Profil des membres
Mme Abena Abedi
Organisation:
Sustainable Agro
Pays:
Ghana
Domaine(s) de spécialisation
I am working on:
Ex ACT value chain project in Ghana
Mme Abena Abedi
Child Labour and Mechanisation
In Ghana, there are about 2.1 million children aged between 5-17 years who are engaged in child labour. The Agriculture sector employs 18.5% of these children in child labour (ILO and CEIS, 2017). In the rice value chain, children aged between 5-14 years normally work on family farm for free but children age between 15-17 years normally work on family farms for a pay. Child labour which exists in rice value chain is in the form of exposure to hazardous environment and children combining school work with strenuous farm work. Some examples and nature of child labour in the rice value chain are; Felling of trees and removal of stumps during land preparation of newly cultivated areas, contact with agrochemicals without appropriate personal protective equipment before, during and after spraying, carrying loads like fertilizer, seed (above 30kg) over long distances from home to farm, working for longer hours (>3 hours) on the farm.
In adequate access to agriculture mechanization, limited access to adult labour and poverty is one of the major causes of child labour in agriculture sector (ILO, 2017). However, agricultural mechanization influences demand and supply of farm labour and agricultural profitability (Schmitz and Moss, 2015). In short, agricultural mechanization is to reduce farm labor and improve the livelihood of farmers (FAO and UNIDO, 2008). Rice farming is labor intensive and majority of the rural poor farmers resort to their children to actively participate in farm work at the expense of their education and health in the future. A field survey conducted in rice growing areas of the Volta region of Ghana showed that family work on rice farms contributed 50% out of an average 84 mandays work on a hectare (Bockel et. al, 2020). Activities in the rice value chain where child labour is commonly seen are application of pesticides, removal of weeds, fertilizer application, scaring, carting, drying and milling. Appropriate mechanization in the rice sector of Ghana can greatly reduce labour by an average of 50% and targeted mechanization at activities which involve children have the potential of reducing child labour to a larger extent.
Activities and Recommended Mechanisation
REFERENCES
Bockel, L., Gopal, P., Abedi, A., Aminou, A., & Ouedraogo, A. (2020). Rice Value Chain in Ghana
Prospective Analsis and Strategies for Sustainable & Pro-Poor Growth. Accra: FAO RAF Draft
Document.
FAO and UNIDO. Agricultural mechanization in Africa. Time for action: planning investment for enhanced agricultural productivity. Rome: FAO; 2008.
Cocoa Inititiative. 2018. How rice cultivation has help reduce child labour in Ghana. Cocoa Initiative (online) cited 10th May, 2020. https://cocoainitiative.org/news-media-post/how-rice-cultivation-has-be…
VOA. 2019. Farmers in Ghana using drones for pest, disease surveillance (online) cited 10th May, 2020. https://www.voanews.com/episode/farmers-ghana-using-drones-pest-disease…
ILO. 2017. Child Labour in Agriculture (online) cited 10th May, 2020. https://www.ilo.org/ipec/areas/Agriculture/lang--en/index.htm
Schmitz A, Moss CB. Mechanized agriculture: machine adoption, farm size, and labor displacement. AgBioForum. 2015;18(3):278–96.
ILO and CEIS. 2017. Not Just Cocoa: Child Labour in the Agricultural Sector in Ghana (online) (cited 10th May, 2020. https://cocoainitiative.org/knowledge-centre-post/not-just-cocoa-child-…