife to give birth in the United States. They send their children to colleges in the United States and United Kingdom, begging them to stay after graduating, borrowing, and stealing.

And some of us are adventurers who try luck and seek luck wherever they go, where it is said to be the present land of gold all the time.

“Under radar” Ghanaian

There are no reliable statistics on the exact number of Ghanaians in different countries around the world, and don’t worry about what you are doing there.

Of course, some of them thrive in their current location and are proud of Ghana. However, as is widely understood, many people do not advertise the fact that they are Ghanaians because they are living “under the radar” and trying to “normalize” their documents.

They may go unnoticed, but we know they are there. They send a weird $100 to help their mother pay for food by holding down a few jobs.

It is a mark of honor to say that it has a foreign relationship. When it comes to arranging funerals and ceremonies, they curve back to meet their wishes.

Those who can travel, i.e. those who “normalize” their visa situation, usually plan and carry out 10-day or 2-week trips to Ghana, usually during the Christmas season to catch up with friends and family. I will.

BBC

The place where young people wanted to go to their arms and legs was no longer attractive. “

When they are here, they behave like holidays and scatter money. No one has heard that they are having a tough life on it, and we consider them success stories. They are the inspiration for other youths to escape from Ghana and go abroad.

Then the coronavirus arrived.

As China, Europe and the United States were hit by the virus, the place where young people would be willing to go and give their arms and legs was no longer attractive. The story was to return the Ghanaians from abroad. Suddenly Ghana became a fascinating place.

Ghanaians abroad were worried.

“Don’t let us do what’s happening in Europe or America” ​​was a constant reflection.

As the crisis continues, the perception that Ghanaians abroad are lucky is gradually changing.

Not only was the report that 33 Ghanaians died at Covid-19 in New York City in May, it was despair from overseas Ghanaians who wanted to go home.

You may also be interested in:

If, during the blockade, it was discovered that many people in Ghana’s metropolis would be difficult to survive without the hustle and bustle of the day, they realized that it was impossible to survive abroad as a hustler during the coronavirus era. It was

People can no longer live “under the radar” and until then they were welcomed to work for half their normal wages, undocumented immigrants were not welcomed, as a cause of illness. It has become a candidate who may be criticized.

The landlord, who rented a room or apartment to someone living in the shade, wanted to make sure he had a valid visa.

Many of us have found that they are in excess of their requirements as the business is closed and everyone wants to cut spending.

Grass is less environmentally friendly

We were disappointed and gazed at the reality of the lives of many people overseas.

Many young women who went abroad to become nannies or maids in Lebanon and other Arab countries find that everybody has an intolerable life in Ghana.

Despite skyscrapers and 10-lane highways, sleeping arrangements for many young people in China and some European countries are no different from the local slums.

The Coronavirus has made us all look at things from a different perspective.

People want to go home but the borders are closed.

You may want to see:

Media playback on device is not supported

The Ghanaians at home feel that the virus has been brought into the country by travelers from Europe and China and are therefore not keen to bring in more people.

Although some evacuation flights have taken place, they are expensive because most airlines do not fly. Equally expensive are the protocols for entering Ghana. This requires you to enter the 14-day quarantine of the hotel upon arrival, which is monitored by security services.

It seems that the gloss has disappeared overseas.

For the time being, it seems like this is where Ghana should be.

More letters from Africa:

Follow us on Twitter Azuki, Facebook BBC Africa Or on Instagram bbcafrica