Child Trafficking in Africa: Reimagining the Problem
Neil Howard
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
This is an interesting (and very well written) article, but it lacks any engagement with relevant critical literature and the argument is streteched to breaking. As such, I would not publish in its present state.
There is a core assumption in the article that child trafficking is actually an intractable problem (resting on a deeper assumption that it is actually a ‘thing’, a social phenomena that can be abstracted, understood and measured). Yet there is a large body of critical, anthropological, and migration studies literature that contends this. See Hashim and Thorsen, Abebe, Okyere, Howard, Howard and Okyere’s recent book, etc. It is really important that the author(s) engage with this literature (which would likely add some nuance to the argument). It is also the case that this (now very large and established) body of literature challenges the core frame of the paper, that CT is understood as a failure of state practice. In fact, that is more the mainstream development perspective; it is not the perspective of the critical literature.
The focus on African state/governance failure is not without merit, but it runs the risk of dangerously orientalising African statecraft. What of the global political economy within which African states operate and which substantially constructs them? Are there not moral responsibilities for the suffering African children experience that go beyond African borders?
There is a curious narrowing of ‘the image’ of African childhood in this paper. Surely there are multiple overlapping and contested images? Who is gazing? Where?
The discussion on memorialization and its social function is interesting, but it does not really develop the argument meaningfully into how this would address CT. It remains very broad and loose.
There is much promise in this piece but far more is needed to really draw it out.
The English is wonderful. Beautifully written.
Author Response
Comment 1: This is an interesting (and very well written) article, but it lacks any engagement with relevant critical literature and the argument is streteched to breaking. As such, I would not publish in its present state.
[Response]: The compliment is welcome and the concerns regarding the lack of engagement with critical literature has been taken into account. (See L330-393 and L198-294 for a stronger engagement with critical literature on the field and topic).
Comment 2: There is a core assumption in the article that child trafficking is actually an intractable problem (resting on a deeper assumption that it is actually a ‘thing’, a social phenomena that can be abstracted, understood and measured). Yet there is a large body of critical, anthropological, and migration studies literature that contends this. See Hashim and Thorsen, Abebe, Okyere, Howard, Howard and Okyere’s recent book, etc. It is really important that the author(s) engage with this literature (which would likely add some nuance to the argument). It is also the case that this (now very large and established) body of literature challenges the core frame of the paper, that CT is understood as a failure of state practice. In fact, that is more the mainstream development perspective; it is not the perspective of the critical literature.
[Response]: The authors found significant merit with the concerns raised here and looked up the suggested readings. The works enriched our perspective on the topic area and provides some nuance to the arguments we have gone on to make in our revised manuscript. Works consulted and referenced include:
Okyere, Samuel, Boamah, F. Emmanuel, Asante, A. Felix, and Yeboah, Thomas. 2023. Children’s Work in Ghana: Policies and Politics. In: Sabates-Wheeler, Rachel, and James Sumberg (eds) Children’s Work in African Agriculture Bristol: Bristol University Press. pp. 204-232.
Okyere, Samuel, Agyeman, Nana, and Saboro, Emmanuel. 2021. ‘Why Was He Videoing Us?’: The ethics and politics of audio-visual propaganda in child trafficking and human trafficking campaigns. Anti-trafficking review 16: 47-68.
Okyere, Samuel. 2017. ‘Shock and Awe’: A critique of the Ghana-centric child trafficking discourse. Anti-Trafficking Review 9: 92-105.
Thorsen, Dorte. 2013. Weaving in and out of employment and self-employment: Young rural migrants in the informal economies of Ouagadougou and Abidjan. International Development Planning Review 35(2): 203-18.
Howard, Neil. 2017. Child trafficking, youth labour mobility and the politics of protection. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Howard, Neil. 2014. Protecting children or pandering to politics? A critical analysis of anti-child trafficking discourse, policy and practice. In: Veale, Angela, and Giorgia Dona, (eds) Child and youth migration: Mobility-in-migration in an era of globalization. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK. pp. 213-233.
Sabates-Wheeler, Rachel, and James Sumberg. 2023. Children’s Work in African Agriculture: An Introduction. In Sabates-Wheeler, Rachel, and James Sumberg (eds) Children’s Work in African Agriculture. Bristol: Bristol University Press. pp.1-24.
Abebe, Tatek, and Ofosu-Kusi, Yaw. 2016. Beyond pluralizing African childhoods: introduction. Childhood 23(3): 303-316.
Koomson, Bernard, Esmeranda Manful, Dapaah, M. Jonathan, and Yeboah, H. Eric. 2022. I agreed to go because........ examining the Agency of Children within a phenomenon conceptualised as trafficking in Ghana. Children & Society 36(1): 101-117.
Comment 3: The focus on African state/governance failure is not without merit, but it runs the risk of dangerously orientalising African statecraft. What of the global political economy within which African states operate and which substantially constructs them? Are there not moral responsibilities for the suffering African children experience that go beyond African borders?
[Response]: The authors welcome the above concern but do not find our stance on the deficit of state protection for children in Africa as orientalizing. This is because the African Charter of Welfare and Rights of Children (ACWRC), a continental legal instrument developed and adopted by African states is the basis on which we review their lack of implementation of the protection for children’s rights. Okyere’s work does a good job of pointing out how international financial institutions partly propped up the conditions that warranted child labor in Ghana, but African governments have not been exactly prudent with public funds given the bloated cost of running governance and embezzlement of public funds. Financially prudent and responsible governments can still prioritize protection and welfare of children even against the neoliberal reforms orchestrated of international monetary regimes. This is why we chose to be more inward looking with our examination of the problem.
Comment 4: There is a curious narrowing of ‘the image’ of African childhood in this paper. Surely there are multiple overlapping and contested images? Who is gazing? Where?
[Response]: The authors welcome the above concern which was dealt with in L330-392
Comment 5: The discussion on memorialization and its social function is interesting, but it does not really develop the argument meaningfully into how this would address CT. It remains very broad and loose. There is much promise in this piece but far more is needed to really draw it out
[Response]: Our call for memorialization as a way of increasing societal awareness towards child trafficking should be treated as exploratory, and not as a fully-formed, robust perspective. We hope that other scholars find inviting enough to wrestle with as an additional, if not interesting way of imagining a solution to the problem of child trafficking. Admittedly, the cloth on which we have woven our memorialization perspective does have its creases, which we hope future research will pick up on and possibly, straighten out. (See L483-504)
Reviewer 2 Report
The reviewer agrees with the author that current approaches to child trafficking in Africa are insufficient to deal with the problem and a rethinking of responses is appropriate. The paper is also written in accessible style and language. However, a major issue which has not been successfully disposed of in this paper is the link between memorialisation and the problem of child trafficking in Africa today. Memorialisation could meaningfully address historical exploitation by recognising/acknowledging wrongdoings etc. The examples of Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda etc cited in the paper are appropriate and affirm its relevance for historical atrocities. How this is connected to the current challenge of child trafficking is not clear. For a paper that rejects claims that weaknesses in legal normative instruments and national institutions are responsible for the problem of child trafficking, finding solutions in memorialisation is not entirely convincing. It might be helpful to construct a stronger link between child trafficking and memorialisation.
Considering that child trafficking is criminal enterprise and evidence from many African countries suggest weaknesses in criminal justice systems etc., criminalization cannot be replaced, but can only be complemented by other approaches. The paper appears to view child trafficking purely from the victim’s perspective ignoring the perpetrators perspective which would necessitate the strengthening of the criminal justice system. The paper would benefit from some focus on perpetrators and the utility of legal standards and their implementation in addressing this challenge.
On p3, paper states that ‘Observably, anti-trafficking legal frameworks for most African states has been in place for almost two decades. Yet, these broad and ever-growing legislative responses to the problem contrasts sharply with the concerning statistics of child trafficking in Africa.’ It was also mentioned that ‘The implacable trend of child trafficking against the backdrop of extensive legislation signals that new conceptual interrogation of the menace is required in order to generate new ways of understanding the problem.’
– a counterargument could be that legislation as a first step is not followed up with implementation. In other words, legislation is a force for good. Implementation deficits could be blamed for the protracted problem of child trafficking.
Paper further notes on p6 that ‘In other words, societies with destabilized conceptual tools, arising either from colonial experience or unresolved contradictions of statehood, would have difficulties summoning the appropriate conceptual resources to build a state that could effectively respond to human suffering.’ The basis for making this proposition is not well established. In particular, it is unclear how Africa’s colonial history and the idea of ‘unresolved contradictions of statehood’ contribute to or perpetuate child trafficking. The argument here has to be further developed.
On p6, paper notes that ‘To explicate on this, Nigeria presents a crucial example to consider. Writing about the genocidal onslaught of the Nigerian state on the country’s Southeast region during the Nigeria-Biafra War, Achebe (2012, p.138) recalled the use of starvation as a weapon of war.’ An egregious political action that directly led to the death of at least one million children in the then Biafran territory.’ – Good to highlight here how the method of warfare by Nigeria directly violates the Geneva Conventions and International Humanitarian Law. However, also worth acknowledging that the targets were not entirely children but the wider population.
Author criticises the heroic welcome of the military general in the Biafra war and then notes that ‘It is necessary to point out that in Nigeria currently, the history of the Nigeria-Biafra war is not taught in schools, and there has been no memorialization of the children whose lives were cut short to forestall the division of the country. That dark episode of the country’s history endures commemorative silence, not memorialization of its victims, many of whom were children.’ Despite its linkage to international humanitarian law and the potential validity of this proposition, it is not clear why and how this is linked to or relevant to the subject of child trafficking in Nigeria and African countries today. Also, it is not clear how the teaching or non-teaching of this history etc induces or could solve the problem of child trafficking. This has to be better articulated
Might be worth mentioning that the problem of almajiri and recruitment of children by boko haram referenced in the paper can indicate socioeconomic problems but also constitute forms of child trafficking
Author Response
Comment 1: The reviewer agrees with the author that current approaches to child trafficking in Africa are insufficient to deal with the problem and a rethinking of responses is appropriate. The paper is also written in accessible style and language. However, a major issue which has not been successfully disposed of in this paper is the link between memorialisation and the problem of child trafficking in Africa today. Memorialisation could meaningfully address historical exploitation by recognising/acknowledging wrongdoings etc. The examples of Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda etc cited in the paper are appropriate and affirm its relevance for historical atrocities. How this is connected to the current challenge of child trafficking is not clear. For a paper that rejects claims that weaknesses in legal normative instruments and national institutions are responsible for the problem of child trafficking, finding solutions in memorialisation is not entirely convincing. It might be helpful to construct a stronger link between child trafficking and memorialisation.
[Response]: Our call for memorialization as a way of increasing societal awareness towards child trafficking should be treated as exploratory, and not as a fully-formed, robust perspective. We hope that other scholars find inviting enough to wrestle with as an additional, if not interesting way of imagining a solution to the problem of child trafficking. Admittedly, the cloth on which we have woven our memorialization perspective does have its creases, which we hope future research will pick up on and possibly, straighten out. (See L483-504)
Comment 2: Considering that child trafficking is criminal enterprise and evidence from many African countries suggest weaknesses in criminal justice systems etc., criminalization cannot be replaced, but can only be complemented by other approaches. The paper appears to view child trafficking purely from the victim’s perspective ignoring the perpetrators perspective which would necessitate the strengthening of the criminal justice system. The paper would benefit from some focus on perpetrators and the utility of legal standards and their implementation in addressing this challenge.
[Response]: The comment is welcome and the concerns regarding the lack of engagement with the literature on perpetrators. Our understanding is that the studies we appraised already deals with the child trafficking as a clandestine crime for which criminal justice response has remained insufficient. We did not see further engagement with the suggested literature as particularly necessary for our inquiry because we consider that the protection that should ordinarily define the life of children from both society and the state is broken. If that protection is afforded them, criminals have less leverage to perpetuate the crime. For this reason, our navigation to the problem draws from a customized compass.
Comment 3: On p3, paper states that ‘Observably, anti-trafficking legal frameworks for most African states has been in place for almost two decades. Yet, these broad and ever-growing legislative responses to the problem contrasts sharply with the concerning statistics of child trafficking in Africa.’ It was also mentioned that ‘The implacable trend of child trafficking against the backdrop of extensive legislation signals that new conceptual interrogation of the menace is required in order to generate new ways of understanding the problem.’
– a counterargument could be that legislation as a first step is not followed up with implementation. In other words, legislation is a force for good. Implementation deficits could be blamed for the protracted problem of child trafficking.
[Response]: This was taken into consideration and addressed.
Comment 4: Paper further notes on p6 that ‘In other words, societies with destabilized conceptual tools, arising either from colonial experience or unresolved contradictions of statehood, would have difficulties summoning the appropriate conceptual resources to build a state that could effectively respond to human suffering.’ The basis for making this proposition is not well established. In particular, it is unclear how Africa’s colonial history and the idea of ‘unresolved contradictions of statehood’ contribute to or perpetuate child trafficking. The argument here has to be further developed.
[Response]: This was taken into consideration and the section is revised.
Comment 5: On p6, paper notes that ‘To explicate on this, Nigeria presents a crucial example to consider. Writing about the genocidal onslaught of the Nigerian state on the country’s Southeast region during the Nigeria-Biafra War, Achebe (2012, p.138) recalled the use of starvation as a weapon of war.’ An egregious political action that directly led to the death of at least one million children in the then Biafran territory.’ – Good to highlight here how the method of warfare by Nigeria directly violates the Geneva Conventions and International Humanitarian Law. However, also worth acknowledging that the targets were not entirely children but the wider population.
[Response]: This was taken into consideration and the section is removed. We considered that the point about the historical and contemporary harms directed towards children can be made with more straightforward examples.
Comment 6: Author criticises the heroic welcome of the military general in the Biafra war and then notes that ‘It is necessary to point out that in Nigeria currently, the history of the Nigeria-Biafra war is not taught in schools, and there has been no memorialization of the children whose lives were cut short to forestall the division of the country. That dark episode of the country’s history endures commemorative silence, not memorialization of its victims, many of whom were children.’ Despite its linkage to international humanitarian law and the potential validity of this proposition, it is not clear why and how this is linked to or relevant to the subject of child trafficking in Nigeria and African countries today. Also, it is not clear how the teaching or non-teaching of this history etc induces or could solve the problem of child trafficking. This has to be better articulated.
[Response]: This was taken into consideration and the section is removed.
Comment 7: Might be worth mentioning that the problem of almajiri and recruitment of children by boko haram referenced in the paper can indicate socioeconomic problems but also constitute forms of child trafficking.
[Response]: This was taken into consideration and addressed.
Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
The authors have substantively engaged with all of the initial recommendations and have done so convincingly. Hat tip to them.
