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Migration bans on women migrant domestic workers from Ghana

Unidentified Ghanaian women sit on a buckets in Elmina port

Project lead: Richa Shivakoti, CERC Migration

Co-applicants: Mary Setrana, Center for Migration Studies (CMS), University of Ghana

Contact email address: rshivakoti@torontomu.ca

The objectives of this study are:

  1. To examine the impact of the migration ban in Ghana by mapping the introduction, use, rationale and consequences of the policy.
  2. To produce new empirical knowledge of how the ban affects women migrant workers, to explore their motivation and challenges as they navigate the ban.

How has the migration ban policy in Ghana impacted women migrant workers?

Migrant domestic workers make crucial contributions to households and economies across the world and yet remain amongst the most vulnerable due to various structural, legal, and entry/exit frameworks. Several labour sending countries from Asia and Africa have introduced different forms of policies banning women migrant domestic workers (MDWs) from migrating overseas for work with the rationale of “protecting” them from harm and abuse. This project aims to question the enduring use of this migration ban policy as a form of emigration restriction even though the ban does not meet the policy goal of protecting women migrant workers but rather pushes the process underground resulting in increased vulnerability and rights violations. This project will focus on the Ghana’s ban on migrant domestic workers to the Gulf states and explore its consequences for women migrant workers.

This project has a qualitative research design. We will review the 2017 ban on women MDWs from Ghana to the Gulf States as well as a comprehensive review of policy documents related to labour migration from Ghana. In addition, we will conduct 20 semi-structured interviews with women migrant workers and 5 key informant interviews with policymakers/experts working with women migrants regarding the implementation of the ban, its challenges and impacts.

Project commenced Winter 2025

Fall 2025

CERC Migration

Migrant Ban Policy, Female Migrant Domestic Workers, Ghana