The Government has advanced five major child protection bills and policies through Cabinet as part of efforts to strengthen the legal and institutional framework for safeguarding children across Ghana.
The measures include the Early Childhood Care and Development Policy, Domestic Violence Policy, Children’s Amendment Bill, Children and Young Persons Justice Administration Bill, and the Domestic Abuse Bill.
The Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, said the reforms were aimed at strengthening child protection laws, improving justice delivery for children in conflict with the law and addressing various forms of abuse.
She disclosed this at the Government Accountability Series in Accra on Wednesday.
Dr Lartey said the reforms formed part of broader government interventions to improve the welfare and protection of children, but stressed that legislation alone could not address the challenges facing vulnerable children.
“Our child protection efforts cannot be ended with law alone; community support remains critical to sustaining the gains made,” she said.
She called for stronger involvement from parents, traditional and community leaders, civil society organisations and other stakeholders in preventing abuse and promoting children’s rights.
Beyond the legislative measures, Dr Lartey said 291 vulnerable children had benefited from care, counselling and education through five residential and subvented homes across the country.
She also disclosed that a nationwide child rights awareness campaign had reached 1,168,278 people.
The campaign focused on child protection, responsible parenting and the dangers associated with child marriage.
On teenage pregnancy, the Minister said the situation had recorded an improvement, although challenges persisted in some communities, particularly along the coast.
She identified the inability of some girls to afford sanitary pads as one of the factors contributing to the difficulties confronting adolescent girls and expressed hope that the President’s initiative to distribute sanitary pads to schoolgirls would help address the problem.
Dr Lartey also said the Ghana Education Service’s re-entry policy had ensured that teenage mothers were no longer prevented from returning to school after childbirth.
She said the effectiveness of the various child protection measures depended partly on citizens being able to report cases of abuse and violations to the appropriate authorities.
To improve access to redress, the Ministry has introduced the Single Window Citizens’ Engagement Service, which has so far received 520 grievance cases and resolved 364 of them.
Dr Lartey said while some citizens were already using the service, awareness remained limited among sections of the population, requiring intensified public education.
She encouraged citizens to report cases of abuse and seek protection through the Ministry’s toll-free numbers 0800 800 800 and 0800 0900 0900, available on all networks.
The Minister reiterated the need for collective action among government institutions, families and communities to ensure that the legal reforms translated into stronger protection and better outcomes for children.
