Rural teacher attrition pushing children into child labour

Shortage of teachers in underserved rural schools is pushing some children into economic activities, exposing them to child labour risks.

High teacher attrition, driven by poor infrastructure, inadequate social amenities and lack of accommodation in deprived communities, has resulted in low attendance, poor academic performance and, in some cases, school closures.

The concern was raised at an accountability forum after the second joint monitoring visit by national stakeholders to Asunafo North, Adansi South, Adansi Akrofuom and Adansi Asokwa districts under the My Life My Right project.

The project, which began in April 2024, is implemented by Right To Play with funding support from Barry Callebaut.

It seeks to protect 17,500 children aged four to 14 in 50 cocoa-growing communities in the Ahafo and Ashanti regions through play-based learning, teacher training, parental empowerment and the establishment of child protection committees.

Mrs Lois Asante Bota, Project Officer, Right To Play, said the availability of adequately resourced teachers in underserved communities such as Akyeasewa in Adansi South and Adiepena in Adansi Akrofuom was critical to combating child labour.

She said the absence of teachers discouraged both children and parents, increasing the likelihood of children engaging in illegal mining and cocoa farming activities.

“This works against the work we are trying to do of taking children out of child labour because if there is nobody in the classroom to teach them, it makes more sense for the child to stay out of classroom rather than go to a school where there is no teacher to teach them,” she said.

The monitoring exercise, which covered eight communities, assessed child protection and education systems for children identified as being at risk of child labour.

Participating institutions included the Department of Social Welfare, the Office of the Local Government Service, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Labour, Jobs and Employment.

Madam Olivia Ziem Tizaayel, Child Protection Support Specialist at Right To Play, said the establishment of Community Child Protection Committees in 20 communities had increased awareness, reporting and referrals of child labour cases to the appropriate authorities.

She said the findings would inform a stakeholder action plan to strengthen systems for child protection.

Mr Isaac Atta-Baah, Principal Programmes Officer, Early Childhood Education at the Ministry of Education, underscored the need for improved teacher accommodation and internet access to create a conducive environment in underserved communities.

Mr Julius Kwami Tsatsu, Project Manager of the My Life My Right Project, called for the decentralisation of teacher postings to enable district directors of education to deploy teachers to areas of greatest need.

“At the district level, teachers are clustered in the towns neglecting the remote communities,” he said.

The monitoring team observed that many children walk more than five kilometres to school, several communities operate schools without professional teachers and child labour risks remain prevalent in the monitored districts.

Source: GNA