Traditional rulers have been asked to, as a matter of urgency, design and implement community by-laws at the local level to help deal with issues of child labour and child trafficking in their respective jurisdictions in the region.
The National Director in charge of Advocacy and partnerships at the International Justice Mission (IJM), Worlanyo Kojo Forster, made the call in Koforidua at a stakeholder dialogue organised for chiefs and queenmothers of the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs on child labour and trafficking in Ghana.
The event brought together paramount chiefs and queenmothers within the 11 paramountcies in the region and the Ghana Police Service (GPS) to discuss how the activities of traditional rulers can be strengthened to help end child labour and child trafficking in the communities.
Organisers
It was organised by the International Justice Mission (IJM), in collaboration with the directorate of the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, to deliberate on issues of child labour and child trafficking in their respective communities.
The engagement sought to strengthen the leadership role of traditional authorities in preventing child labour and child trafficking at the community level and, at the same time, enhance collaboration between traditional governance structures and child protection institutions to ensure a more coordinated and effective response.
Leadership roles
He said his outfit had identified chiefs and queenmothers as formidable forces towards eliminating the canker through their effective leadership roles in getting their subjects to comply with the same regulations in their jurisdictions.
Mr Forster stated that the critical roles of traditional rulers as well as the queenmothers, continued to pave the way for better community management and the sustainability of programmes.
He, however, urged chiefs and queenmothers in their respective communities to come on board to assist in ending child labour and child trafficking in the region and the country as a whole.
Change agents
The Head of Child Labour Unit at the Ministry of Labour, Jobs and Employment, Esher Ofori Agyemang, said since traditional rulers were custodians of the lands, it had become necessary for them to act as agents of change to deal with child labour and child trafficking in their traditional areas.
He indicated that child labour referred to work that deprived minors aged between five and 17 years of their livelihoods and had the potential to affect their health, as well as their physical and mental development.
Mrs Agyemang stated that it also deprived children of the opportunities to attend school, among others.
The Paramount Chief of the Akwamu Traditional Area, who is also the President of the Akwamu Traditional Council, Odeneho Kwafo Akoto III, who chaired the event, vowed to lead the fight against child labour and child trafficking in his area.
He stated that the child’s place was the school and that they should not be abused and engaged in economic activities harmful to their growth and development.
The rights of children, Odeneho Akoto said, needed to be respected and protected to enable them to realise their fullest potential in life.
The Akwamumanhene called for stiffer punishment of people who trafficked such innocent children to serve as a deterrent to others.
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Source:
www.graphic.com.gh
