One (1) of the architects of the Harkin- Engel Protocol, Senator Tom Harkin on Tuesday, 29th March, 2011 expressed gratitude for the commitment of the members of the Child Labour Cocoa Coordinating Group (CLCCG) in implementing the Protocol and especially to Hon. E .T. Mensah, Ghana’s Minister responsible for Labour for his dedication. This was at the quarterly meeting of the Child Labour Cocoa Coordinating Group held at the U.S Senate building in Washington D.C.
The CLCCG consist of:
· The Principals: who are the Ministers responsible for Labour of the U.S, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, Senator Tom Harkin, Congressman Eliot Engel and the representative of the International Chocolate and Cocoa Industry, (A Principal may nominate a representative for any meeting if they are unable to attend the meeting in person).
· The Working Group Members, made up of a maximum of seven technical personnel nominated by each Principal.
Senator Harkin said it should be the objective of all concerned to work so well that the Protocol will enhance the lives of the children and outlive us all. He intimated that he intends to explore with Congressman Eliot Engel the possibility of making a two or three day trip to Ghana this year to show support to the Government and the cocoa industry in Ghana for their efforts towards eliminating child labour in cocoa production which, he said, is worthy of emulation.
Responding, Hon. E. T. Mensah assured Senator Harkin of Ghana’s commitment to sustain the Protocol and noted that some progress has been made although there is still a lot more to do to achieve the desired goal.
Later, Congressman Eliot Engel, the other architect of the Protocol, confirmed the possibility of a trip to Ghana this year with Senator Tom Harkin. He intimated that the Harkin- Engel Protocol all started with a newspaper publication which someone showed him. He said the first person he called on the issue was Senator Tom Harkin; the rest is now well- known.
Issues discussed at the meeting were:
· How best to measure the effect of targeted interventions against child labour
· The need to develop tools on how to get there
· Indicators, and
· The sustainability of the GCLMS Programme
Two (2) presentations on the Ghana Child Labour Monitoring System (GCLMS) were delivered by:
· The Chief Technical Advisor of the ILO in Ghana, Mr. Francesco d’ Ovidio presented for the International Labour Organization’s International Programme on Elimination of Child Labour (ILO/IPEC). He gave a background of the development of the GCLMS and it’s testing by the ILO/IPEC in some communities in two (2) districts in the Western Region of Ghana, highlighting some of the challenges faced in the course of the testing.
· The GCLMS Coordinator, Mr. Sam Atukwei Quaye, also made a presentation on behalf of the National Programme for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour in Cocoa (NPECLC).
Some agreements made at the meeting were:
· The need to note the success rate in the implementation of the GCLMS and find out the challenges involved.
· The need for greater support from the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).