Madam Emelia Menokpor, Principal Social Welfare Officer, Tema

Metropolitan Department of Social Welfare and Community Development, gave the advice when interacting with mothers and women from Tema Newtown.The department had organised a sensitisation programme on child labour and its related effect in the area which is deprived and afflicted with low literacy and high teenage pregnancy.

According to Madam Menokpor, although Ghanaian laws prohibit child labour and when caught engaging in it, one would be punished, it was incumbent on parents to provide and protect children to become resourceful and responsible adults.

She said through the introduction of LEAP, National Health Insurance Scheme and other interventions which poor parents can take advantage of, the sad excuse of children winning bread can no longer hold. Madam Menokpor said child labour had serious health implications such as exposure to dangerous chemicals in mining pits, disability, stunted growth, and respiratory diseases in quarry pits, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) such as HIV/AIDS in prostitution.

She said most victims of child labour eventually grew to become outlaws and dangerous to society. “They fall into bad company and carry along jealousy, hatred and dependency syndrome because they have no or fewer skills to earn a decent living.”  According to her, parents are most of the time victims of their atrocities as they would blame them for the frustrations and uncertainties of life.

She told them to contribute towards national development by sending and keeping their children in school and encourage them to better placed in society. “If our parents did not plan well for us and we are suffering, we should think through our circumstances and make sure that our children do not suffer in future.”