NCCE Advises Kojokrom Traders to Embrace Digital Space, End Use of Children in Market Work

The Western Regional Office of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has called on traders and patrons at the Kojokrom Market to leverage digital platforms to boost their businesses, rather than relying on their children to do so.

The Deputy Western Regional Director of the NCCE, Mr. Lan Kwame Tugbenu, made the call during the Commission's third-quarter sensitization programme on child labor.

Speaking to traders at the market, Mr. Tugbenu explained that the digital space offers accessible tools for anyone seeking to improve their welfare and livelihood. He encouraged traders to take advantage of social media platforms to advertise their goods to customers at minimal cost, describing it as a safer and more effective alternative to sending children out to hawk wares in often hazardous conditions.

Rather than exposing children to the dangers of the streets during school hours, traders should turn to social media, which offers a low-cost and wider-reaching way to market their goods. Mr. Tugbenu reminded the gathering that any work assigned to a child, defined under Ghanaian law as any person under 18 years, constitutes child abuse and is a breach of the Children's Act, 1998 (Act 560), and the Labor Act, 2003 (Act 651).

He, however, clarified that children are not barred from learning about or supporting their parents' trades, noting that such involvement becomes unlawful only when it interferes with their access to education. "Children must know the livelihoods of their parents and may assist them, but never at the expense of their schooling," he added.

The sensitization forms part of the NCCE's ongoing efforts to raise public awareness on child labor and promote responsible parenting across the Western Region.