By Regina Benneh Siaw
Sunyani (Bono), July 4, GNA-Mr George Yaw Ankamah, the Bono Regional Director of the Department of Children has called for law enforcement to control the growing trend of child streetism alms begging.
He said streetism and alms begging among children were serious offences and infringed on the rights and dignity of children, calling for the arrest and prosecution of families and individuals who lured and exploited minors in the practice.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Sunyani, Mr Ankamah said child streetism was not only a violation of their rights and dignity as human beings, but also denied children accessing formal education, proper shelter and safe environment in their upbringing and holistic development.
He said: “Now many people including foreigners have taking advantage of the nation’s hospitability and thereby exploiting innocent children street begging”, noting that many of those children were being forced to fend for themselves, and thereby increasing their vulnerabilities.
Mr Ankamah said though the Department had intensified advocacy to rescue and rehabilitate those vulnerable children, there was no shelter homes in many of the regions to keep them.
“That is making it very challenging”, he added and called for the establishment of shelter homes at the regional and district levels, saying “those shelter homes will empower the Department of Social Welfare to rehabilitate the rescued children.
He said: “the provision of shelter homes at the regional and district levels will be a significant step towards addressing the street begging among children and thereby provide a safe haven for them to thrive”.
Mr Ankamah called on the government to take pragmatic and urgent measures to tackle alms begging and growing streetism of children in the country.
GNA
Edited by Dennis Peprah/Kenneth Odeng Adade