President's Party for children organised at Wassa Akropong

Wassa Akropong (Western Region) -President J.A.Kufuor on Saturday said policies relating to child labour, disability and the juvenile bill will soon become law.

He announced this in an address read for him by Mr Joseph Aidoo, Western Regional Minister, at this year's National President end-of-year party for children at Wassa Akropong in the Wassa Amenfi District.

President Kufuor said the early Childhood Care and Development Policy is also being enhanced. He said the government would insist on ensuring the best future for Ghana's children and education was being improved with more schools and more trained teachers.

President Kufuor said he is aware that a lot more needs to be done, particularly in the infrastructure development such as schools, health facilities and other social services to make life more comfortable and meaningful for children.

He said the government is also aware of the lack of facilities or children's social services and that is why it is promoting the establishment of the community centre initiative to address all needed services for children.

President Kufuor said his greatest pleasure would be when every Ghanaian child would go to bed with a full stomach, have access to health care and quality education, free from abuse and exploitation and be allowed to enjoy his or her childhood.

He said the government is working to achieve the optimum because it is within its capacities. President Kufuor urged children to contribute their quota to enable the government to achieve its initiatives and that of international bodies for children.

They could do this by staying in school, away from drugs and sex, he said. He called on parents and guardians to add responsible parenting to their New Year resolution so that fewer children would drop out on the streets and get involved in armed robbery and other crimes.

In an address read for him, Mr Samuel Alberto Tekyi, the District Chief Executive, said childcare and maintenance are becoming a problem in the district. He said the cause for this, according to the records of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Department of Social Welfare is the rate of divorce and its consequent increase in the number of single parents.

Mr Tekyi said as a result, most parents, especially males shirk their responsibilities of childcare and maintenance and the district assembly is coming out with bye-laws to help curb this social problem.

Kasapreko Kwame Bassanyi the third, President of the Regional House of Chiefs and Omanhene of Wassa Amenfi Traditional Area, who presided, called on the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs to ensure that the rights of children are protected.

He further urged religious leaders and traditional authorities to join the campaign against child abuse. Later, some 1,200 children drawn from primary and JSS in the district were feted.