Fifteen girls from the Northern Region who were trafficked into servitude in Nigeria two years ago have been rescued and supported with skills training. The girls have been presented with sewing machines and accessories, half pieces of cloth and GH¢90.00 each by the Virginia State University (VSU), under its “Combating Human Trafficking: Rescuing children from domestic servitude” project and LAWA-Ghana Alumnae Incorporated (LAWA Ghana). At a ceremony in Tamale, the Director of Anti Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service, Superintendent Patience Quaye, said human trafficking was the third of the three most serious crimes in the world. She also said the Ghana Police Service set up the department in 2005 when the Trafficking Act was passed to deal with human trafficking issues and ex-plained that trafficking was a menace in the world and involved the selling of human beings into slavery. Giving the background to how the 15 girls were rescued, she said about two years ago the girls were trafficked to Nigeria. When they were located, the Anti Human Trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police Service was informed and the unit linked up with the police in Nigeria to rescue them. After the rescue, she said, they were rehabilitated in Accra and sent to their parents. She indicated that it was during their stay in Accra, that they were visited and interviewed by a Professor of the Virginia State University, Dr Nana Derby, who promised to support them. She concluded that the Ghana Police Service received the items and organised the ceremony to present the items to the girls, adding that the woman involved in their trafficking had been jailed for 10 years. The Deputy Northern Regional Commander of the Ghana Police Service, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Kwadwo Appiagyei, said in the last two years, the Police had intercepted several children who were being trafficked from Bolgatanga to Kumasi. He also said currently a task force had been set up to monitor the movement of vehicles and investigate any suspicion of human trafficking from the Northern Region to the southern part of the country. He added that the Northern Regional Police Command and DOVVSU were working together to bring human trafficking under control. He spoke about some challenges they faced in rehabilitating the rescued children and said the sometime relied on the Department of Social Welfare (DSW), which also lacked resources, and cited an instance where some police officers had to make individual contribution in order to feed some rescued children. He therefore appealed to NGOs and other organisations to support them when they rescue the children and advised parents to plan their birth so that they would not end up putting their children out into slavery. The DCE of Gushiegu, Mr Alhaji Fuseini Alhassan acknowledged the effort of the Ghana Police Service and the Anti Human Trafficking Unit to prevent human trafficking. He commended VSU and LA WA -Ghana for their support to the trafficked victims and informed the participants that the girls had been enrolled into the National Youth Community Programme (NYCP) to learn various skills. He also said the assembly members in the various communities have been tasked to see to it that these girls remained committed to their training. The Project Manager VSU and LAWA-Ghana Joint Project, Mrs Barbara Ayesu who is also the Coordinator for LAW A-Ghana said the aim of the proj-ect was to prevent human trafficking, rescue and protect children and young women from being trafficked or recruited into domestic servitude. The joint project which she said had been in existence since 20 10 had rescued over 200 children from domestic servitude and re-united them with their parents in the Central Region, while some have been re-integrated in formal education or given the necessary skills training to equip them economically. “We have also under the joint project supported 100 parents of the rescued children to revamp their existing businesses in order to sustain their children's education or skills training”. She said under the project which was supported by the US State Department through the VSU, “we are expected to rescue 350 of the children and equip over 200 of the parents, obviously this is being done to curb trafficking and its related vices”. District Councils of Labour, on how to use social dialogue as a mechanism to eliminate worst forms of Child Labour in Ghana. Thirty participants including regional chairpersons, secretaries and the national women's committee executive of the TUC attended the workshop. Dr Baah appealed to the participants to find ways of compelling government to make the abolishing of child labour a priority. He reminded members of TUC that they had a lot of power and said: “When you speak, policy makers listen.” Dr Baah indicated that no matter how “pastors” could pray in the Church, child labour would not be eliminated until trade unions got involved and made it a priority. The Eastern Regional Secretary of the TUC, Ms Francisca Borkor Bortey, noted that the rate of poverty was higher in rural areas than the urban areas due to poverty. She said the fight to eliminate child labour in Ghana had received much support from civil society organisations and child rights nongovernmental organisations. Ms Bortey said trade unions had been actively involved in the fight against child labour in Ghana.