CHILD LABOUR POSES THREAT TO NATIONAL SECURITY – PRESIDENT AKUFO-ADDO

Today is World Day Against Child Labour, a day set aside to raise awareness on the plight of the more than 168 million children around the world whose education and health are affected by the exploitation they are subjected to.

The global theme for this year’s celebration is IN CONFLICTS AND DISASTERS, PROTECT CHILDREN FROM CHILD LABOUR. Ghana is marking the event with concentration on MOBILISING RESOURCES FOR EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NATIONAL PLAN OF ACTION (NPA 2 2016 – 2020). This is in line with the urgent need to work to protect children trapped in very unfortunate circumstances.

From a point when some Ghanaians lived in denial about the existence of child labour and even described it as part of tradition and a form of training for children, Ghana has moved on to accept the situation and actively work on it. The rate of progress has been checkered.

At the last May Day celebration, the President of the Republic Nana Akufo-Addo reiterated the need for all to remain committed to uprooting child labour in Ghana. He made a firm promise to work with others to achieve this goal saying “… under my watch, government will work with all partners towards the goal of eliminating child labour. We all have a responsibility to protect our children from the criminality of child labour….”

In expressing the need to do away with the practice, President Akufo-Addo stated that “… child labour is a shameful phenomenon and an indictment on all of us, and it is time to stop hiding under a so-called cultural practice to find excuses. He emphasized that children are the most important asset and “…deserve to be protected from being exploited in the labour field”.

Child labour does not only affect children but goes to the core of our development. This was well noted by the president as he drew attention to the threat from some global agencies that are determined to have punitive measures against some critical industries because of the phenomenon. This can lead to loss of jobs and worsen the already precarious situation of unemployment.

President Akufo-Addo stressed further that child labour and child trafficking are not only crimes but also “…pose veritable threats to our national security.