In Ghana, most street beggars fall into 3 groups you can easily tell apart:

*1. Organized Foreign Rings*
Mostly from Niger, Mali. You see women with 2-3 kids at traffic lights. They are brought in by someone who houses them and takes the money at the end of the day. They are the biggest group now — over 60% in Accra.

*2. Persons with Disability*
Ghanaian men and women on wheelchairs, crutches, or blind. Usually at Makola, Kaneshie, Circle. They beg because formal jobs won't hire them. Many are actually skilled — shoe making, phone repair — but have no capital.

*3. Medical / Emergency Beggars*
With a hospital paper or photo. "Help me pay for my child's surgery". Some are genuine, some are fake — always verify at the hospital.

What Accra is Doing About It
AMA + Social Welfare just repatriated over 1,000+ street beggars last year, but they come back because there's no long-term program for them.

LEAP (Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty) pays only GH₵64 - GH₵106 every 2 months — not enough to survive.

If You See Them Daily, What Actually Works?

Don't just give coins at the traffic. If you want to make real impact:

- Buy from them if they sell something — water, handkerchief, groundnut. That's dignified.
- For kids: Don't give money. Give food + report to Department of Social Welfare 0800 0800 800. Giving money keeps them on the street.
- For disabled: Ghana Federation of Disability has skill training centers. You can refer them.
- For mothers with babies: 90% of babies used are drugged to sleep all day. If you see that, call Police 112.

If you're dealing with beggars disturbing your shop or area in Amasaman, the best channel is to go to your Assemblyman and let AMA Social Welfare pick them up — they won't arrest them, they take them to a shelter at Madina or repatriate.

Were you thinking of helping one person you see, or clearing them from a location? The approach is very different.