Student panelists at this year’s National Children’s Day celebration have made a passionate appeal to adults to actively listen to children, prioritise their safety and involve them in decisions that affect their lives.
The panel, comprised primarily of Junior and Senior High School students, emphasised that children possessed unique ideas, dreams, and solutions that could meaningfully transform their families and communities.
However, they stressed that this potential could only be unlocked if adults create safe, loving, and encouraging environments for children.
The panelists urged adults to become trustworthy figures who offer children opportunities to thrive.
While advocating for their rights, the young panelists also acknowledged their own civic and moral responsibilities.
They noted that children must respect others, follow reasonable rules, care for the environment, take their education seriously, and speak truthfully.
They called on adults to gently guide them in fulfilling these duties.
Master Prince Amedzro, one of the youth panelists, highlighted the connection between adult support and youth development.
He noted that when children were heard and protected, they grow into confident, responsible, and caring citizens.
“When adults create an enabling environment for children to express themselves freely without fear, it builds their confidence and encourages them to confide in elders,” Amedzro stated,
Ms. Yvonne Ayim, a student at Adaklu-Helekpe Junior High School, appealed to community leaders to intensify sensitisation efforts on child protection.
Ms. Veronica Adabli, a recent Junior High School graduate, called on school authorities to take an uncompromising stand against bullying to ensure a conducive learning environment for all.
The event was organised by the Volta Regional Directorate of the Department of Children at Adaklu-Helekpe in the Adaklu District of the Volta Region.
It was held under the theme: “Amplifying Children’s Voices on Abuse in Ghana: Promoting Child Protection, Participation, and Advocacy.”
Mr Israel Akrobortu, Volta Regional Director of the Department of Children, warned that Ghana risks falling behind globally if it failed to prioritise the holistic development of its children.
Speaking to the Ghana News Agency after the programme (GNA), Mr Akrobortu revealed that fear often silenced child victims, leaving many cases of abuse locked up within homes.
“Abuse severely stunts a child’s development,” he said, noting that the National Children’s Day Celebration was designed to bring these critical issues to light.
Mr Akrobortu stated that it was vital to give children the platform to speak on these matters themselves so that authorities could factor their lived experiences into national programming.
He appealed to all stakeholders to collaborate on holistic child development and urged society to stop using fear as a tool for managing children.
Mrs. Emily Ohui Adevor, Partnership Facilitator for Compassion International Ghana, Adaklu Cluster, delivered a solidarity message reaffirming her organisation’s commitment to child protection interventions.
She urged parents and caregivers to employ constructive discipline rather than corporal punishment, advising children to cooperate with adults to ensure their own safety.