The International Cocoa Initiative , in collaboration with Nestlé and ECOM, have launched an extended implementation of the Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation System (CLMRS). The intervention will reach over 11,000 cocoa farmers in seven cocoa growing districts in the Ashanti, Eastern and Central regions of Ghana.
This will be the biggest CLMRS project currently being executed in Ghana, by the three organisations, to identify and address cases of child labour within cocoa growing communities. The project will be implemented by International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) and ECOM together with relevant governmental agencies.
This CLMRS project is expected to increase school enrollment, attendance and retention. It will also result in vocational training for older children identified by the system to be at risk of or involved in child labour. Farmers, who will be identified to be in need of assistance, will be enrolled in the additional livelihood program so they can generate more income.
Fred Kukubor, Nestlé Cocoa Plan’s Regional Manager reiterated his company’s commitment to eliminating worst forms of child labour within its supply chain. “We are creating shared value by promoting the use of Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation System (CLMRS) as one of the sustainable tools to eliminate worst forms of child labour within our supply chain so children can have access to education; we will also support parents to have improved livelihoods so they can take better care of their children”. This he says calls for collaborative efforts by government and other actors in the cocoa sector.
Launching the project, Mike Arthur, ICI’s Ghana Country Director, stated that the successful partnership that ICI enjoys with Nestlé and ECOM will be greatly enhanced through this project. He also spoke of the impact that working with over 11,000 farmers will have on the drive towards the elimination of child labour from the cocoa supply chain in Ghana.
Over 80 ICI and ECOM staff have been trained to implement this project.