Child prostitution increasing in Cape Coast-Minister

Child prostitution is booming in the Cape Coast metropolis, the Central Regional Minister, Mr. Aquinas Tawiah Quansah has stated, and also called for concerted efforts to address the problem.

He said a study currently being conducted on child prostitution in Cape Coast, painted a gloomy picture of the activities of children during the night, noting that children between 10 and 13 years of age, walk on the streets until about 2 a.m.

Mr. Quansah urged the Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly (CCMA), to liaise with relevant stakeholders to look into the child prostitution problem, which had also contributed to the low performance of pupils at the basic education level.

Mr Quansah said this when he met staff of the assembly, during his tour of the metropolis and inspection of some on-going projects in the area.

The minister and his entourage inspected construction works on the on-going 12-unit classroom block being financed by GETFund at Amanful, an eight-unit classroom block at Abura Roman Catholic School and the relocation site for the Abura Tipper Trucks Drivers Union.

The relocation of the tipper trucks and others from the site, is to pave the way for the construction of a market at Abura.

He reiterated the Regional Co-ordinating Council’s commitment to team up with the assembly to formulate programmes that would contribute to the development of the metropolis.

Mr. Quansah said, work on the Cape Coast Stadium was about 90 per cent complete, and hoped it would be completed on schedule.

He advocated capacity building for heads of department, as well as workers of the assembly, to enable them to contribute effectively to the development of the metropolis and the entire region.

The Cape Coast Metropolitan Chief Executive, Mrs Priscilla Arhin-Kuranchi, said the assembly had completed the street naming exercise, and was currently on the numbering of existing buildings.

She said the major challenge confronting the assembly was the late release of funds for the smooth execution of development projects and programmes of the assembly.