Group photograph of participants
Three hundred officers of the Ghana Police Service in the Greater Accra Region have received an orientation on child-friendly policing aimed at strengthening the capacity of the service in dealing with children.
The orientation is part of the ‘Integrating Child- Policing into the Ghana Police Service’ initiative, which was started in 2014 with support from UNICEF and the Canadian government.
The programme was also aimed at increasing children’s access to justice in Ghana through improved police practices.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the training held in Accra on Monday, UNICEF country representative in Ghana, Anne-Claire Dufay, said that police personnel needed to be careful not to criminalise children involved in illegal activities, because such children are victims of a failed system or society that has neglected them.
Rather, she insisted that the children should be understood, without being discriminated against. They should be treated with dignity, compassion and helped to be reintegrated into the society.
Two standard operating procedures (SOPs) on handling children who come into conflict with the law and another for children who are victims or witnesses have been developed and adopted into the police curricula.
About 10,000 personnel made up of 40 instructors have also been trained and certified as master trainers.
Additionally, a software application, manual for facilitators and student’s manual on child-friendly policing have been created.
The Deputy Inspector General of Police, James Oppong-Boanuh, warned that the incorporation of child-friendly policing in service instruction meant any violation of the SOPs would be regarded as misconduct.
“Police officers should uphold the principle of confidentiality by not disclosing any information obtained from or given by a child to a third party without his or her consent,” he added.
By Issah Mohammed