Akyawkrom (Ash), Feb. 28, GNA - Mr Enoch Teye Mensah, Minister of Employment and Social Welfare, has given high marks to 93Focal Persons" in cocoa growing districts for the significant in-roads being made in the figh= t to rein in child labour.

He said their commitment to duty had helped to raise awareness about child labour issues and the implications on the cocoa industry. This was contained in a speech read for the Minister at the opening of a six-day refresher training programme for the Focal Persons at Akyawkrom in the Ejisu-Juaben Municipality.

It is being held by the Ministry under its National Programme for the Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour in Cocoa (NPECLC). The participants would be discussing among other topics, the 93Ghana Child Labour Monitoring System", 93Hazardous Child Labour Activity Frame= work" and 93Developing Community Bye-laws to Combat Child Labour."

They are expected to develop district action plans using the template developed by the NPECLC for increased productivity and growth of the industry. Mr Mensah said it was heart-warming that the programme to remove worst forms of child labour had now been extended to all the 69 cocoa districts i= n the country and urged the participants not to relent but work hard to achieve complete elimination of the menace. He reminded them of their duty to team up with the various assemblies t= o develop interventions to complement both the national and international regulations for combating child labour. The Minister said every effort should be made to consolidate the gains made.