Challenges and economic benefits of scrap metal trade at Kumasi Suame Magazine, Ghana.

Abstract

The scrap metal trade has become the major source of livelihood for countless people at Suame Magazine. Most of the collectors are school drop-outs with very little knowledge about neither safe ways of practicing the trade nor the environmental implications of their activities such as the burning of cables to retrieve scrap metal. The trade has reduced unemployment to some extent and if it is given enough attention, the nation as a whole can benefit enormously from it. Demand for scrap metal will always be there due to the technological age we find ourselves in. Nonetheless, the trade has its challenges and negative impacts on the environment. Most respondents indicated that the scrap trade does not generate enough financial reward to cater for themselves and their families despite the risks and dangers they daily subject themselves to. However, it serves as a means to an end.