Obuasi Child Labour Committee inaugurated

Obuasi, June 21, GNA - A 13-member committee tasked to ensure that the Obuasi Municipal Assembly spearheads programmes to eliminate child labour in the municipality has been inaugurated.

The committee, which has Mr Joseph Boampong, the Municipal Chief Executive as chairman, is also expected to ensure that the right target groups benefited from the child labour elimination programmes. Speaking at the function, Mr Emmanuel Kwame Mensah, the Project Officer of International Labour Organisation (ILO), Ghana, noted that the ILO had seen that Ghana was ready to approach child labour issues comprehensively.

He said the ILO was instrumental in the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy Phase Two where child labour was featured prominently. Mr Mensah added that the ILO was helping to ensure that the Act 560, Children's Act of 1998 was enforced.

Mrs Stella Ofori, the Senior Labour Officer, Child Labour Unit of the Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment, said it had now been realized that child labour was a problem in the country. "We see the committee as very important and that the committee is not going to work in isolation", she said.

Mrs Ofori urged all stakeholders to put in efforts that would make Obuasi municipality come out as the best in controlling child labour in the country.

Alhaji Zibrim Yakubu, the Municipal Co-ordinating Director on behalf of the Municipal Assembly observed that the challenges in addressing child labour was greater in the municipality more than other areas due to the mining activities in the area.

"We have a bigger challenge and that we expect support", he said. Mr Yakubu said the committee required a bit more effort in addressing child labour especially regarding illegal mining (galamsey) activities.