Lack of strategy, data hindering fight against child beggars – Ernestina Tetteh

Dr. Ernestina Tetteh leads the Coalition for Street-Connected Children Organisation. She says more children are begging on Ghana's streets due to poor planning. There is also a lack of ongoing support for intervention efforts.

Her comments come as more children, often with adults, ask for money in cities. Many times, an adult, usually the mother, watches from a distance to avoid detection.

On May 8, 2025, Dr. Tetteh spoke on the Citi Breakfast Show. She pointed out that past interventions were unsustainable and relied on short-term funding.

She explained that social welfare worked with embassies in the past to help some children leave. However, many returned after being sent away because there was no follow-up.

Dr. Tetteh criticized what she called a “knee-jerk approach.” This method treats children as security threats without long-term solutions. She noted that this strategy has failed repeatedly.

She emphasized the need for reliable data to tackle this issue effectively. Statistics are hard to find, but the number of street-connected children is rising daily. Many of these children come from Chad and Niger.

Dr. Tetteh mentioned that syndicates may coordinate their entry into Ghana. Some cars have been seen bringing children into the country.

Outreach efforts also face challenges due to adult supervision of the children. Even if outreach workers want to talk to them, they often refuse because adults are watching closely.