Secretary Chao Visits West Africa

Secretary Elaine L. Chao and U.S. Ambassador Mary Carlin Yates met with children who have been the victims of child trafficking at the Kokrobite primary school outside Accra, Ghana.

Secretary Chao visited West Africa for four days in mid-December to see firsthand what the Labor Department is doing to help the most vulnerable children in Ghana, Benin and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In each of these countries, Secretary Chao visited DOL-funded programs that were rehabilitating child soldiers or educating trafficked children who had been exploited for abusive labor.

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao listening to a former child solider describing his experiences at the Belgian Red Cross Center in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. (DOL Photo)

“At every stop along the way, I was impressed by the spirit and bravery of the children I met, many of whom had seen the worst life has to offer,” said Secretary Chao. “But through the dedicated efforts of U.S. government officials, including our Bureau of International Labor Affairs staff, and humanitarian relief organizations these children are reclaiming their lives — one step at a time.”

In one of her stops, the Secretary met with former child soldiers and toured a home for demobilized child soldiers run by the Belgian Red Cross in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The center provides a temporary home, psychosocial support, and vocational training services to former child soldiers. Read the news release

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao visiting the Carrefour d’Ecoute et d’Orientation (CEO) Reception Center for Trafficked Children in Cotonou, Benin, to announce Department of Labor educational programs to rehabilitate trafficked children. (DOL Photo)

Secretary Chao also met with children who have been the victims of child trafficking at the Kokrobite primary school outside of Accra, Ghana.

The Secretary heard first-hand the stories of abuse and suffering that students at the school endured. DOL , through the International Labor Organization's International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor (ILO-IPEC), supports the Kokrobite primary school.

In addition to Kokrobite, the DOL/ILO-IPEC project provides education to trafficked children in a number of other villages in Ghana. Read the news release

Learn more about the Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB).

Learn more about the prevention and rehabilitation of child soldiers.

Secretary Elaine L. Chao visiting the Kokrobite primary school outside Accra, Ghana. The school educates children who have been the victims of child trafficking. (DOL Photo)		U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao visiting the Terre de Hommes Center for Trafficked Children in Cotonou, Benin, to announce Department of Labor educational programs to rehabilitate trafficked children. (Photo/Sean P. Redmond)

U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao with trafficked children in the Kokrobite School outside Accra, Ghana, to launch Department of Labor initiative to combat child labor. (DOL Photo)