Vulnerability

Vulnerability may be defined as the lack of capacity of an individual or a household to cope with an adverse shock or lack of resilience against a shock. The poor have their own way of managing poverty. Below is a list of how poverty is managed by the poor in the district and how the poor think the way forward should be as captured during the preparation of the District Poverty Profiling and Mapping exercise.

Below are some of the shocks that affect the vulnerable in the district.

Price Shocks

a.    Increase in major food prices
b.    Increase in utility prices
c.    Decline in output prices
d.    Increase in input prices

Assets loss shocks

a.    Loss of harvest due to bush fires
b.    Loss of property due to fire
c.    Theft of livestock
d.    Theft of crops
e.    Loss of property due to flood

Production related shocks

a.    Plant disease
b.    Poor rains affecting harvest
c.    Pest invasion affecting storage and harvest

Changes in household structure

a.    Member of family marrying
b.    Divorce or separation Others
a.    Disability of income earner
b.    Household member losing job
c.    Death of person sending remittance

Greater proportion of rural households headed by farmers is the poorest of the poor. They are mostly affected by ioss of assets and illness of a household member. Most people in the urban areas are affected by price shocks as people in those areas have moved away from agriculture in recent years. The interventions put place by the District Assembly to help the vulnerable are in the form of social infrastructure such as the provision of school blocks, construction of Teachers and Nurses quarters, construction of drainage among others. Programmes and projects aimed at helping the vulnerable to improve upon their incomes and assets, and help to reduce as much as possible the exposure to shocks are inadequate. Safety nets are needed to prevent neopie from falling deeper into deprivation when they face crisis.

Worst Forms Of Child Labour

The following Worst Forms of Child Labour have been identified in the South Tongu District. These are; Child trafficking, Trokosi System (ritual servitude), Children in quarrying, Children in fishing and Children in commercial agriculture.

Child Trafficking

Many children have been rescued from Krachi, Yell, Abotoase, Dambai, Akate and Cote d’ Ivoire. They are engaged in fishing (as divers) and cattle rearing (as herd boys). The girls do all sorts of household chores, prostitution and trading. Two Organizations are involved in a rescue mission in the South Tongu District. These are International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Anti-Child Trafficking Project. The IOM has rescued 68 children from the District whilst the Anti Child Trafficking Project has also rescued 145. The total number of children rescued is 213. Most of these children were rescued from fishing communities in the Northern parts of the country

Trokosi Ritual Servitude)

This is a System whereby virgins are made to atone for the sins of their relatives, This practice is prevalent in the district. Two NGOs namely International Needs & Every Child Ministries are involved in the liberation of girls. So far about 150 children have been ilbrated and need training in employable skills.

Children In Quarrying

There are about 7 sand winning and quarry sites in the district.  Many children are engaged in these activities especially stone cracking. An estimated number of about 100 children are engaged in the quarries.

Children In Fishing

The District is predominantly a fishing community. Children are engaged in activities such as picking of clams (Adordi) lobsters and actual fishing. These children are used as divers to collect clams at the bottom of the river. Machines are used in providing oxygen to the divers. When the machine fails and the uivers are not prompted immeuiately, they iose their lives.

Children in Commercial Agriculture

This District is one of the major producers of cattle in the Country. Many children therefore engaged in the rearing of these animals. They serve as herd boys, it is estimated that about 128 children are involved in this activity. The children face several problems. Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC). There are many orphans and vulnerable children in the district. Few of these are children of identified HIV AIDS patients, while the rest are children of extremely poor parents. A survey conducted on 37 HIV/AIDS patients in the district revealed that 27 of them were having 80 children. There are 108 children in the district receiving support from institutions and agencies. The total number of OVCs in the district is 1241 out of which 753 are receiving support from agencies and institutions.
Poverty pockets in the district

According to a Poverty Profiling and mapping survey conducted In the district, Larve Area Council Is the most deprived in the district followed by Agave Afedume, Dabaia and Sogakope respectively.    The Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaire (CWIQ) Survey Conducted by the Ghana Statistical Service also indicated that two of the four Area Councils in the district (Larve and Agave- Afedume Area Councils) are among the first twenty poorest Area Councils in the Region.

Gender

Women who form majority of the population in the district are disadvantaged due to social. Historical cultural, economic snu poitucai isciors, mB uiSiriuUiion in terms oi access iO resources and responsibilities, benefits and rights, power and privilege puts women in a disadvantage position. Out of the present 54 assembly members in the Assembly only 10 are women. Out of this number the government appoints only 5. There is the need to reverse this trend. There shouid be an affirmative action by the government to appoint more women to the Assembly. The needs of women such as childcare, maternal health, enterprises, and trading concerns are not adequately catered for. Meeting these needs will help women and tueir lamines io live better and be part of the development process. Domestic violence and discrimination are some of the critical issues to be addressed in the district.