By: Dejarelle Gaines
ACCRA, Ghana — Red tail lights reflected off of the leathery skin of the 24-year-old Ghanaian Tijani Jawarah Ali, known to his friends as simply Tj. The cars congested on John Evans Atta Mills High St. honked relentlessly, hoping and praying that this wasn’t one of the many heavy traffic jams that plagues Ghanaian roadways. The traffic, however, didn’t faze Tj. Unlike the cars cluttered together, Tj had the freedom to seamlessly weave in between the stalled cars on his Honda CB400 motorcycle.
This is a normal commute to work for Tj.
Tj works at one of the many booths in the Accra Arts Center, selling numerous knick knacks and memorabilia made by Ghanaians. Wooden tribal masks and miniature elephants and giraffes, and maps of Ghana keychains fill the cramped booth, many of which Tj carved himself.
Originally from a town called Nima, on the outskirts of Accra, Tj started working at the booth at the ripe age of 12. It got to a point where a young Tj thought an education wasn’t necessary, since he was already making money, but his mom thought otherwise.
“My mom figured out that I didn’t want to go to school if I was working here [at the booth] because I was making money,” Tj said. “My mom decided that I needed an education more than I needed to make money, so she sent me to live with my uncle in Kasoa.”
Taking a seven-year-long hiatus from working at the booth, at age 13, Tj moved an hour away to the town of Kasoa where he stayed to complete his education from primary school through senior high school.
“I liked living in Kasoa, but I knew that I didn’t want to stay permanently,” Tj said.
After finishing high school, Tj considered attending a university so that he could perhaps land a government job, but ultimately decided against it.
“To attend a university is expensive,” Tj said. “I thought it would make more sense to work now and save money.”
Working at the booth is just a short-term gig for Tj. He eventually wants to start an importing and exporting business, but for now he is just waiting for the opportunity to present itself. “In my prayers, I wish that I should meet someone that I can make business with. A business partner to make an exporting and importing business. Then I think I will never travel outside of Ghana. But if I do not meet someone, I might plan to live outside of Africa. I’m aiming big.”
