The US government has threatened to cut about $500 million in private investments intended to help shore-up the dipping fortunes of the Electricity Company of Ghana, if the government remains unconcerned about curbing the threat of modern forms of slavery.
The US Ambassador to Ghana Robert Jackson has told Starr News his country, may be compelled to cut critical aid to Ghana, if the government fails to secure successful prosecutions of persons involved in the business of trafficking and child labour.
The 2016 Trafficking in Persons report puts Ghana on a shameful Tier 2 watch list position. This means that the exploitation of Ghanaians, particularly children, is extremely high. The report also highlights extraordinary numbers of boys and girls forced into labour, especially street hawking, begging and fishing.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Starr News, Ambassador Jackson noted that despite some investigations and awareness campaigns, the government of Ghana did not demonstrably commit to anti-trafficking efforts in 2015.
“The US has provided almost 15 million dollars in the last year, to assist the government with training and with enforcement. But we are seeing very little activity on the protection side, we are seeing very little activity on the enforcement side, and we are seeing zero activity on the prosecution side. These are the three pillars for combating trafficking,” he said.
Source: http://starrfmonline.com/
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