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ERNEST ADU YIRENKYI

COURSE: UWRT 1101
INSTRUCTOR: RHODA LUKENS
DATE: 4TH NOVEMBER, 2014
TOWARD CHILD LABOR ELIMINATION: HAVE GHANAIAN LEADERS AND
ORGANIZATIONS DONE ENOUGH?
Child labor is a pervasive issue that has attracted much attention from people all across
the world. Although child labor has been in existence for a while now, international campaigns
against it have intensified in recent times. Worst forms of child labor have been reportedly linked
to developing countries. Evidence from Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Sudan, and Somalia corroborate these reports. The International Labor Organization (ILO)
defined child labor as work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their
dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development.
Ghana is among top countries struggling with child labor issues. In Ghana, children have
been reportedly used in the mining sector, domestic activities, road and building construction,
sexual exploitation as well as in agricultural enterprises. Children have also been engaged in
various forms of servitude in forced labor and debt bondage. In other parts of the world, children
are even used as soldiers. Cocoa from Ghanaian farmers was blacklisted from entering the
European market due to the utilization of child labor on cocoa farms from 2004-2007 (Philip,
2012). Over the past ten years, various legislations have been developed as well as national
policy aimed at fighting problems associated with child labor. Despite these initiatives by

government, child labor still remains a problem in the country. This research deals with factors
that are responsible for the non-eradication of child labor in Ghana and looks at government
efforts at addressing the problem.
The objectives of this research are to provide country-specific information on the extents
and developments of child labor in Ghana. Also to examine its causes and explore national and
international legal obligations affecting children in the workforce, and how these have led to the
protection of the rights of children or otherwise; assess the role of government, international and
national NGOs in upholding these rights. Findings and recommendations from this research will
benefit students, child labor organizations worldwide and teachers.
In 2013, it was reported that 218 million children between the ages of 5 to 17 were
involved in child labor worldwide (ILO, 2013). The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF),
estimates that around 150 million children aged 5-14 in developing countries are involved in
child labor, representing 15 percent of all children in this age group. Sub-Saharan Africa has the
largest proportion of child laborers (27% of children aged 5-14 years). Children in Ghana are
engaged in the worst forms of child labor in agriculture, cocoa farming and fishing (UNICEF,
2013). A research conducted by Tulane University in the Ghanaian cocoa sector during the
2008-2009 harvest season, showed that 997,357 children aged 5-17 were projected to be
working. Fifty-four percent of this estimated number were also estimated to be reporting injuries
from dangerous activities.
Child labor is a complex issue and various factors dictate whether children should be
allowed to work or not. There is a widespread agreement that poverty is the major factor leading
to child labor (Basu & Pham, 1998). Other factors that contribute to child labor are; as a result to

access to education. In situations where education is not affordable or parents see no value in
education, children are sent to work, rather than to school. Culture and tradition is also another
factor to child labor. With few opportunities open to children with more education, parents are
likely to share a cultural norm in which labor is seen as the most productive use of a childs time.
Children are often expected to follow in their parents footsteps and are frequently summoned to
help other members of the family, often at a young age. As a result of employers wanting to
pay employees less money cheap labor in order to gain more, they demand to hire children for
the set job rather than their adult counterparts. It is also very easy for employers to discharge
children off their duties when labor demands fluctuate and also form a docile, obedient workforce that will not seek to organize itself for protection and support. Another important factor is
inadequate and poor enforcement of legislation and policies to protect children. Child labor
persists when national laws and policies to protect children are lacking or are not effectively
implemented (Basu & Pham, 1998).
Ghana is a member of the United Nations (UN) and UNICEF. It has accordingly ratified
all the UN conventions on child labor elimination and has been making efforts to fulfill this
mandate (ILO, NORMPLEX, 2014). In dealing with child labor issues in Ghana, the government
has made some approaches in making of national laws to be in line with the UN conventions on
child labor. Another ministry known as the Women Protection Ministry, has collaborated with
Non-Profit Organizations (NGOS) to rescue children from hazardous labor, domestic violence
and many other child labor issues to the admiration of most Ghanaians. NGOs like Child Rights
International Ghana, have also done a lot in their quest to reduce child labor. They have used
seminars, workshops, formation of anti-child labor clubs in second-cycle schools and direct
frontline rescuing efforts to fulfill their objectives.

The ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)
and ILO Convention 182 by Ghana all corroborate the countrys commitment to stop child labor.
ILO unanimously adopted the convention concerning the prohibition and immediate action for
the Elimination of the worst forms of child labor convention (No. 182). It called for state to
prevent the most damaging child exploitation practices or the worst forms that currently exist.
Also, the enactment of the Childrens Act 1998(Act 560) and the 1992 constitution of Ghana are
some legal instruments that is in place to protect children. The government of Ghana in order to
check the incidence of child labor, has taken certain initiatives with certain companies such as
the Cadbury Cocoa Company to help meet certain protocols to reduce the incidence of child
labor. The Ghana Child Labor Monitoring System (GCLMS) is also another measure by
government to help eradicate child labor. GCLMS exists to obtain comprehensive information on
all children in or at work and those in worst forms of child labor and also supports national
efforts to meet its obligations under the ILO convention 182. GCLMS covers areas such as child
trafficking, mining and quarrying, commercial sexual exploitation of children, child domestic
servitude and agriculture.
Furthermore, the government has established measures to coordinate its efforts to address
child labor, including its worst forms by forming National Steering Committee on Child Labor
(NSCCL) to oversee coordination, implementation, and monitoring of National Plan of Action
for elimination of worst forms of child labor. The National Partners Forum (NPF) is also another
measure available to discuss interventions to address worst forms of child labor in cocoa sector
and the Human Trafficking Management Board (HTMB) to advise the Minister of Gender,
Children and Social Protection on trafficking policy and promote prevention and rehabilitation
strategies.

According to the ILO, national approaches to address issues on child labor, should at
least capture the following five elements: national plan of action, research, awareness creation,
institutional capacity building and broad social alliance. From the information given in this
paper, Ghana has done well in four of the indicators in the fight against child labor elimination.
However, in the area of research, academic and other civil society organizations have not really
done much to determine the periodic state of child labor. Most of the research have been
conducted by international organizations and foreign governments or agencies such as United
States Agency for International Development (USAID).

In 2013, Ghana made moderate

advancement in addressing worst forms of child labor through various schemes (Government of
Ghana, 2014). Ghanas child labor elimination strategies were the first in West Africa to be peer
reviewed and applauded by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS, 2014).
Ghanas efforts towards fighting child labor has yielded good results and tremendous
commendations from various regional and world bodies. Although successive governments have
done their parts in addressing the problem, there is still much that must be done. Decentralization
of government efforts throughout all the 170 districts of the nation, intensifying child labor
education, improving logistical support to the District level offices of Gender and Child
Protection Ministry, could all bolster the progress towards reducing child labor within the
medium term. With limited resources and the myriad of problems the government has to solve,
international allies of the child labor elimination campaign must commit resources and expertise
to assist the government of Ghana and Non-governmental organizations to enhance their
activities in this regard. A plethora of evidence exists, that with structured support, the battle can
be won completely. There is also need for broad social alliance on the part of government to
ensure that its functions are not only limited to policy and law formulation, but rather moving to

enforcement of those laws. Child labor in Ghana is a threat to child freedom anywhere in the
world and privileged countries and bodies should partner with developing ones like Ghana to win
the fight against the problem.

References
Basu, K., & Pham H.V. (1998). The Economics of Child Labor. American Economic Review,
88(3), 412-27.
Child Labor in Cocoa (NPECLC). Accessed from
http://npeclc.gov.gh/Downloads/GCLMS%20Data%20Collectors%20Training%20Repor
t.pdf
Economic community of West African states (2014). ECOWAS Peer Review of Child Labor
Elimination Activities in Ghana. Abuja, Nigeria
Government of Ghana (2012). Submission to Child Labor Cocoa Coordinating Group Annual
Report 2012. Accra, Ghana.
Government of Ghana (2011). Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare. Ghana Child Labor
Monitoring System Validation Report from Workshop of August 23-25, 2011. Accra,
Ghana
Government of Ghana (2014). Final Submission to Child Labor Cocoa Coordinating Group
Annual Report 2013. Kumasi-Ghana.
Government of Ghana (2009). Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection. Accessed
from http://www.ghana.gov.gh/index.php/2012-02-08-08-18-09/ministries/255-ministryof-gender-children-and-social-protection .
Government of Ghana, official portal (2014). World Day Against Child Labor Marked. Accessed
from http://ghana.gov.gh/index.php/2012-02-08-08-32-47/general-news/5793-world-dayagainst-child-labour-marked.

International Labor Organization, NORMPLEX (2014). Resource Guide on Child Labor

Ratifications for Ghana. Accessed From
http://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=1000:11200:0::NO:11200:P11200_COUNTRY_
ID:103231
International Labor Organization (2013). Accessed from
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/support/lib/resource/subject/childlabor.htm
Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations (2014). Self-Assessment of the Child Labor Unit of
Interventions in Ghana to Eliminate Child Labor. Accra-Ghana
Tulane University (2014). Child Labor in West Africa Cocoa Growing Areas. Project Status
Report. New Orleans
United States Department of Labor Ghana (2013). Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor.
Moderate Advancement. From http://www.dol.gov/ilab/reports/child-labor/ghana.htm .
United Nations (2012). The Millennium Development Goals Report 2012. New York: United
Nations
United Nations Children's Fund (2013). UNICEF data: Monitoring the situation of children and
women, current status and progress. Accessed from http://data.unicef.org/childprotection/child-labour