Paper short abstract:

This paper introduces the lifeworlds of young, online scammers in Northern Ghana, who try to gain a position of respect and recognition in society. The paper demonstrates that youth reject the notion of unemployment and instead discursively create a work identity via informal means.

Paper long abstract:

This paper introduces the world of young, online scammers - 'Game-boys' - in Tamale (Northern Ghana). Widespread youth unemployment, a rejection of 'hand-to-mouth' jobs and the possibilities of new technology, offered these boys-from-the-1990s new ideas about their productive potential. From disadvantaged backgrounds, these young men have little faith that their suboptimal education will lead them to a better life. Accordingly, they choose to use their skills differently: through online scamming practices they aim to gain a position of respect and recognition among peers.

With bravado and a sense of teenage enthusiasm, Tamale youth have organised themselves in 'gangs' and have crowned themselves with nicknames such as 'CEO of Scammers Unlimited'. In a sense, these young men 'perform' work. By putting in hours and allowing themselves 'holidays', they discursively create a working identity while declaring scamming as an alternative trajectory to make it in life. Many try, many fail. The successful few, though, make their mark in town; a context where role models are particularly hard to come by. This results in new social hierarchies: 'big boys' reward their loyal followers, distribute food and favours, and create new modes of belonging. Those who fail to bring in money - unemployed youth with few prospects - stay connected through the collective experience of being part of the group, the shared language of success and the performance of work. This paper demonstrates that youth reject the notion of unemployment and instead discursively create a work identity via informal means.