The Department of Social Welfare and Community Development was invited to the ELIHO cocoa processing company at Samanhu to sensitize their staff on radiant parenting and child protection as part of their planned activity schedule.
The department represented by Mr. Piesie A. Agyapong and Miss Grace Boateng were present at the centre for the discussion. Mr. Piesie A. Agyapong opened the floor by defining what social welfare stood for. He indicated that the family is the basic unit of society and that it is important for parents to be together to enable the child have a good environment to grow.
He stated that the Children’s Act 560 of 1998 serves to protect the interest of children and proceeded to state the rights of the child and parents. He added that, the office exists to render support to the vulnerable and marginalized in the society.
Furthermore, with guidance from the Children’s Act, he defined who a child and proceeded to list some of the rights and privileges enshrined in the Act for the safety of the children. Among the rights included; right to name, right to association / social activity, right to live with biological parents, rights to refuse bethrotal of marriage, right to be protected from harm, non-discrimination, right to education among others.
Also, he used to the opportunity to talk about radiant parenting since it was a very vital factor in the upbringing of the child. He stated that children do better in a two-parent household and so it was important for children to be born to couples who are together and not single parents. He added that among the rights and duties of parents were to provide food, shelter, accommodation, health and education for the children.
Moreover, it is also the duty of parents of a child to protect the child from harm and anything that is likely to threaten the safety and life of the child. Parents who failed to provide the safety and security of their children contravened the laws as stated in the Children’s Act and could face prosecution.
The Officer, Mr. Piesie A. Agyapong further used the platform to educate the gathering on Gender Based Violence, sexual consent, and Child labour and the need to curtail that act. He encouraged the members present to be on the look out for signs of child labour as they visit their various cocoa farming communities.
He urged them to report any suspected cases of child abuse, child labour or domestic violence to the community leaders and subsequently the Social Welfare Unit or The Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Police – Tarkwa for further investigation and proceeded to make known to them the dedicated hotline for the vulnerable. He then thanked the audience for the patience and opportunity given him and proceeded to answer some questions.
The social welfare Officer making a presentation at the program
The officer in a group picture with the participants at the Radiant Parenting program
