[ 2014-08-28 ]

Immigration Service launches programme against child trafficking
Winneba, Aug. 28, GNA - The Ghana Immigration
Service (GIS), Effutu Municipal Command, has
launched a project that seeks to help reduce the
incidence of child trafficking by 70 percent in
the area by the end of 2016.
The Effutu Municipal Commander of the Service,
Mrs. Mary Lois Amo-Richmond, said at the launch
that part of the Service’s core mandate was to
create awareness and to disseminate information to
the people on the negative effects of child
trafficking.

The project under the theme “Combating the
Trafficking of Children for Labour Exploitation in
Effutu Municipality” will be executed in
collaboration with Effutu Municipal Assembly and
Project Abroad, a non-governmental organization.

Mrs. Amo-Richmond mentioned Sankor, Fetteh, Dwoma,
Walababa, Atekyedo, Penkye, Ponkorekire,
Abasaraba, Ndaama, Eguaboano, Ayipe, Akososua
Village and Nsuakyere as communities in the
municipality where they conducted the survey.

She said they found out that most people along the
coast in these communities gave out their children
as young as three for labour in Yeji, Kpando,
Adina, Keta and some West African countries and
took between 50 and 200 Ghana cedis from the
traffickers.

Mr Amo-Richmond said activities to be undertaken
to combat the menace include capacity building,
community sensitization and education, awareness
raising and information campaigns and Police,
Social Welfare Department, CHRAJ and the Municipal
Directorate of Education would be involved.

Nii Ephraim Effutu, Municipal Chief Executive,
said the enormity of child trafficking and child
labour had been so forcefully pushed to the fore
to be appreciated as a huge problem in the
Municipality.

He said the revelation from the survey was heart
breaking, intolerable, inhuman, barbaric and akin
to slavery and added that the Effutu Assembly was
appealing for cooperation to solve the problem.

The Member of Parliament for the area, Mr. Alex
Afenyo-Markin, in a message delivered on his
behalf commended the initiators of the project and
promised to support it.

Source - GNA

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