The Rainforest Alliance, a non-governmental organization working to tackle forced and child labour in cocoa growing and mining communities in Ghana has stepped up efforts to deepen commitments and actions towards clamping down the menace.
Under a Norad funded project, the organisation is working in cocoa and gold mining communities to protect and support children and vulnerable workers against forced labour and worst forms of child labour.
It is currently working in Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai, Atwima Mponua, Wassa Amenfi, and Atiwa East Districts in the Western North, Ashanti, Western and Eastern Regions, respectively.
The strategy is to engage stakeholders across the cocoa supply chain and gold mining associations with the goal of increasing the fulfilment of government and cocoa companies/gold mining associations commitments in addressing human rights and gender issues and creating more resilient farming and mining communities.
The expectation after the implementation of the project is to have resilient communities where children are protected while companies and farmer groups act on forced and child labour interventions.
In line with the implementation of the project, a day’s stakeholders’ forum has been held at Nyinahin in the Atwima Mponua District to take stock of the progress of work after the first stakeholder’s forum in December and discuss issues affecting the socio-economic well-being of children and the vulnerable.
Dr Albert Arhin, a consultant for Rainforest Alliance, said the project targets the Government, cocoa companies, and the vulnerable people in the communities to find solution to the complex problems that was caused by a complex interplay of social, economic, legal, and cultural factors across the individual household and Community.
He said the elimination of harmful forms of child labour was critical to ensuring respect for human rights and the welfare of people living and working in Ghana’s cocoa growing and mining communities.
“Rainforest Alliance has several pathways of tackling child labour such as raising community awareness of the impact of the menace and supporting small-scale farmers through certification,” he stated.
This has been ongoing with the engagement of community-based organisations mandated to work with selected community observers, resident in each of the project communities to engage stakeholders at the community and district level.
He emphasised that in the past community representatives have observed interventions being implemented by government and companies to identify, prevent, track, and eliminate child and forced labour in cocoa and mining.
Two years ago, Rainforest Alliance launched $5 million Africa Cocoa Fund to support farming communities implementing the Rainforest Alliance standards across West and Central Africa.
Mrs Joyce Opoku-Marboah, the Senior Project Manager on the Norad Project, reiterated the need for farmers to be included and their voices heard at the discussion table.
She added that farmers were key in the fight against forced and child labour hence including them in in the discussions at various levels would fast-track the solution to the problem.
Madam Aba Oppong and Mr. Haruna Yoda of the Rights and Responsibilities Initiatives of Ghana (RRIG) and Center for Community Livelihood Development, the two CBOs working in the district led the discussions.
