About 400 children in hazardous labour in South Tongu-ILO

Godzekpota-Agave, June 29, GNA- About 400 children are engaged in hazardous labour in the South Tongu district, an International Labour Organization (ILO) sponsored census has shown. A hundred of such children aged between five to 17 years are cattle drovers in Atsieve, Dendo, Yorkutikpo, Avorvi, Dokploame and Fieve. Others are into fishing and oyster collection while the rest were trafficked to other parts of the country to engage in fishing. Mr Sylvanus Adukpo, South Tongu District Co-ordinator of the ILO "Time Bound Project" (TBP), made these disclosures at the World Day Against Worst Forms of Child Labour at Godzekpota-Agave in the South Tongu district.

It was under the theme, "Education, the right response to child labour". Mr Adukpo said the project has since last year, rescued 246 of such victims, rehabilitated and enrolled them in schools and taking care of their fees, uniforms, books and other essential items. He said International Needs Ghana (ING), a non-governmental organization (ngo), a partner in the project, is negotiating with the Volta Region Cattle Owners Association to help withdraw the children from the business.

Mr Adukpo, who is also the Volta Region Co-ordinator of ING appealed to the South-Tongu District Assembly, a co-sponsor and implementing agency of the project, to help speed up the negotiations with the cattle owners for the early withdrawal of the children. He advised parents to stop selling their children because the practice jeopardizes the future of the children and the long-term family prospects.

Ms Kate Aku Agla, District Chief Executive for South Tongu, said the Assembly, through its Community Child Labour Committee, would eradicate the practice in the district, to enable all children to go to school and be able to realize their full potentials. She appealed to both parents and guardians to partner the Assembly and other organizations to confront the problem. Miss Agla said poverty could not be an excuse for pushing children into child labour, when the School Feeding Programme and other interventions are there to ease the burden on parents in getting their children to school. Ms Seline Kuto, South Tongu District Director of Education asked parents to give priority to their children's education above everything else.