Three months after their shops were demolished by unidentified men in military-style uniforms, artisans at the Ayawaso West Art Market, popularly known as the Tetteh Quarshie Art Market, say they are grappling with mounting debts, collapsing businesses and the challenge of providing for their families.
Although the Ayawaso West Municipal Assembly has relocated them to a temporary site near the original market, the traders say poor sales and the rainy season have deepened their hardship.
They are appealing to the government to compensate them for their losses and provide a permanent trading space.
Once a bustling hub for handicrafts, wood carvings, beads, African prints and other locally made products, the market has seen business decline sharply since the demolition.
Secretary of the Global Handicraft Association, Addae Simon Bright, said many traders can no longer meet their basic needs.
“We are not getting market at all. I lost over GH¢30,000, but some people lost three times more than that. My mind is not even settled because business has slowed. Sometimes I walk from Adenta to this place because I don’t have money for transport,” he said.
The traders say several workers have stopped reporting to work as business continues to dwindle, while debts owed to suppliers and lenders continue to rise.
Vice Chairman of the association and master carver, Issah Ziba, said he owes more than GH¢50,000 after purchasing stock on credit ahead of the Easter season.
“I haven’t been able to sell a single thing in the last three months. My employees have stopped coming because I can’t pay them. My child is about to start SHS, I have a sick brother to care for, and I don’t know how to repay my debts. We are appealing to the government to help us get back on our feet,” he pleaded.
Another trader said the financial strain has disrupted her daughter’s education.
“My daughter is at the University of Ghana studying Law, but I delayed paying her fees, and she lost her hostel. She now commutes from Lapaz every day. We are pleading with the authorities to give us a permanent place to put up our beautiful shops and get back in business,” she said.
The temporary relocation site has also created new challenges. During a visit by Channel One News, most traders were operating under rented canopies, which they said cost GH¢50 a day. They fear strong winds and flooding during the rainy season could damage the few goods they have left.
The artisans say they still do not know who authorised the demolition, despite construction work continuing at the original market site. They also say they have received no update on investigations that authorities earlier indicated were underway.
Responding to their concerns, the Ayawaso West Municipal National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) Deputy Director for Technical, Eric Adjei Affum, said the assembly is working to provide relief packages for the affected traders, although he acknowledged that the support would not fully cover their losses.
“The assembly is also working hard together with NADMO Ayawaso West to at least have a little relief for them. When you are working on relief for victims, it takes time. But even when the relief comes, it’s not going to be like their capital. Even if it is GH¢2, and you use it to buy bread and groundnuts, it can sustain you for a while.
“I’m sure the MCE and the Municipal NADMO Director don’t sleep on this issue. So I’m very sure that they are working hard with the engineers looking at a place where they can be located permanently,” he assured.
