VOICES From Migrations | Joseph Kwadwo Djan's story

“VOICES From Migrations” is a project co-funded by the European Union exploring untold migration stories. Joseph Kwadwo Djan is from Ghana, and he arrived in Italy in 2007. This is his history:

Joseph Kwadwo Djan

“My name is Joseph Djan, and I was born in Ghana in 1958. When I was 49, I came to Italy; that was in 2007.

Back in Ghana, I worked for a construction company and lived with my wife and children. However, after a familiar dispute involving inheritance and chieftancy, which increasingly became violent and dangerous, I decided to leave home for my own safety. I took a plane to arrive in Italy and I hoped to start a new life.

However, for many years, I couldn’t find any job that would employ me under a contract, so I worked without one, struggling to get by. Eventually, with no way to prove I had been employed in Italy, I became unable to renew my documents. That’s why I came to Rosarno, with the hope that rural labor here would allow me to work legally.

The problem is, I had previously been in a serious accident that left me injured in my back and legs, making it difficult to do any physical work. When it happened, I had to stay in the hospital for four months, and I had surgery to help me gain some mobility back. Even now, years later, it is hard to move around, and my arthrosis - which I suffer especially in my left leg - makes it worse.

Due to my condition, I asked for support from the municipality, but I was denied eligibility for financial assistance because I hadn’t worked for long enough under a legal contract. The news left me disappointed and hopeless.

Sometimes I wish to return to Ghana. If I could receive steady medical help and support, it would be different, but in my situation, I don’t know. 

Currently, I live in a camp supported by volunteers, far from the hospital. Because of my health, I cannot travel easily. I do not have a car, and riding a bicycle is painful and dangerous for me.

I deeply miss my children and family, and I wish for a better future, wherever that might be.”

Interview by: Rawan Al-Aqel, Bjant Çami, Renato Pasquale, and Alberto Cricrì

Joseph Kwadwo Djan being interviewed by students from VOICES From Migrations

---

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.