20 Ghanaian children victims of trafficking have been rescued by IOM from exploitative labour in the fishing industry along Lake Volta.

After months of preparation and weeks of community sensitization and registration, IOM - in collaboration with the Department of Social Welfare, Community Development and the Police Anti-Trafficking Unit - has rescued a total of 20 children from trafficking from three communities in the Volta Region. The 20 rescued children - 19 boys and 1 girl - were all trafficked into the fishing sector for labour exploitation.

The children are between the ages of 8 to 17 and have been kept in servitude between 2 months and 10 years. During that time, most of them worked from dawn till late in the night (often until midnight) whilst being fed, inadequately, at times only once a day. All were denied education and some faced corporal punishment at the hand of their fishing masters.

They are currently being rehabilitated at a Child Protection Centre outside Accra where they will spend three and a half months. At the centre, they will receive quality and abundant food to address their malnutrition, they will be able to rest, participate in fun activities and enjoy for the first time in a long while, the caring attention of adults.

The rehabilitation time is also used to organize medical/psychosocial therapy with the children, as well as literacy lessons. These classes are meant to empower them with fundamental learning skills since many of them have never had a chance to attend school before. This is vital to prepare them for a successful transition to formal education.

During an initial medical screening, it was determined that many of the children suffered with Bilharzia, which is caused by parasitic worms present in the lake. Blood in their urine is a sign of urinary tract infection and immediate treatment was started as bilharzia in children can cause poor growth and learning difficulties. One child is suffering from severe eczema but is receiving first aid to avoid its spread.

While the children are at the center, IOM will work to locate and assess their families, and prepare for their return. IOM strongly believes in upholding the fundamental right of children to grow up in a family environment and will make every effort to reunite the children with parents or family members, as long as they are deemed capable of looking after the children in a responsible manner.

If the need arises, IOM will work with Social Welfare to find foster parents. Parents will be counselled and sign a social contract including a commitment not to re- engage in trafficking. They will also be given income-generating support to better cater to their children’s needs in the future. In the meantime, IOM will continue to work in the fishing communities where the children were rescued from to carry out a community development project and work with the fishermen to find alternative solutions to trafficking.

The rescue was made possible thanks to generous funding by GlobalGrandparenting, USAIM and private donors. Since 2002, IOM Ghana has rescued a total of 752 children victims of trafficking.

For further information, please contact Sylvia Lopez-Ekra at sekra@iom.int or Doris Yiboe, IOM Ghana, (dyiboe@iom.int) Tel: +233 302 742930 x2403.