The over politicization of government's education policies is making most parents to shirk their responsibilities towards their children, stakeholders at a Regional Consultative Workshop, have noted.
The workshop is for the preparation and compilation of Ghana's Report to the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Rights of the Child.
The stakeholders observed that the way information on the School Feeding Programme, free school uniform and exercise books had been put
across was making many parents, especially those at the rural communities, think that feeding and clothing their children were now the sole
responsibility of government.
This, they noted, was contributing immensely to child labour, child trafficking and child prostitution, among others, as many of these children had to struggle to provide for their basic needs.
The workshop was organised by the Information, Research and Advocacy Division (IRAD) of the Department of Children, with support from UNICEF, at Wa, in the Upper West Region.
It was attended by Municipal and District Coordinating Directors, Traditional Rulers, Heads of Departments and Agencies, representatives of
Security Services, Religious leaders, Civil Society Organisations and media practitioners.
Mrs. Annacleta Naab, Acting Regional Director of the Department of Children, said the objective of the workshop was to update stakeholders on the previous report of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and solicit their views and input for the next report.
Mr. Sylvester Kyei-Gyamfi, head of Information, Research and Advocacy Division (IRAD) of the Department of Children, in a presentation, took participants through the background to Ghana's reporting to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.
He said though Ghana was one of the first African countries to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child, (CRC) in 1990, its periodic
reports had not been consistent.
He said for the next report, which would be due by September, 2012, Ghana was expected to present a consolidated report to cover the third,
fourth and fifth reports.
The report is not to exceed 120 pages and must be submitted 18 months before its dues date, which is March 1, 2011.
He said the government had embarked on institutional reforms leading to the establishment of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs (MOWAC), Domestic Violence and Victim support Unit (DOVVSU) and the Ghana AIDS
Commission, among others, to ensure that the rights of women and children were better protected.
Madam Florence Ayisi Quartey, an Assistant Research Officer, in her presentation, took participants through areas such as Child Labour, Corporal Punishment, Child Trafficking, Registration of Births, Combating of Malaria,
as well as HIV/AIDS.