ILO’s GALAB Project strengthens Ghana’s social protection against child labour

ACCRA (ILO News) – In Ghana, the International Labour Organization’s Global Accelerator Lab (GALAB) Project, funded by the United States Department of Labor (USDOL), aims to strengthen the capacity of stakeholders to tackle child and forced labour around Lake Volta. The project focuses on extending health insurance registration, improving child labour data reporting, and providing vocational and entrepreneurial opportunities to vulnerable community members. Child labour in Ghana, affecting nearly 28% of children aged 5–17, remains a significant issue, especially in fishing, agriculture, and mining, where exploitation is rife. GALAB seeks to protect vulnerable children by enhancing stakeholder capacity, expanding health insurance access, improving child labour monitoring, and supporting vocational opportunities for at-risk families. 

The GALAB project exemplifies the ILO’s commitment to meaningful partnerships that address child labour in Ghana, by working directly with stakeholders to embed child labour awareness into social protection systems, we are creating pathways for sustainable change.

Vanessa Phala - Director ILO Country Office for Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.

A critical recent step was a two-day workshop at Afrikiko Beach Resort in Akosombo to review Ghana’s LEAP (Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty) Management Information System (MIS). This workshop, held in collaboration with Ghana’s Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, and UNICEF, aimed to incorporate child labour indicators into the LEAP MIS, bolstering Ghana’s social protection framework. 

The workshop involved interactive discussions, group work, and field piloting of the revised LEAP MIS tool. Day one focused on setting the context, with presentations from key stakeholders. Day two involved group work sessions to identify gaps and develop proposals for child labour indicators. On day three, participants piloted the revised LEAP MIS tool in the Atimpoku community and provided feedback.

The two child labour indicators identified during this workshop will be helpful to the Ghana Household Registry questionnaire. They will aid in identifying children who are LEAP beneficiaries and may also be involved in child labour activities

Daniel Asare - Senior Labour Officer, Child Labour Unit, Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations (MELR)

As Ghana continues its journey to eliminate child labour, the GALAB Project’s initiatives, such as enhancing LEAP, are vital steps toward systemic change. By strengthening social services and community surveillance, the inclusion of child labour monitoring in LEAP will strengthen social protection for the most vulnerable, contributing to a future where children are free from exploitation and able to pursue their full potential.

About GALAB Project

The Global Accelerator Lab (GALAB) project, funded by the United States Department of Labour (USDOL) with a total budget of $13.4 million, is a major component of the International Labour Organization's (ILO) 8.7 Accelerator Lab initiative. It addresses the critical issue of child labour, a key barrier to achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 8.7 on decent work and economic growth.

The GALAB project operates on a global scale, fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing across regions. Through targeted interventions in several countries (Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Malaysia, Mauritania, Nigeria and Somalia) and regions (Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean), the project also delivers impactful results at the global, regional and national levels.