Israel Akrobortu, the Volta and Oti Regional Director of the Department of Children, has urged the clergy to use their pulpits to sensitise the public on children’s issues and condemn incidences of violence against them.   

At an engagement with religious and traditional leaders in the Oti Region, he said the clergy and traditional leaders had a role in preserving traditions, culture and morality.   

Christopher Lartey, a Principal Programme Officer and Social Policy Analyst encouraged religious leaders to advocate human rights and dignity in their operational areas to fast-track efforts to end violence against children.   

He reiterated that a multi-sectoral approach was necessary to ensure an inclusive effort towards ending all forms of violence against children.   

He pledged the Department’s commitment to protecting children’s rights as demonstrated through the development of policies, legal frameworks and programmes by the Ministry of Children, Gender and Social Protection.   

Reverend Ebenezer Tetteh Kpalam of the Church of Pentecost admitted that religious institutions had a responsibility to integrate child protection issues in their teachings and use their platforms to campaign against negative cultural practices that violated their rights.   

Daasebre Bonja Atamafowiese, the Overlord of Chonke, Nana Otubea II, Paramount Queen Mother of the Nkonya Traditional Council, and other clergymen pledged their support in protecting children’s rights in their communities.