MPs call for implementation of child labour interventions

Members of Parliament on Thursday called for an urgent implementation of the recommendations contained in the 2010 National Plan of Action against Child Labour.

They said despite the existence of a strong legal framework, the enforcement of the laws to protect children against child labour had rather weakened.

They said there are still over a million children combining school with hazardous labour that constituted a threat to their health and retarded their growth and development.

The legislators were contributing to a statement made by Mr Joseph Bukari Nikpe, MP for Saboba and Vice Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Employment and Social Welfare to mark World Day Against Child Labour.

Mr Nikpe said though children contributed to the development of the family and the nation, most of the activities they undertook were dangerous and degrading, amounting to a gross abuse of their rights.

According to Mr Nikpe, child labour existed in almost all sectors of the economy and it was time Ghana enforced “some good practices” in the recommendations contained in the National Plan of Action to eliminate the vice.

He also called on parents and guardians to be guided by these recommendations to enable more children to be in school.

The National Plan of Action recommended the mainstreaming of child labour into developmental programme, the improvement in the enforcement of the legal and policy framework for the successful implementation of child labour intervention.

The plan also called for enhancement of the human and technical capacity of child labour units and improvement in the co-ordination mechanisms for child labour interventions.