Child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector : an interpretative analysis of three dominant discourses on child labour in the cocoa sector in Ghana

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CHILD LABOUR IN THE

GHANAIAN COCOA

SECTOR

An interpretative analysis of three dominant

discourses on child labour in the cocoa sector in

Ghana

Lisa Hoeksema (11258241) Bachelor thesis Human Geography and Urban Planning 17-6-2019

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1 Child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector

An interpretative analysis of three dominant discourses on child labour in the cocoa sector in Ghana

Lisa Hoeksema 11258241

Bachelor thesis

Course code: 734302042Y

Bachelor Human Geography and Urban Planning (Sociale Geografie en Planologie) Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences

University of Amsterdam

Assignment date: June 17th_{, 2019}

Supervisor: Fred Zaal Words: 10.047

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Preface

This bachelor thesis on child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector indicates the end of my bachelor’s degree in Human Geography and Urban Planning at the University of Amsterdam. During my bachelor, I have attended several courses within the discipline International

Development Studies (IDS). These courses have educated me on the many different ways in

which we can perceive subjects in the world. I have chosen to analyse the subject of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector thoroughly, to understand the different ways that people regard and address this subject. One specific IDS course has taught me about the

Eurocentric ideology that dominates many of our visions on certain subjects. This topic has really struck my interest, as I think not all of us are aware of our Western positionality

shaping much of our mind. A detailed discourse analysis on the subject of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector has provided me with new insights on how to address this subject from different perspectives. I hope that the readers of this thesis will also acquire more knowledge on the different ways to approach child labour.

I am thankful for my supervisor Fred Zaal, who has given me a great feeling of independency and freedom while working on this thesis, and who has also supported me with useful

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Abstract

Child labour on cocoa farms in Ghana has been a subject of debate for many years. While the central Western ideology rejects child labour in all its forms, more recent discourses put child labour in a different perspective, addressing its social, cultural, political, and economic aspects. This thesis analyses the three dominant discourses on child labour in the cocoa sector in Ghana: the work-free childhoods discourse, the socio-cultural discourse, and the political economy discourse. A detailed description of the discourses provides an important basis to understand how these shape perspectives on child labour in the context of Ghana. Building further on this, the analysis touches upon a variety of actors that have an important position in the Ghanaian cocoa sector. Their perspectives on child labour are examined to find connections to the three dominant discourses. This thorough discourse analysis eventually provides an answer to the main question how do different discourses shape

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Introduction

Seventy percent of all cocoa in the world is produced in West African countries, among which Ghana is a prominent producer. The cocoa sector provides income to a large part of Ghana’s population, as cocoa is the country’s second most important export product (Hainmueller et al., 2011). However, cocoa farming encounters serious and persistent economic and social problems. Current initiatives that strive for an enhancement in cocoa yields push Ghanaian smallholders to involve more family members to work on their cocoa farms (Vigneri et al., 2016). There is an increasing concern that many smallholders are forced to include a greater proportion of child labour in cocoa farming to meet the growing pressure of the high global cocoa demand (Wessel & Quist-Wessel, 2015). Child labour is a very complex and contested issue that has been troubling the cocoa sector for many years. “Our delight in chocolate comes at great cost to those who produce the cocoa, notably child labourers in West Africa.” (Balch, 2018). The Barometer report (2018) found that more than two million children are working in the West African cocoa sector. The prevalent incidence of child labour continues to be largely present on the agenda of many countries around the world (Lambon-Quayefio & Nkechi Srodah Owoo, 2018). However, despite decades of efforts, child labour is still

widespread. There are a lot of debates and controversies going on involving the subject of child labour on a global scale. Although poverty is widely regarded as the primary cause of child labour, there are many dimensions of the phenomenon that still remain to be explored. Little attention has been paid to policies that address child labour and, particularly, to the discourses that shape these policies (Karikari, 2016).

This bachelor thesis aims to understand different discourses on child labour and the way these discourses shape perspectives on child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector. It will explore various aspects of child labour through three different perspectives to reach a highly comprehensive and overarching analysis. Moreover, this thesis will touch upon how these discourses frame people’s perspectives on the incidence of child labour in the cocoa sector in Ghana, to understand how these are visible in the social reality. This matter has raised the following question to be a central point of focus in this thesis:

How do different discourses shape perspectives on child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector?

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Theoretical framework

Discourses

There are three different discourses that will be explored to find an answer to the main research question How do different discourses shape perspectives on child labour in the

Ghanaian cocoa sector? These discourses are based on Abebe and Bessell’s (2011) article dominant discourses, debates and silences on child labour in Africa and Asia and consist of

the work-free childhoods discourse, the socio-cultural discourse, and the political economy discourse.

Work-free childhoods discourse

The first discourse to be examined in this analysis on child labour is primarily dominant in the Western world, and therefore widely assumed to be the right one. The work-free childhoods perspective rejects the involvement of children in labour. Children are regarded as beings who should devote their time to play, develop, and learn through (formal) education (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). The only child labour practice that is considered to be legitimate is under carefully circumscribed conditions, most often for pocket money or ‘helping out’ within the family. This discourse applies the notion of the global child and often does not take into account the locational and contextual differences that have major influences on the incidence of child labour (Davis, 2014). The ideas of a ‘proper childhood’ are constructed by the image of Western countries that believe that children should have a care-receiving, secure, safe and happy existence by being raised by caring adults (Panter-Brick, 2000). The work-free childhoods discourse finds its origin in more developed countries, in the Global North, and is exported to the developing countries in the Global South, including Ghana. Of all discourses, the work-free childhoods perspective is particularly influential in shaping international

policies. The core ideology behind this discourse has been increasingly invoked by international agencies and non-governmental organisations and often results in national governments putting more focus on formal schooling and adopting anti-child labour legislation (Abebe & Bessell, 2011).

Socio-cultural discourse

The second discourse in this discourse analysis on child labour is based on a socio-cultural perspective. In contrast to the work-free childhoods perspective, the socio-cultural discourse does take into account the local context. It considers Western ‘global’ constructions of child labour as insensitive to children’s realities and will lead to ineffective policies (Abebe &

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Bessell, 2011). In this perspective, child labour needs to be understood in the light of different material and cultural conditions and seen as varying according to a range of individual factors, such as age, capability and gender (Bourdillon, 2006). This approach, while often asserting the right of children to protection from exploitation, sees childhood as continuous with the adult world, with children gradually moving into the activities of adults as their abilities develop and as opportunities increase. According to social historian Ali Muzrui, this perspective suggests that children’s work is regarded as part of the household structures within families (Bass, 2004). Children’s engagement in labour does not only support

livelihood maintenance, but also contributes to the development of certain cultural skills. Socio-cultural perspectives do not romanticize child labour, but highlight the need for a balanced understanding of a complex and diverse issue and the context within which children work (Abebe, 2009).

Political economy discourse

The third, and most recent, discourse positions child labour within a global context of macroeconomic politics that has very harmful impacts on children’s lives. This approach concentrates on the dependent relationship between the children and their position in a market-led development mode that disadvantages poorer societies (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). International policies imposed by the IMF and the World Bank that forced poor countries to open their economies, are seen as having devastating impacts on the lives of children (Boyden & Levison, 2000). The political economy discourse recognizes that children suffer from exploitation and disparagement induced by global capitalism in several ways. This perspective connects global processes to experiences of children in local contexts (Robson, 2003). Abebe (2009) concludes that the discourse around the political economy of child labour differs from the other two mainly because it recognizes not only the local, but also the global factors that contribute to the engagement of children in work.

Child labour

Child labour is the main area of focus of the different discourses mentioned above. The three discourses are framed by different notions and ideas on how child labour should be

perceived and addressed. It is important to understand that this issue covers much more than merely the question whether children should work or not (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). This thesis analyses various aspects of child labour to identify how the discourses tackle the incidence of child labour. First of all, it is essential to understand how the different discourses address notions of children and their social position in society (ibid.). Central in this is the question what does childhood entail? The different ideologies on this will be analysed, in

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particular relation to the concept of education. Another important aspect that reflects how the discourses approach child labour is their understanding of the type of work and the context and conditions under which child labour takes place (Ansell, 2016). To what extent do they take in the different locational and contextual circumstances in which child labour occurs?

In summary, child labour can be understood through different discourses by

addressing its various notions and conceptions on children, education, social position, type of work, context and conditions. These aspects will be covered thoroughly throughout the analysis of the three discourses.

Research questions

This bachelor thesis will seek to find an answer to the main research question by collecting relevant empirical data:

How do different discourses shape perspectives on child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector?

This research question consists of two key elements: the different discourses on child labour and child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector. It is necessary to reach a comprehensive understanding of the three discourses before being able to analyse how they frame child labour in the cocoa sector in Ghana. Therefore, the analysis will be divided into two parts. Each of these two interlinking parts will answer one of the following sub-questions:

1. How do different discourses frame notions on childhood?

2. How is child labour in the context of the Ghanaian cocoa sector perceived through different discourses?

Conceptual model

Figure 1: conceptual model of the three discourses in relation to child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector

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Methodology

Case description

Figure 2: Global cocoa export flows, UNCTAD, 2006.

While more than two-thirds of the cocoa production is originating from the West-African continent alone, most of its purchasers and consumers are located in countries in the Global North (see figure 2), with Europe as the world’s primary consumption region (OECD, 2007). Since the 1960s, cocoa demand has amplified tremendously, accompanied by a higher pressure on cocoa producing regions. The vast increase of cocoa supply was mainly provoked by the structural adjustments programs (SAPs), under the condition of market liberalization (Anyinam, 1994). These SAPs caused Ghana to be an externally-oriented economy, highly dependent on its export product. More recently, rehabilitation and replanting schemes have been put in practice on Ghanaian cocoa farms, to meet the high international cocoa demand (Wessel & Quist-Wessel, 2015). Because the Ghanaian state is so

dependent on its cocoa supply to the rest of the world, the pressure on cocoa farmers has been continuously expanding. This high pressure has raised international concerns on social, economic, political and environmental issues, such as the cocoa farmers’ income, the

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on cocoa farms (Fountain & Huetz-Adams, 2018). The latter will be a central point of focus in this thesis.

Poverty is widely regarded to be the primary cause of the issues related to the high pressure on the cocoa sector, among which child labour. Cocoa farming often takes place in smallholder businesses (Steijn, 2018). These businesses typically hire workers to engage in cocoa harvesting. However, cocoa farming is generally connected to low and unstable incomes, which often cause smallholders to be unable to afford hired labour on their farms (ibid.). For this reason, the involvement of children on Ghanaian cocoa farms is frequently considered to be a necessary solution to keep the farms subsisting. Research has proven that every time the price of the cocoa fluctuates, the number of children engaged in labour increases (Fountain & Huetz-Adams, 2018).

Since a couple of decades, a lot of media attention has been given to the occurrence of child labour in the cocoa sector. This caused a concerned and resentful public response towards the big cocoa brands with the message that there appeared to be too little effort to tackle the problem of child labour. Around the turn of the century, the cocoa industry started taking more serious measures to combat forced engagement of children in labour (Koek, 2014). The government of Ghana has been operating with numerous agencies, communities, multinationals on the implementation of the national program to fight serious forms of child labour. Nevertheless, it is still a widespread occurring issue (Meijerink et al., 2008). The involvement of so many different parties in the issue of child labour in Ghana makes it a compelling research subject. It is particularly interesting and relevant to understand how different discourses have shaped, and are still shaping, perspectives on child labour in this specific context.

Research method

To analyse the topic of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector, a qualitative research method suits best. The reason for this is that qualitative research is constructionist and interpretivist by nature, meaning that the social world is made by humans which can be analysed through interpretive methods (Bryman, 2016). The main goal of qualitative research is understanding the social world and how people shape (parts of) this world. This thesis aims to understand how a part of the social world, in this case child labour, is represented through different perspectives, also known as discourses. A discourse is a way of thinking about a particular subject that generates certain assumptions about this subject (ibid.). This thesis explores how different discourses make sense of the subject of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector. A language-based approach is central to gathering a detailed collection of qualitative data on the main discourses. A discourse analysis would be a

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suitable method of qualitative research for this, as it frames different perspectives on the subject of child labour, and analyses these by using interpretive means. Bryman defines a discourse analysis very clearly as “an approach to the analysis of talk and other forms of discourse that emphasizes the ways in which versions of reality are accomplished through language.” (Bryman 2016, p. 690). The main purpose of a discourse analysis is to

understand why the social world is perceived in a certain way by analysing the underlying beliefs, views and conceptualizations. Moreover, a discourse analysis provides a critical and comprehensive study on the role of knowledge in shaping a certain perspective on

something.

There are several reasons why a discourse analysis is very applicable on the subject of child labour. Much of politics is expressed through literature and other sources of

knowledge and information. Therefore, a thorough analysis of written and spoken language in texts can provide useful insights into the political position of people in regard to a certain subject. This thesis explores how child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector is perceived by people whose perspectives are influenced by different discourses. Next to providing a critical and comprehensive understanding of different discourses, there are some more advantages of using a discourse analysis as a main method of research. As has been mentioned before, a discourse analysis identifies different ways of thinking about a certain subject. The detailed examination of knowledge that shapes discourses leads to a high measurement validity: the

degree to which the measure of a concept truly reflects that concept (Bryman 2016, p. 41).

Analysing a subject through a very precise method leads to a detailed understanding of the key subject. Another advantage of using a discourse analysis is that data can be collected from a broad range of relevant sources. People’s perspectives are documented in a wide variety of sources, that include scientific articles, media, books, and policy papers (Bryman, 2016).

This discourse analysis will cover the three dominant discourses by using relevant literature up until a point of theoretical saturation. This data will provide a theoretical basis that can be used to assess the occurrence of these discourses within the context of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector. To collect information on this context, additional literature will be used in the form of videos, blogs, reports, and newspaper articles. This extensive collection of formal and informal information is expected to generate an inclusive insight in how child labour is perceived by different discourses in the Ghanaian cocoa sector. In this way, this thesis will try to reach a comprehensive answer to the question how the three discourses shape perspectives on child labour in the cocoa sector in Ghana.

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Analysis

Work-free childhoods discourse

The work-free childhoods discourse gained a lot of popularity in the 1990s, when

international anti-child labour campaigns were on the rise as a result of more media attention to the incidence of child labour occurring on a vast scale around the world (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). These campaigns were led by the idea that children should not work; a notion that strongly rejects the involvement of all children in labour. The discourse that finds its origin in this notion regards all children around the world as the same, implying that every child should experience equal chances to experience a childhood as a time to play, learn and develop (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). The engagement of children in labour is perceived to be wrong, as this would have harmful effects on the wellbeing of a child and therefore hinder their

development and education (Koek, 2014). Child labour is only legitimized if it occurs on an informal level, where children would help out with the family or earn a bit of pocket money by, for example, doing some house chores. The discourse that promotes these work-free

childhoods has been shaping international policies for decades and is the global norm that

has been framing the visions of many (Western) organisations, such as the International Labour Organisation, and governments, for a long time (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). Improving the circumstances and conditions of children in labour is the main short-term objective underpinning this discourse. The major long-term goal of the work-free childhoods perspective is, as the name already suggests, to abolish and eradicate child labour

completely (Abebe & Bessel, 2011). This objective is evidently represented in target 7 of the 8th Sustainable Development Goal established by the United Nations:

“We should take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms.” (UN, 2015)

The United Nations is one of many international organisations that strive for a world free of all forms of labour. The definition of child labour by the UN is one that abides by the work-free childhoods perspective. It describes child labour as the engagement of children in work that deprives them of their childhood, potential and dignity, and is harmful to their

development (UN, 2015). It is important to keep in mind that this definition does not refer to every kind of work by children. If it does not have negative consequences to their health and development or interfere with their education, the term ‘child labour’ does not apply.

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However, it is often not that easy to draw a clear distinction between this and what is assumed to be ‘real’ child labour. This matter of debate will be further discussed in the analysis of the socio-cultural discourse.

The work-free childhoods discourse is addressing child labour through a universal idea of children and childhood. The global child should enjoy his or her childhood free from engagement in labour (UN, 2015). Many international campaigns promote this idea and introduced it as a universal notion that ought to be put into practice all over the world. It is, however, questionable if this vision on childhood is applicable to all children around the world, in regard to the culture and context they are situated in. Critics discuss that the work-free childhoods discourse is determined by a Eurocentric vision that only applies to a small group of children tied to a specific culture. This ‘ideal childhood’ is argued to be nothing more than a ‘Western childhood’ (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). The ideology in Western societies regards children as being set apart from responsibilities of adulthood, which include working (Valentine & McKenndrick, 1996). However, not all children around the world experience this ideal childhood without adult-responsibilities as formulated by Western visions. According to critics, the engagement of children in labour in non-Western countries is often criminalized by (international) policies and laws which are shaped by an idealized norm that children should not work (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). This ideology is underpinning the socio-cultural discourse on child labour and will be discussed more thoroughly in the next paragraph.

Education is a central aspect in the work-free childhoods discourse, since (the lack of) it is intrinsically linked to child labour. According to this discourse, children should be prevented from being engaged in work, primarily so that it does not disadvantageously interfere with their education (Abebe, 2009). One of the main targets of the work-free childhoods discourse is to make formal schooling more available, accessible, acceptable, and adaptable for

everyone (Tomasevski, 2001), so that education becomes a more reliable path to livelihood security (Bunting, 2005). Emphasis is placed on the role of formal education in shaping future adults (Boyden et al., 2000). Indian sociologist Neera Burra explains how education can be a major factor in eliminating child labour. Her visions on child labour and schooling are

consistent with the work-free childhoods attitude. Burra (1995) discusses how formal education for children in all societies will remove them from being engaged in labour. Therefore, she puts a priority on learning, and not working, as the most important driver for child development: ‘learning should not be in workshops, factories or mines but in schools’ (Burra, 1995). Because of the fact that education has acquired a high international status in the world we live in today, discourses are increasingly focusing on making education available for everyone (King, 2007). Globalization reinforces the role of international

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organisations, such as the World Bank and the UN, in shaping and implementing education policies (Verger et al., 2012). Good examples of these are the Millennium Development Goals and the more recent Sustainable Development Goals (see figure 3). These goals promote education worldwide as a human right that should be available to all children in the world (ibid.). Also, transnational social justice movements have been gaining more popularity and influence in transmitting the ideological message of education for all on a global level.

Figure 3: Sustainable Development Goal 4 on education, UN, 2015

International education policies have been encouraging the idea that education is the most crucial activity for children. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child strives for an elimination for any kind of work that disturbs children’s school attendance (Abebe, 2009). International laws have stated that children can participate in the labour force, as soon as they reach an age at which their mandatory formal education is finished (ILO, 1999).

Socio-cultural discourse

The socio-cultural discourse on child labour emphasizes that laws and policies addressing child labour should not be universalized, but rather should take into account the local culture and social context in which children are engaged in labour (Abebe, 2009). This discourse is regarded to be opposing and rejecting the work-free childhoods discourse and, particularly, its Westernized notion of the global child, which is widely applied to children in all societies (ibid.). This perspective draws attention to the socio-cultural aspects of child labour on a smaller scale. The socio-cultural discourse has gained attention and popularity more recently than the first-mentioned discourse. Its main critic on the work-free childhoods perspective is that it provides insufficient insights into the contemporary structures that shape the livelihood and family relations in different contexts (Bourdillon, 2006).

“Any attempt to prevent children from working is Eurocentric, as their work is an integral part of everyday life and is indispensable to family livelihoods.”

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Abebe and Bessell (2011) argue that in some cultures children actually benefit from working, as it contributes positively to the development of skills and knowledge that is more useful in their own culture and community. Moreover, supporters of the socio-cultural discourse discuss how children who are engaged in labour can attain a feeling of responsibility that is crucial when they transform into adulthood (Bourdillon, 2006). Advocates of the socio-cultural discourse argument that children in some regions can actually be harmed, instead of

protected by the policies that hinder them from participating in labour (Ennew et al., 2005). These policies are a result of people’s Eurocentric vision that children around the world share similar experiences of childhood (Bourdillon, 2006). They are generally still driven by the idea that all children should enjoy a childhood free of labour; the key vision of the work-free

childhoods perspective. According to Canadian anthropologist Wade Davis (2014), it is ineffective to create policy interventions in non-Western countries if the diversity of children and childhood worldwide is not recognized. This lack of the acknowledgement of diversity makes it impossible to address the local conditions and circumstances under which child labour takes place.

The fact that the socio-cultural discourse is not necessarily against the incidence of child labour does not mean that it supports all kinds of child labour. According to the International Labour Organisation, there is a big distinction between harmful, hazardous child labour on the one hand and educative child work that is beneficial for children’s personal development on the other (ILO, 1999). Child labour is defined by the ILO as work that is carried out under circumstances that are likely to harm the health, safety, or morals of children. In this

definition, child labour refers to the engagement of children in work that is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous, and/or interferes with their education in a disadvantageous way (ILO, 1999). An example of an extreme, but unfortunately not

uncommon, form of child labour is the involvement of children in slavery (UNICEF, 2002). All three discourses in this thesis strongly reject and fight this type of child labour. The ILO distinguishes this dangerous and harmful child labour from child work. It discusses how the participation of children in work can actually be regarded as something positive, as it contributes to the attainment of knowledge and skills (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). This kind of child work was already mentioned in the analysis of the work-free childhoods discourse and refers to, for instance, children helping out with the family or participating in activities for pocket money outside school hours. For this reason, not all work done by children is an aim of elimination by (international) policies. There is, however, only a thin boundary between what is considered to be acceptable child work and harmful child labour. This makes it very difficult to design policy interventions that tackle child labour effectively (Ansell, 2016). The ILO’s distinction of the two subjects neither takes into account the various complex forces

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that make children involved in labour. Defining something as child labour or not depends on a great variety of factors, including age, labour conditions, and the laws and regulations of national governments (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). This again draws attention to the current lack of acknowledgement of differences between local contexts (Abebe & Bessel, 2011). Helping out with the family in Western countries can imply something completely different than helping out with the family in other countries. Therefore, the socio-cultural discourse

emphasizes the need to understand the engagement of children in labour as a complicated issue that depends strongly on the context in which children live (Abebe, 2009).

Again, the education aspect of child labour is a critical point of attention in the socio-cultural discourse. There is a significant difference between the standpoints of the work-free

childhoods discourse and the socio-cultural discourse on the importance of formal education. Whereas the first one considers education through schooling as a universal right to all

children in the world, the latter is not so certain about this (Abebe & Bessell, 2011).

According to proponents of the socio-cultural discourse, the knowledge that children acquire in school is not necessarily working in their best interest and could actually be inferior to the knowledge they get from engaging in work. Children who participate in work could find friends and obtain skills that can be more useful for their current and future life than regular school courses (Bourdillon, 2006).

“Children’s work is also defended on grounds that it provides apprenticeships and transmits skills, as well as producing socialization into adult roles.” (Bass 2004)

Many institutions currently support and promote the ideology that education is a human right to all children, and should be implemented around the entire globe (Tomasevski, 2001). Critics claim, however, that ‘pushing’ children into formal education has limited certain responsibilities and opportunities to learn essential adulthood lessons (Schildkraut, 2002). Supporters of the work-free childhoods discourse criticize the engagement of children in labour, because it would affect their enrolment in schools negatively and is therefore

disadvantageous for their personal development (Abebe, 2009). However, the socio-cultural discourse contradicts this by emphasizing that work and schooling are not necessarily irreconcilable (Ansell, 2004). In many non-Western contexts, children manage to combine school and work effectively. It is therefore important to understand that the socio-cultural discourse on child labour does not reject child enrolment in schools, but criticizes the

implementation of Westernized education universally. Children can definitely acquire a lot of knowledge and social skills by going to school (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). But again, schools should teach the children what is really important and useful in their culture instead of

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implementing a universal norm of what education entails (ibid.). The current worldwide education policies that are mainly promoted by Westernized ideals are spreading across the entire world (McGrath, 2010). Also, in the Global South, this formal education has been implemented by Western organisations, such as UNICEF. Although the effects of these education implementation policies seem to be very positive, there is little attention to the real implications of it. Gender parity, literacy and gross enrolment rates have increased

tremendously (see figure 4), an achievement that is music to the ears of many international organisations. However, there is little attention to the fact that this form of education in the Global South has also led, and is still leading, to social exclusion, death of cultures, and poverty (Davis, 2014). This approach will be touched upon further in the paragraph on the

political economy discourse. The main argument of the socio-cultural discourse is that

education policies can only be effective if they shift their attention from the measurable outcomes of education, as depicted in figure 4, to the real (disadvantageous) consequences for children in the Global South.

The socio-cultural discourse on child labour places emphasis on the incidence of child labour in local contexts and cultures, instead of regarding child labour as a global issue that should be tackled with international institutions (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). Supporters of this

discourse call out for more recognition of the positive effects that child labour can have on children’s development of knowledge and skills. The socio-cultural perspective also acknowledges the occurrence of child labour as an integral part of family relations and the livelihood situation in certain contexts (ibid.).

Figure 4: Successful outcomes of education, but is this really the case?’, UNESCO Education For All Global Monitoring Report, 2015

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Political economy discourse

Of all three discourses, the political economy discourse has been receiving (global) attention most recently. It resembles the socio-cultural discourse in a few aspects, taking up the same idea that policies on child labour cannot be universally applicable, due to the complex variety of local contexts and cultures in which children live (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). The political economy discourse builds further on this by adding an extra political and economic dimension to the incidence child labour (ibid.). Supporters of this discourse position child labour in the Global South as an inevitable part of contemporary international economic structures in which poor countries depend greatly on demand by the Global North (Abebe, 2009). The current world economy is dominated by neoliberalist structures that push countries to be competitive on the global market. The role of the state is minimalized to generate the necessary conditions for a market-led economy (Bonal, 2011). For this reason, the political economy discourse on child labour criticizes the work-free childhoods discourse for its lack of acknowledgement of the position of child labour within the context of unequal international power relations. Whereas the work-free childhoods discourse appears to blame primarily the local structures in non-Western countries for pushing children to engage in labour, the political economy discourse puts the blame on the international economy that causes many non-Western to remain in deeply exploitative forms of labour (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). The neoliberal macro-economic policy interventions, promoted by the IMF and the World Bank, have forced countries to open their economies to stimulate market-led development (Katz, 2004). This has also facilitated the dispersion of Western values and ideologies on certain subjects, such as child labour, to be imposed in all over the world (Ansell, 2016). As has been mentioned before, these ideologies strive for an elimination of child labour as is evident in the UN’s 8th_{Sustainable Development Goal. Supporters of the}

political economy criticize this vision of a childhood free from exploitative work and identify it as an impossible reality in a time when neoliberal policies are being pushed by international institutions (Abebe, 2009). These neoliberal policies leave many non-Western societies no other choice than to involve children in the labour force. The political economy discourse, as well as the socio-cultural discourse, places emphasis on the need for alternative approaches that pay more attention to the local context in the Global South, as the current approaches are too Western-dominated. These approaches are providing insufficient insights into the lives of millions of working children who are participating in labour to meet the high pressure of the global market demand (ibid.).

Global (education) policies have been implemented in many countries around the world through the neoliberal paradigm of big international actors (McGrath, 2010). These policies

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are driven by common agreements on education that are imposed as being universally applicable. However, just like the socio-cultural discourse, the political economy discourse questions to what extent these are truly universal.

“Today, as we speak, similar education reforms and a common set of education policy jargon are being applied in many parts of the world, in locations that are incredibly diverse both culturally and in terms of economic development.” (Verger et al., 2012)

In the Tedx Talk Schooling the World, Wade Davis (2014) argues that the problem with global policies is that the current form of education is promoted as if it is landing in a ‘void’; as if the Global South did not educate children. This is a false assumption, because

education has always been present in these societies, but with a different focus on what is beneficial for children. By putting Western education into practice in non-Western countries the danger of the ‘death of cultures’ emerges (Davis, 2014). As a result of the diffusion of Western education, children do not acquire the knowledge and skills that are useful in their local communities. Davis explains how this can work out in the long run with an example of the Maasai community in Kenya. Nomad children who went to ‘formal’ schools could not return to the nomad community after graduation because they lacked the skills that were necessary in their tribe. As a result, they had to move to Nairobi where the high

unemployment rate made it impossible to find a job, so they drifted to the slums of the city (Davis, 2014). This is a good example of how the neoliberal macro-economic policies can have disadvantageous effects in non-Western societies. The political economy criticizes that the current focus of education policies is more about meeting the core countries’ economic and political agenda, than about the real needs and interests of children (Abebe, 2009). The political economy aspect of child labour shows a contradiction in the notions of international organisations:

“Whereas the powerful ideologies of ILO and UNICEF promote notions of the idyllic childhood, neoliberal economic policies advocated by the IMF and the World Bank discount the capacities of children and the real ‘value’ of their work, while

simultaneously concealing the multiple contexts in which their exploitation is embedded.” (Abebe & Bessell, 2011)

Critics draw attention to the contradiction of international institutions that enforce macro-economic neoliberal strategies on the one hand, and the diffusion of anti-child labour policies on the other. They discuss how these strategies are conflicting, as the current global system actually push more children in the Global South into labour, because of the dependent relation between non-Western and Western societies (Abebe, 2009). According to political economy discourse, global policies are too much focused on Western ideologies as being

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the final goal which all societies should try to achieve. Because of this focus, market-led policies and strategies have been imposed all over the world to operate in favour of the Global North. This global diffusion of Western values is strongly connected to the

modernisation theory of development thinking. This theory proposes modernisation as the solution to the ‘under-developed’ nations in the Global South (Haslam et al., 2017). Modern values and institutions are diffused to facilitate the transition of traditional to modern

societies. The dependency theory of development thinking is contradicting this ideology that all societies should try to catch up with modern ones (ibid.). The perspective of the

dependency theory is underlying the political economy discourse, as it emphasizes the dependent relationship between peripheral countries and core countries (Timmons et al., 2000). This perspective considers poverty in the Global South to be caused by exploitation of the Global North. The political economy discourse discusses how child labour in peripheral countries is occurring due to the dependent position in which these countries are ‘trapped’.

So, according to the political economy discourse, there is a need to understand child labour not only in relation to social and cultural factors, but also the connection with political and economic factors (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). Supporters call out for a deeper understanding of the dynamics that shape child labour as a consequence of global economy interventions. The political economy strongly criticizes the current Western-dominated ideology that is rejecting the involvement of children in labour, but, on the other hand, also pushes children into labour through economic reforms (ibid.). Its main approach explains how children have no other choice than being engaged in labour, due to the exploitative relationship between the Global North and the Global South.

The three discourses in the Ghanaian cocoa sector

Now that the three dominant discourses on child labour have been analysed thoroughly, the focus can turn to how these discourses perceive and shape child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector.

Child labour in Ghana has gained more recognition on the global political agenda since the 1990s, particularly when UNICEF started drawing attention to the fact that millions of children were engaged in labour in the West-African cocoa sector (Dottridge, 2002). Around the turn of the century, many chocolate companies were under fire by fierce criticisms from all over the world. The initial reactions of these companies called out that they had no part in this and put the blame on the cocoa producing farms (BTC, 2014). Cocoa production often takes

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place on small-scale family-owned farms which are difficult to monitor and trace. For this reason, chocolate companies argued that the occurrence of child labour on cocoa farms was beyond their control. Nevertheless, due to a great increase in media attention and research on child labour, the cocoa industry and West-African governments were pressured to collaborate on measures to tackle the incidence of child labour in the cocoa sector (Clark & Gow, 2011). These measures were presented the Harkin-Engel-Protocol, sometimes referred to as the Cocoa Protocol, in 2001. The ultimate goal of this protocol is the eradication of the worst forms of child labour from the cocoa industry, as defined by the International Labour Organisation (1999). However, results of recent research on child labour in Ghana show that the goal of the protocol is still far from being achieved (Koek, 2014). Child labour in Ghana is still very common and widespread (Lambon-Quayefio & Nkechi Srodah Owoo, 2018). More than seventy different agencies operate in the Ghanaian cocoa sector to tackle child labour (Koek, 2014). This wide variety of actors will be covered in the following section, with a particular focus on the discourse from which they address the occurrence of child labour.

The chocolate industry

There are many cases in which children are forced to engage in heavy labour under dangerous circumstances. In the last couple of decades, more and more people have become conscious and aware about the bittersweet taste of chocolate: child slavery. This awareness was raised by media reports that documented how children even younger than twelve years of age were sold on farms as work slaves (BTC, 2014). This revelation caused a horrified response by many chocolate consumers in Western countries. Dutch reporter Teun van de Keuken decided to dig deeper into the origin of chocolate after being informed about child labour and the harmful circumstances on cocoa plantations. For the television programme Keuringsdienst van Waarde, he aimed to gain more information on the

occurrence of child labour in West Africa (KRO, 2003). Van de Keuken discovered that big international chocolate brands were rather obscure about the involvement of children in their cocoa production. For this reason, he decided to create his own chocolate brand that would be focused on fairness, in the form of anti-(child)slavery, and transparency on the cocoa’s origin (Abu Ghazaleh et al., 2018). His Tony’s Chocolonely chocolate has ever since become a big success. This chocolate brand and its high consumption numbers are a good example of how awareness and fairness in the cocoa industry has been on the rise for a while. Tony’s Chocolonely’s ideology of a 100% slave-free cocoa production is very well represented in the work-free childhoods discourse on child labour. The vast majority of its consumers are located in Western countries, where the leading ideology rejects the engagement of children

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in any kind of labour (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). Tony’s Chocolonely’s anti-child labour vision also becomes apparent in the education projects that the brand’s foundation puts into practice in several Ghanaian communities (Tony’s Chocolonely, n.d.). The work-free childhoods discourse and Tony’s Chocolonely share common beliefs about the negative effects of child labour on children’s development and emphasize the importance of education for all children.

Besides Tony Chocolonely, many other chocolate brands seem to have become less ignorant to the occurrence of child labour on their cocoa farms (BTC, 2014). About twenty years ago, big chocolate companies, such as Nestlé, Ferrero and Hershey’s, often put the responsibility of the circumstances on farms in the hands of the cocoa producers and processors (Koek, 2014). They argued that it was impossible to trace the cocoa back to its origin, due to the small size of cocoa farms, the large number of intermediate cocoa traders, and the high incidence of cocoa smuggling (ibid.). Nowadays, there is much stricter control on the production chain and the circumstances on farms. The cocoa industry has been working together with communities, organisations and the Ghanaian government to be able to trace the origin of cocoa. The industry has proclaimed to have invested more than 75 million dollar in several programs to tackle child labour in the West-African cocoa sector (BTC, 2014). The cocoa industry is also committed to promote the enrolment of Ghanaian children in school, as quality education is regarded as a very important factor in diminishing child labour (Burra, 1995).

Cocoa communities

Cocoa farming in Ghana often takes place on family-owned, smallholder farms in rural communities (Steijn, 2018). Poverty generally lies at the root of the challenges that cocoa farmers face. An average farmer in Ghana only receives a small part of the total cocoa price (BTC, 2014). The majority of it goes to the cocoa buyers and processors, usually big

chocolate brands with an important position in the global chocolate market. The low income of cocoa producers is often a big cause for the engagement of children on cocoa-producing farms in Ghana (Fountain & Huetz-Adams, 2018). In 1993, Ghanaian cocoa communities brought the Kuapa Kokoo organisation into being (Koek, 2014). This farmer’s union has raised awareness to the incidence of child labour on a local, regional, and national scale. They put a central focus on education as a means to eradicate the involvement of children on Ghanaian cocoa farms (Baradaran & Barclay, 2011). The Kuapa Kokoo organisation

conforms with the work-free childhoods perspective, as they reject child labour and promote education for everyone. There are, on the other hand, also cocoa communities in Ghana,

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that legitimize the involvement of children in labour. These farms are often situated in more traditional communities in which cocoa farming is typically a family business. The cocoa production on these family farms often involves all members of the household to maintain the livelihood situation (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). This case is particularly represented by the socio-cultural discourse on child labour. In this perspective, the occurrence of child labour is acknowledged as an integral part of the family household (ibid.). This perspective suggests that children’s engagement in labour not only maintains subsistence, but also causes the development of useful cultural knowledge and skills (Bass, 2004).

Government

The Ghanaian state is very dependent on its cocoa export (Hainmueller et al., 2011). For many decades, child labour has enabled peripheral countries, such as Ghana, to supply core countries with low-priced commodities like cocoa. This system is highly criticized by the dependency theory on development thinking and the political economy discourse on child labour. These emphasize the marginalisation of children in Ghana as a result of exploitation by global capitalism (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). The Ghanaian government has agreed on implementing macroeconomic neoliberal reforms to secure its important cocoa-supplying position in the global economy (Katz, 2004). Supporters of the political economy discourse argue that these market-led reforms were accompanied by policies that leave Ghanaian communities no other choice than to involve children in the labour force. Yet, even though international institutions have imposed neoliberal strategies, with an increased number of children involved in labour as result, they have also pressurized the state of Ghana to sign the ILO’s convention on child labour (Abebe, 2009). This means that, since a couple of years, the Ghanaian government has agreed to take responsibility in reducing, combatting, and preventing child labour (Koek, 2014). Since then, the government has cooperated with cocoa communities and local authorities to implement anti-child labour policies on cocoa farms (ibid.). However, child labour practices are still common in Ghana (Lambon-Quayefio & Nkechi Srodah Owoo, 2018). The government has often found itself being in the centre of criticism by many who claim that the ILO’s convention has not been adequately put into practice (Archampong, 2001). A lack of motivation, due to extremely low salaries, could provoke the corrupting of child labour inspectors. This can cause them to turn a blind eye to those who employ children illegally (ibid.). More recently, there have been stricter procedures by government agents to control cocoa farms, prosecute violations, and legislate minimum age laws (ILO, 2002). Furthermore, Ghanaian national laws have implemented education policies, induced by international institutions, to get more children enrolled in school, and less

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in child labour (ibid.). In this case it is again apparent how influential the work-free childhoods discourse is in shaping policies.

NGOs and international agencies

Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international agencies are generally very supportive of the work-free childhoods discourse. The core ideology of this discourse finds its origin in the Global North, and is dispersed through international institutions to countries in the Global South (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). A couple of big international actors that play an important role in the dispersion of this Eurocentric ideology include the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI), and the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF). Many of their projects in Ghana are aimed at the eradication of child labour in the cocoa sector. The main goal of the ICI is, for example, promoting the protection of children in cocoa-producing communities, to secure a better future for them and their families (ICI, 2018). Many NGOs and international agencies in Ghana also emphasize the importance of education for all children. Education strategies are put into practice in communities, following the message of the work-free childhoods discourse that education is a human right to

everyone (UN, 2015). Big international organisations, such as the Unites Nations and the World Bank, have been influencing government policies for a long time (Verger et al., 2012). They abide by the vision that ‘childhood is synonymous with school, while adulthood is related to work (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). Organisations that operate in Ghana often adhere to the slogan of creating opportunities for youth in poor societies by educating them. Critics argue that this ideology is dominated by the ‘white man’s burden’. The white man’s burden, originating from Rudyard Kipling’s 1899 poem, insinuates the feeling of responsibility of the Western world in civilizing non-Western societies. American economist William Easterly argues how the current white man’s burden is still very present in the world. He criticizes the present international organisations that act as if they carry the responsibility for ‘improving’ the situation in the Global South according to Western standards (Easterly, 2006).

Supporters of Easterly’s vision address how these organisations Westernize the Ghanaian cocoa communities with their anti-child labour and pro-education ideologies (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). They call for more acknowledgement of the local culture and the economic situation of smallholder farms, that put child labour in a different perspective than the work-free childhoods discourse.

More recently, social movement groups have started to pay more attention to the needs of children on a local scale, instead of regarding all children around the world as the same. The Eurocentric notion that all children should enjoy a childhood free from labour is beginning to

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change. There is also increasingly more awareness for the economic and political factors, on a local, but international scale, that play a key role in the incidence of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector (Abebe & Bessell, 2011).

Child labour: still widespread?

Even though many international institutions promote the perspective of work-free childhoods, child labour is still very common on Ghanaian cocoa farms (Meijerink et al., 2008). To tackle child labour effectively, there is a need for a clear distinction of what it refers to. As has been discussed in the paragraph on the socio-cultural discourse, it is difficult to accurately give one definition to child labour, and create effective policies based on this definition (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). ILO’s distinction of child labour and child work rejects the involvement of children on Ghanaian cocoa farms if it has harmful effects on their health or interferes with their schooling (ILO, 1999). This harmful child labour is the main target of elimination by the chocolate industry, international organisations, social movements, and governments. They conform to the UTZ Code of Conduct to identify under what conditions children can work on cocoa farms (Ingram et al., 2014). The terms of the Code of Conduct allow children under the age of 15 to help with cocoa production, but only if it happens outside of school hours and under surveillance by an adult (Steijn, 2018). This definition is, however, still subjective to interpretation, as it raises the question where the boundary lies between helping and

working. Helping out with the family in Western societies can refer to something completely

different than helping out with the family in peripheral countries. In Ghana, this term can also refer to working on a family-owned cocoa farm. Western countries are more likely to consider this as harmful child labour, because it may disadvantageously affect their health and

participation in education (Abebe, 2009). Due to the difficulty in defining child labour, it is very difficult to design policies that tackle child labour effectively (Ansell, 2016). Moreover, the current conception of ILO is argued to not take into account the complex variety of socio-cultural local forces, as well as politico-economic dimensions of child labour. This also causes the ineffectiveness of many anti-child labour policies in Ghana (ibid.). Child labour is a symptom of deeper problems that cannot be tackled by anti-child labour legislation. The political economy discourse addresses the occurrence of child labour in the cocoa sector as a consequence of neoliberal reforms and macroeconomic politics by the Global North (Abebe & Bessell, 2011). Policy interventions in Ghana are criticised for not being effective, because they do not recognize the exploitative relationship of peripheral societies and core countries.

At present, there is a developing trend that shifts away from the Eurocentric vision, and more towards the socio-cultural and political economy discourse. Yet in Ghana, the work-free

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childhoods discourse is still widely present on the agenda of the important actors in the cocoa sector.

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Conclusion

Chocolate demand is getting higher and higher. For this reason, cocoa farmers in Ghana experience an increasing pressure to produce high yields. However, their extremely low income does not support them to afford enough hired workers on their farms. Children are involved in cocoa production labour on Ghanaian farms to meet the high global cocoa demand. The widespread occurrence of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector has been analysed in the perspective of three different discourses.

The work-free childhoods discourse rejects the involvement of children in labour strongly. This discourse is widely assumed to be the right one, as it diffuses a Westernized vision on child labour around the world. There is a key focus on the importance of universally

implementing formal schooling and anti-child labour legislation in Ghanaian communities.

The socio-cultural discourse on child labour emphasizes the social and cultural aspects of the local context in which child labour takes place. It contradicts the work-free childhoods discourse by approaching child labour not as something negative. Whereas the work-free childhoods discourse regards children in all contexts as vulnerable victims of forced labour, the socio-cultural discourse puts them in a position of competent actors in the labour force. Supporters of this discourse address child labour as a necessary contribution to maintain the family livelihood situation. They also promote the development of useful knowledge and skills that children gain from being engaged in labour.

The political economy discourse adds an extra dependency dimension to the subject of child labour. The local context in which child labour occurs is shaped by political and economic structures on a global scale. This discourse explains how children are in fact forced into labour because of the macroeconomic neoliberal reforms that the Global North imposed all around the world.

The discourse analysis provides a detailed understanding of how different discourses shape perspectives on child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector. Western-dominated notions have been very influential in shaping anti-child labour policies for a fair number of decades.

Legislation and policy-making in Ghana has become increasingly homogenised by a variety of actors, including the chocolate industry, cocoa communities, the Ghanaian government, and international (non-governmental) organisations and agencies. However, a trend is developing towards recognizing the social, cultural, economic, and political factors that have

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tremendous effects on the occurrence of child labour on Ghanaian cocoa farms. This trend acknowledges that the experience of individual children is shaped by contextual diversity.

All discourses agree on that dangerous and harmful child labour should be eradicated. The more recent ideologies explain how not all child labour should be aim of eradication in

Ghana. The analysis of the three discourses has addressed the importance of understanding that not all forms of child labour involve enslaved children whose engagement in labour has detrimental effects on their mental, physical and social health. The central point of focus is the recognition of child labour under the social and cultural circumstances on Ghanaian farms. Moreover, there is a need for acknowledgement of the situation of children who are being exploited by global capitalism. Ghanaian cocoa smallholders often have no other choice than to involve children on their farms, as a result of high dependency on the Global North. Current policies in Ghana are too focused on implementing Eurocentric ideas to tackle the incidence of child labour. There is a need to critically understand and acknowledge the extremely diverse contexts in which children work, to create effective policies on child labour.

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Discussion

The detailed analysis of child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector has changed my attitude towards the subject completely. Whereas child labour is typically considered as something extremely negative in my (Western) environment, a thorough literature research has taught me that there are more ways of approaching the subject. However, during the writing process I noticed the difficulty I experienced in trying to discuss all the three discourses as neutral as possible. Particularly after analysing the socio-cultural and political economy discourse, I was aware that the work-free childhoods discourse did not fit so much in my perspective

anymore. Regardless of my preconception I tried to discuss all three discourses separate from my own standpoint.

Furthermore, it was sometimes quite difficult to completely understand the three discourses as separate perspectives. Even though they all have different ideologies and notions regarding child labour, they are continuously affecting and intertwined with each other. Whereas the socio-cultural discourse has evolved in reaction to the work-free childhoods discourse, the political economy was again a reaction to the socio-cultural discourse. Sometimes it also confused me a little that the first-mentioned discourses have such clear opinions on how child labour should look like in practice, while the other one is more a critical discourse. Whereas the work-free childhoods discourse is obviously rejecting child labour, the socio-cultural discourse accepts it in a local perspective. In contrast, the political economy perspective does not represent an ideal vision of child labour, but seems to only provide a critical response to the global economy that causes the involvement of children in labour.

Moreover, the analysis of the discourses in the Ghanaian cocoa sector covers a wide range of subjects; more than I initially thought. I had to be careful not to go into too much depth in other subjects, such as education and the underlying forces of child labour, since these subjects are not the key variables in this thesis. The realization of the wide range of subjects connected to child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector does provide an interesting

framework to further research. Child labour in other sectors in Ghana, or even in other countries seems a very fascinating topic to analyse. Moreover, while searching for literary works on child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector, my interest was caught by the subject of education on different scale levels. The analysis of this thesis has also provided a small discourse analysis on education perspectives. This would be a very interesting topic to dedicate further research to.

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Child labour in the Ghanaian cocoa sector : an interpretative analysis of three dominant discourses on child labour in the cocoa sector in Ghana