Human Trafficking activities in Ghana today have markedly reduced compared to previous years owing largely to persistent prosecution and conviction of perpetrators, Juliana Azumah-Mensah, Minister of Women and Children's Affairs (MOWAC), has claimed.

"[Six] 6 trafficking cases were prosecuted, out of which 4 convictions were obtained, 18 cases are still under investigation by both the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police Service and the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO)," she said without indicating the particular year in which these cases were recorded.

The success rate is also attributable to the implementation of the ECOWAS Project on countering human trafficking within the sub-region. In this project, the MOWAC obtained a grant facility from ECOWAS Trafficking in Person Unit to implement a number of activities including consultations with District Assemblies in Kete Krachi in the Volta Region and Yeiji in the Brong Ahafo Region.

However, the Human Trafficking Secretariat faces the problem of inadequate resource, prompting Mrs Azumah-Mensah to call for improvement in the resourcing of the Secretariat with requisite personnel, logistics and financial resources to promote its coordinating role in fighting against human trafficking.

She was speaking at a Meet-the-Press forum in Accra last week.

Ghana serves as a source, transit and destination country for Human Trafficking activities and rated in the second class of culprits in the 2010 United States of America's Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP).

To address present challenges, a draft Legislative Instrument on the Human Trafficking Act 2005 (Act 694) is in place and consultations are being held on the draft LI among stakeholders in order to address all concerns relating to the operationalization of the Act.

In addition, Mrs. Azumah-Mensah explained that 27 officials from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), the Birth and Death Registry, Registry of Marriage and Ghana Immigration Service have been trained in document fraud detection. This was done on the thematic programme on Migration and Asylum-Countering Human Smuggling and Irregular Migration.

The aim of the project is to facilitate prosecution of human smuggling and trafficking related cases through the detection of fraudulent documents being used for criminal activities.

"In this project capacities of about 40 departments, agencies and institutions both governmental and non-governmental were built on human trafficking concepts and issues, 20 [children who were rescued from trafficking] were provided with school supplies such as exercise books, bags, among others to encourage them to stay in school, over 2000 members of the communities in the two districts were sensitized on human trafficking issues," she stated.

Turning attention to other key achievements of the Ministry, she said that MOWAC has initiated processes to develop a new National Gender Policy. The policy is expected to provide a comprehensive framework with the required indicators for incorporating gender awareness approaches in all spheres of development, thereby enhancing the possibility of successful, effective and sustainable outcomes in that initiative.

The document will be formulated on gender indicators and sector specific strategies in order to obtain gender equality goals including the MDGs.

"This is achievable in the short and medium term,"she added.

On breast and cervical cancer programme, she said MOWAC in collaboration with the United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA) organized a one day forum on breast and cervical cancers, sexual reproductive health rights, maternal health, domestic and gender based violence for 200 women from selected communities in each of the ten regions of Ghana.

The objective of the forum was to create awareness on these health and gender based related issues and also facilitate screening and counseling services to as many women as possible. The forum was also to create awareness on Domestic Violence and the Law (DV ACT 732).

Out of 1,654 women screened, 30 were found to have symptoms of breast cancer and have since been referred to the appropriate health facility for further examination.

In terms of socio-economic empowerment of women, MOWAC organized a one-day business and financial management workshop at the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem Municipal Assembly in the Central Region. This training workshop equipped over 50 women with skills in business management, finances and good record keeping.

"MOWAC sourced and received funding of Fifty eight thousand, six hundred and twenty Ghana cedis, seventy seven pesewas (GH c 58,620.77) from the ECOWAS Gender Development Centre to train 10 women from Ghana and Nigeria in food processing and handicrafts. The project is expected to cover other Anglophone countries within ECOWAS," she stated.

On girl child education, she said that MOWAC with financial support from ECOWAS Gender Development Centre collaborated with Girls Unit of the Ministry of Education and provided scholarship to two girls from the Ashanti and Central regions in pursuance of their Senior High School education.