Accra - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability and cost of household help, and what types of help are typically employed by expatriates?
Inexpensive and hard working but require a lot of oversight. Definitely hire your staff off the recommendation of another expat and double the amount of working hours you think you'll need. Things happen on Africa time and expect a lot of miscommunication, broken items, burned food, etc. Current rates for a FT staff person runs about $200/month. Babysitting or overtime, around $3-5 USD/hour. It's also standard to provide medical expense reimbursement, maternity leave, a 13th month salary, etc. - Aug 2024
Many families have a housekeeper and/or nanny. Drivers and gardeners are also plentiful. Hardworking staff for a very affordable price. - Sep 2023
Household help is plentiful and easy to find in the embassy community. I had a one day a week cleaner and paid her 500 cedi per day which is about $35.00. I didn't have kids, a car, or any green space to take care of so I didn't have any other help, but many of my colleagues did. Cooks are popular, too. - Nov 2022
Inexpensive. Fewer than $200 each for a full-time nanny, cook, driver. $100 for part-time gardener. This is another highlight of post. Some people try to do everything on their own instead of wanting help, but that seems like a mistake to me. For so little money, your life can be so much easier than in the US, and we're paying people very good wages for here, so they're happy, I'm happy. Imagine never having to get gas for your car or take it to the shop, never having to make your kids lunch...it really is a huge benefit. - Sep 2022
Household help is very affordable. A full time, live-in nanny/housekeeper costs about 2,000 cedi which is $300 USD. Many families employ several people, e.g., nanny, housekeeper, gardener, and driver. - Mar 2022
Quite cheap and hard working. If you don't find the right fit at first there are plenty of other options. Most folks have cleaners, some also use cooks and drivers. And of course nannies. Rates vary depending on living arrangements/transport/etc., but full-time it would probably be no more than US$350-$400/month. - Nov 2019
Very affordable. I think we pay on the high end for part-time house cleaning and it's still very affordable by U.S. standards. Drivers, nannies, gardeners, housekeepers, cooks; all can be engaged very affordably, and in most cases they are people who have worked for Embassy families and/or other expats for years. - May 2019
Bountiful and very inexpensive. We have a nanny/housekeeper and a gardener. Our nanny/housekeeper is a godsend and worked for 2 embassy families before us. - Apr 2018
Household help is available and cheap. But your mileage may vary in terms of reliability. I've heard of hired help getting fired for stealing, for example. Be smart when interviewing and think about whether you want a live-in helper or someone to just come to your house twice a week or so. You can hire a nanny, a cook, a gardener, a driver, a housekeeper, or someone who can perform several of these tasks. - Aug 2017
Cheap and bountiful, although quite clueless for the most part. Be prepared to state the obvious over and over. People have housekeepers, drivers and nannies, although I have yet to meet a Ghanaian who really seems to love the kids she looks after. - Apr 2017
Lots of availability and cost is around US$200-300 a month for full-time help. - May 2014
Inexpensive and easy to find. Live-in housekeepers/nannies will cost you US$150-$250 a month. Gardeners/drivers can run US$100-150 a month. Guards are US$75-125 a month. Everyone you meet will have a relative that is looking for a job. Quality varies widely, but there are many with strong diplomatic family references. - Apr 2012
Domestic help is plentiful and reasonable. Just be sure to ask pointed questions when interviewing and keep in mind that Ghana has a high illiteracy rate. - Aug 2011
Domestic staff is readily available. - Jun 2011
Most people employ at least one person. Unlike in other countries, Ghanaians like to "specialize".It may be difficult to get someone who wants to do cooking AND cleaning or cooking, cleaning AND nannying. Embassy expats tend to pay the most and average wage is probably GHC 200/month. Many people supplement this with a food allowance for their staff. Some only want to work 9-5; it is important to negotiate a schedule that works for you so that you aren't immediately at home with dinner, kids and everything else dumped on you when you are tired from an 11-hour day. Babysitting is very inexpensive and overtime is affordable, even on holidays. - Feb 2010
Available and reasonable. - Feb 2010
Full range of help available from $100 US to $200 based on experience. Embassy folks tend to overpay, and many staff experienced with embassy families tend to be coddled and have high preferences for leisure time relative to work. - May 2009
