Let us deal with the issue of child labour

As part of efforts to eliminate child labour in the country, the ruling National Democratic Congress - NDC government has voted an amount ¢1.3 million to 47 municipal and district assemblies and 18 non-governmental organizations. The allocation of the said amount is aimed at implementing programmes that will see an end to child labour particularly in cocoa growing areas.

Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Welfare, Mr Antwi-Bosiako Sekyere, announced this at a three-day workshop organized in Kumasi for municipal and district chief executives from cocoa growing districts in 6 regions of the country. The six beneficiary regions are Eastern, Brong Ahafo, Ashanti, Volta and Central.

According to the deputy Minister, his outfit has already given out materials such as bicycles, computers and its accessories and motorbikes to the district assemblies for the smooth implementation of the programme. That, to us on this paper, is an indication of how government is determined and serious at solving child labour which is gaining notoriety in cocoa areas.

Although the action taken by government is not spread towards eradicating child labour across the country, we think by targeting the menace in cocoa growing areas is in itself commendable. Child labour which ever form it takes must be condemned in no uncertain terms.

In recent times, there have been media reports on the widespread of child labour in the cocoa industry. And this has attracted concerns both domestically and internationally. It is a fact that our country derives much of its foreign exchange from the sale of cocoa which is the mainstay of her economy. Therefore the issue of child labour in that sector has the potential to reduce drastically our earnings in that respect.

Besides, it is important to note that the practice of child labour deprives the child of realizing his/her potential and often many of them suffer extreme physical abuses which sometimes affect them permanently. Not only this, these children have also been made to work under extremely harsh conditions with some working over time.

We atake delight in the fact that the workshop addressed the issue of the high illiteracy rate in such areas. There is no question about the fact that poverty has not contributed to forcing children to work on cocoa farms. Most parents who have pushed their children into child labour have given the reason that their children must contribute their quotas towards the survival of their families.

It is however disheartening that many of the children who work on the farms receive a pittance for their tireless efforts. That is exploitation in the highest sense and must therefore be stopped. In fact government must make it a policy to prosecute people who allow children into child labour.

The paper would encourage the assemblies to come up with programmes that will economically empower and improve the welfare of farm families. In that sense, it will help curb if not minimize the prevalence of child labour in cocoa areas.

We will also urge the government to spread its efforts of combating child labour in the country by not targeting the problem in cocoa areas but the entire country. Child labour is a multi-faceted problem and must be solved from all angles.