Let’s end child slavery in Ghana - Xavier Sosu

The President and founding member of Youth for Human Rights Africa (YoHRA), Francis Xavier Sosu has pledged his commitment to end child slavery in Ghana.

Mr Sosu made this pledge while addressing members of the Global Ambassadors Institute in Oklahoma City in the United States of America (USA) over the weekend.

The Global Ambassadors leadership Institute is a project by World Experiences Foundation which brings together High School and College students to equip them to become global thinkers and prepare them for global challenges.

The institute also provides opportunities for participants to develop cross-cultural understanding and intercultural skills so they could implement a multicultural project in their communities.

The training also creates opportunities to enhance skills in large and small scale event planning, project management, leadership and communication among others.

The project provides networking opportunities with leaders and global citizens in Oklahoma and around the world.

Speaking at the institute on the Topic ‘My Journey to Change the World’ Lawyer Sosu shared his life story on how he suffered what he called ‘child slavery’ while living on the streets of Accra.

“I was enslaved to my world. I lost hope and was in the state of hopelessness when Village of Hope rescued me,” he said.

Mr Sosu told the gathering that the only way one could change the world was to be guided by love in all doing. “Love lifted me. I believe I can change the world by my continuous demonstration of love to this world. Love can change the world of others. Let love be the inspiration for all your global projects,” he added.

Lawyer Sosu, who is also the President and Chairman of Treasure of Life Foundation,’ a Non-Governmental Organisation based in Ghana and the United States of America, aimed at rescuing and giving support to victims of abuses and violations, introduced the Global Ambassadors to the Treasure of Life Foundation.

According to him, the US chapter of the Treasure of Life Foundation is on a mission to end child slavery in Ghana.

“It’s been estimated that there are between 7,000 and 10,000 young enslaved boys on the Volta Lake. This data does not include street boys and girls across the cities, boys used on cocoa farms, quarries and so on.

“We must end Child Slavery in Ghana. I am committed to work through the Treasure of Life Foundation in USA to end Child Slavery in Ghana,” he stated.

Mr Sosu also noted that the current condition is a violation of the rights to life and dignity of all trafficked children and children in various forms of bondages.

He stated that “on a daily bases, these children’s rights are violated. However, it is not enough to do advocacy and talk about the issue. That is why through the Treasure of Life Foundation USA we seek support and partnership to end Child Slavery through education.”

On his part, the Chief Executive Officer of the Treasure of Life Foundation – USA, Mr Jeff Woodard in a brief remark said “the project would consist of a number of tours that give projects, institutions and individuals firsthand information about the problems so that sustainable strategies could be put in place to end the menace.”

The Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, Mr Jon Hazell, who is also a Board Member of the Treasure of Life Foundation, USA advised that all global projects must have respect for indigenous cultures.

He asserted that “I believe God gave us different cultures for a reason. The reason to me is the need to be interdependent on each other. No culture is superior to others. If we learn to respect every culture we would be able to succeed in our projects as global ambassadors.”

The Founder and Chief Executive of the Global Experiences Foundation, Mr Akash Patel, on his part, pledged to use their platform and resources to create more awareness about Treasure of Life Foundation through schools and colleges in Oklahoma to ensure that child slavery is ended not only in Ghana but also on the African continent.