Cocoa supply chain and child labour in Ghana

Details

Supervisors

Van den Broeck, Goedele

Faculty

Faculté des bioingénieurs

Degree label

Master [120] en sciences agronomiques et industries du vivant, à finalité spécialisée: Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy Analysis

Abstract

Child labour in the cocoa supply chain in Ghana has been a subject for various research amidst implementation of policies and programmes aimed at its eradication. However, it is not clear to what extent child labour is specifically linked to the cocoa supply chain, or whether it is related to broader welfare issues. This distinction is important as it requires different policy solutions to tackle child labour. Using the seventh round of the Ghana Living Standard Survey (GLSS7), this thesis compares child labour prevalence between cocoa growers and non-cocoa growers at the regional and household level. A binary logistic regression model and ordinary least squares were applied to examine determinants of child labour participation and child labour working hours for children aged 5–14. The findings from the descriptive statistics show higher percentages of child labour among children living in non-cocoa growing regions and households. Children living in rural areas and poor households constitute a larger portion of child labourers in Ghana. However, after controlling for child, parent, household and community characteristics in the regression analysis, children living in cocoa growing regions and households are more likely to participate in child labour. Other variables like age, education of children and their mothers, household poverty status and presence of educational infrastructure play a vital role in child labour participation and working hours in Ghana. It is recommended that poverty reducing initiatives and social protection programmes should target the rural poor not only in cocoa growing areas but in non-cocoa areas as well. Educational infrastructure should be extended to all parts of the country to compensate the efforts of the Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education.