Child trafficking on the rise in Oti Region – Chief Director

Issaka Braimah Basintale, the Chief Director of the Oti Regional Coordinating Council (ORCC), said the region has been identified as a major transit point for child trafficking and child labour.

He told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that human trafficking was on the rise because the region is between Volta Lake and River Oti, which is fishery hubs.

Basintale said many children are trafficked from Ada, Ningo-Prampram, Winneba and other towns to work in fishing communities in the region.

He said this during a programme organised by the Ministry of Gender, Child, and Social Protection in collaboration with the Oti Regional Coordinating Council.

The programme was an end of year child protection sector meeting and capacity building summit held at Dambai.

Innocent Komla Agbolosu, the Regional Director of Social Welfare, said human trafficking was a global problem affecting millions of people and many countries.

He told the GNA that the internal trafficking of children into hazardous labour was a major challenge in Ghana.

Fishers desperate to sustain their income exploit these children, living them in meager conditions and working long hours.

Agbolosu1 explained that about 17- children were rescued from Krachi West Municipality and the majority of them on the lake were too young to legally conduct the hazardous tasks inherent in many aspects of the fishing industry.

He said many of the children identified were six years old.

He added that some of the child labourers aged between eight and 12 years were working without supervision whilst others appeared severely malnourished.

He said the Department of Social Welfare was working with International Justice Mission (NGO), International Labour -UN Organization, UNICEF -UN, Chance for Children (NGO), Afrikids (NGO), World Vision (NGO), Plan International Ghana (NGO) and many other organisations to curtail child the rising trafficking and child Labour in the region.

Agbolosu revealed that all district officers from department of social welfare were engaged in sensitizing fishing communities and the public on the dangers associated with human trafficking, child

The sensitization also aimed at increasing preventive efforts in combating human trafficking and child exploitation.

It also sought to bring all stakeholders in the region together to understand the issue of human trafficking and child Labour to improve mechanisms in counter trafficking.