The call was made by Geoffrey Chaucer Ofori, the executive director of Juvenile Reform Foundation (JRF)-Ghana, an advocacy group aimed at juvenile justice reform.

According to Ofori, the unwillingness of parents and families to cater for the educational and personal needs of juvenile offenders who have completed a correctional programme, makes them more susceptible to reoffending and thus leading to a life of crime.

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“Parents deem it too risky to invest their time and monies in these young offenders because they consider them a waste of time and resources, a situation which is worrying,” he said.

The situation is compounded when the young offender does not have their biological parents around to see to their day to day, according to Geoffrey Ofori.

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“Acceptance by family members is the first step to successful reintegration for young offenders, but mostly when the parents of these young offenders are dead; the extended family members disassociate themselves from their development. Neglecting them will only heighten recidivism. The extended families should take up the responsibilities of young offenders who have lost their biological parents,” he added.

Correctional facilities in Ghana for young offenders are commonly known as borstals.