Imagine being torn away from your home. Either sold by your parents, or tricked into seeking greener pastures elsewhere, only to end up a slave. This is what hundreds of children in Ghana go through, and what young Ndaaba went through. Ndaaba’s father “rented” her out, to work as a slave in Nigeria. Ndaaba does not know how old she is and her name has been changed to protect her identity. “We had just finished eating some food my mother had made, when a cousin of mine came to tell me my father had asked that I be sent to Nigeria. My father was not home at the time. I went with my cousin who gave me to another man who also had some other girls with him. I learned later they were from Togo; they sent us to Nigeria.” This is how Ndaaba, remembers the day she was taken to Nigeria four years ago. She was sent there; a slave to work, scrape and fight for food in a bar with no pay. When the contracted time for her work had ended she was sent back home empty handed. “The woman sent us to the lorry station and asked us to take the lead saying she would come and pay later” Ndaaba has been home now for a few weeks – still no word from the woman she worked under. Ndaaba’s experience in Nigeria still plagues her - there is one thing she will never forget. “I was always badly beaten, and one day my madam used a razor blade to cut my legs just because I broke a plate.” But this memory is not what makes Ndaaba cry. Ndaaba wants to go to school or learn how to sew but her parents will not allow her, they do not want her doing anything. She cries not knowing what lies ahead for her. Ndaaba cannot really express how she feels about her parents, knowing they sent her into slavery. And her story is only a glimpse into what other boys and girls like her go through. Child trafficking statistics from the department of community development and social welfare in Zabzugu show that in 2009 alone, 69 children were taken from their homes, 8 were from Ndaaba’s village, Kandin. Head of the social protection team and assemblyman for Kandin says the numbers have decreased subsequently since the child protection services were initiated in the area. “It is all because of poverty, some of the kids want to make money that’s why they go. Some of the kids go to seek greener pastures, but with education we are doing better.” But Ndaaba didn’t leave of her own free will, and her parents have no plans to send her to school or help her learn a trade. Worried about Ndaaba’s future, we ask her to take us home to meet her parents. She agrees; on arrival, we’re told Ndaaba’s parents are not home. So her fate is uncertain with her parents not willing to co-operate. Social protection team leader for Kandin thinks it is likely Ndaaba will be married off as people of the Basari tribe, where Ndaaba belongs marry their girls off early. He says the only thing the social protection team can do now is to continue to educate and advise her parents. The UNICEF Child Protection team is working to strengthen the National Child Protection System. Child Protection and Juvenile Justice policies ‘fit’ for Ghana are being developed-based on local beliefs, traditions and practices. The new system, advocated by UNICEF, has three key pillars: 1.Adequate laws and policies for comprehensive protection of children, including effective enforcement of these laws. 2.Well-resourced social welfare services, so that social workers can respond to crises, reintegrate victims of abuse and support families. 3.Widespread behavior change in support of positive and protective attitudes towards children, and good parenting practices.