The Plight of Working Children at Mankessim, Ghana

Abstract

Children serve as social assets for domestic and economic activities. It is
therefore not uncommon to see children in Ghana working under the
instructions of their parents. In some instances, children are engaged in
economic enterprises due to household poverty. Whereas some of these
activities initiate children into adulthood, others affect their school
attendance and development. The paper explores some of the activities
children engage in at Mankessim in the Central Region of Ghana. It justifies
that some of these activities constitute labour; and discusses other f actors
that contribute to household poverty in the area. Data were obtained from 152 children engaged in various economic activities. Findings revealed that
69% of the children were asked by their mothers to work. Half of the children
benveen 6 andll years and more than one-th,ird aged 11-17 worked for over
five hours a day. Sixty-six per cent complained of tiredness. In-school
children missed school at least once a week to work while 10% dropped out of
school due to work. improving standards of living of women and
strenglhe11i11g societal 01ganizational values are crucial in addressing the
plight of ·working children in the area