Latest news with #WorldDayAgainstChildLabor
DW
4 hours ago
- General
- DW
Child Labor Day: The plight of child laborers in Uganda – DW – 06/13/2025
06/13/2025 June 13, 2025 As the world marks World Day Against Child Labor, Uganda is grappling with millions of children trapped in child labor. Experts say laws protecting children from hazardous labor in sub-Saharan Africa are still poorly enforced and many communities are unaware of available support.
The Star
10 hours ago
- The Star
Unicef calls for increased protection for migrant children in Cambodia
PHNOM PENH: In the celebration of the World Day Against Child Labor, the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) in Cambodia on Thursday (June 12) called for increased action to safeguard the rights of children affected by migration. A recent study showed that children who migrate within Cambodia and to neighbouring countries face risks of trafficking, abuse, exploitation, and child labour, among others, said a Unicef press release. "Child labour strips children of their right to a safe and healthy childhood, keeps them out of school, and damages their physical and mental well-being," said Will Parks, Unicef representative to Cambodia. "Children who migrate, whether alone or with family, internally or across borders, are especially vulnerable to these risks," he said. "Without proper documentation, protection, or access to education, migrant children are at a higher risk of exploitative work." Parks said Unicef has been working closely with government authorities and stakeholders to bolster cross-border child protection systems between Cambodia and neighbouring countries to ensure access to essential services. The press release said that over the last decade, Cambodia has taken major steps to protect its children from violence, exploitation, and abuse. Between 2010 and 2021, the proportion of working children dropped from 37 per cent to 17 per cent. "Despite progress, this still represents one in five children in Cambodia who are economically active," the press release said. The recent study found that migration is often driven by poverty and that children who migrate to neighbouring Thailand face heightened risks of child labour, particularly when separated from their families, the press release said. "Children who cross the border illegally are at constant risk of trafficking, abuse, exploitation, and being in conflict with the law," it said. "Many do not attend school as their families depend on their daily income and do not have access to essential services like healthcare." Children engage in work in a variety of settings, including on construction sites and in restaurants, and children below the minimum age engage in child labour situations involving vending, domestic work, garment production, agriculture, seafood processing, fishing, and organised begging, the press release said. "Children with disabilities are among the most vulnerable, as they may be recruited for begging and do not have adequate access to essential services," it added. - Xinhua
Morocco World
a day ago
- Politics
- Morocco World
Morocco Pushes for Scalable Global Action to End Child Labor
Rabat – Morocco urged the international community to explore practical, adaptable solutions to eliminate child labor worldwide, drawing on its own progress in tackling the issue. Speaking in Geneva on Wednesday, Younes Sekkouri, Minister of Economic Inclusion, shared Morocco's experience during a high-level meeting held to mark the 2025 World Day Against Child Labor. 'Morocco has taken concrete steps, and we are still moving forward,' Sekkouri said. 'By hosting the sixth global conference on child labor in February 2026, we hope to influence change far beyond our borders.' Morocco has recorded a 55% drop in child labor since 2017. In 2023, around 110,000 children aged 7 to 17 were found to be engaged in economic activity, roughly 1.4% of that age group. The majority of these children, about 60%, worked to support their families, often in rural areas. Although such work may not always fall under formal definitions of child labor, Sekkouri insisted that it should no longer be tolerated. He pointed to several levers behind the country's progress. Chief among them is Morocco's rollout of universal social protection. Today, the program supports around seven million children and looks to remove the economic pressures that drive families to put their children to work. The government has also expanded access to early childhood education. A nationwide push to make preschool available to all children aged four and up has relied on partnerships with civil society groups and a flexible model tailored to local realities. 'Investing in early education gives children a chance to thrive, not work,' Sekkouri said. He also noted the importance of strong governance. Morocco has strengthened its inspection systems, worked closely with the judiciary, and adopted key international conventions and protocols. Despite these gains, Sekkouri acknowledged the deeper challenge of turning successful national models into global solutions. 'We need to understand what allows local strategies to expand and address the problem globally,' he said. 'This is where the international conversation must go.' He called for more multilateral partnerships to support creative, context-sensitive approaches. 'No country can solve this alone,' he added. The event, organized by Morocco's Permanent Mission and the International Labour Organization (ILO), took place alongside the 113th International Labour Conference, running from June 2 to 13 in Geneva. The gathering brought together ministers from Asia, Latin America, and Europe, as well as senior ILO officials and development partners. It also saw the launch of a new joint ILO-UNICEF report offering updated global data on child labor. The findings sparked discussions on how to speed up progress and meet international targets. The ILO, for its part, renewed its call for countries to ratify Convention No. 138 on minimum working age and to fully implement Convention No. 182 on the worst forms of child labor. Tags: child abuseChild LaborMoroccoMorocco child labor
Roya News
a day ago
- Roya News
Nearly 100,000 children in Jordan forced into labor
Marking World Day Against Child Labor on Thursday, Hamada Abu Nijmeh, Director of the Workers' House Center, warned of a continuing rise in child labor across Jordan amid weak enforcement and the absence of effective long-term solutions. Speaking to Roya, Abu Nijmeh said the latest official figures from the Department of Statistics, issued in 2016, estimated over 75,000 working children in the country. However, he noted that current estimates by the Workers' House suggest the number is nearing 100,000. A significant portion of these children, he added, are engaged in hazardous jobs such as carpentry, metalwork, and other manual trades. - Inspections falling short - Abu Nijmeh criticized labor inspection efforts, describing them as largely ineffective. 'Only 203 violations are recorded annually,' he said, 'a figure far too low to reflect the true scale of the problem or act as a deterrent.' He explained that the Ministry of Labor is legally responsible for enforcing child labor regulations, with penalties starting at JD 500 and doubling for repeat offenses. However, he stressed that such fines are insufficient to discourage violators. He also pointed to the role of the Ministry of Social Development, which supports families forced to rely on child labor and handles cases involving child beggars, who are often part of the broader labor issue. - Poverty driving child labor - While Jordanian labor law allows children over 16 to work under non-hazardous conditions, Abu Nijmeh noted that these legal safeguards are frequently ignored, especially in the informal sector, such as street vending and seasonal jobs. He identified poverty as the primary driver of child labor, a crisis made worse by the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, which left many families without income. Jordan's three largest cities, Amman, Zarqa, and Irbid, as well as Mafraq and other areas, report the highest rates of working children, he said. According to Abu Nijmeh, agriculture employs nearly 30 percent of working children, exposing them to serious health and safety risks. Many of these children are not covered by Social Security, leaving employers solely responsible for any injuries or compensation.
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Business Standard
a day ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
World Day Against Child Labour 2025: Theme, significance and where we stand
The goal of World Against Child Labour Day 2025 is to raise awareness about the need to create a world free of child labor and ensure that every child enjoys the right to education and a childhood free from exploitation. As per UNICEF, it still affects around 138 million children globally, with 54 million of them involved in dangerous occupations. Even if there has been progress, millions of children still require protection. To do this, it is essential to increase community awareness, improve access to education, and enforce the law more strictly. World Against Child Labour Day 2025 'Theme' "Progress is clear, but there's more to do: Let's speed up efforts!" is the World Day Against Child Labor 2025 theme. The theme for this year highlights the fact that millions of children are being exploited, despite the fact that many nations have successfully decreased the number of child labor cases. Now, World Day Against Child Labour 2025 urges unambiguous, coordinated, and persistent actions to guarantee that every child has access to play, education, and a safe childhood. What is the history of World Child Labour Day? In 2002, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) established the inaugural World Day Against Child Labor. The program was a component of a larger worldwide effort to eradicate child labor. This observance has developed over time into a major worldwide occasion that highlights current facts, highlights best practices, and inspires new initiatives from communities, employers, and governments. With two important conventions, the ILO has long promoted worldwide labor norms to safeguard children: • ILO Convention No. 138 founded the minimum age for employment. • ILO Convention No. 182 bans the worst forms of child labour. World Against Child Labour Day 2025: Significance In keeping with a common understanding, World Day Against Child Labor 2025 places a strong emphasis on speeding activities. In conclusion, the 2025 World Day Against Child Labor is a strong call to action. This day is significant because of the various reasons below: • Global Awareness: It brings the persistent problem of child labor and the pressing need to defend children's rights to the attention of the world community. • Policy Focus: Promotes the strengthening of laws, regulations, and enforcement systems by governments in order to eradicate child labor. • Stakeholder Mobilization: Stakeholder mobilization brings communities, businesses, NGOs, and governments together to work together to end child labor. • Child-Centered Advocacy: This advocacy highlights children's rights to education, safety, and dignity by providing a forum for their views to be heard. • Progress Evaluation: Provides an opportunity to assess progress, exchange best practices, and coordinate with international objectives such as SDG Target 8.7, which aims to eradicate child labor by 2025. World Day Against Child Labour 2025: Target missed Despite progress, India still faces significant problems with child labor. 11.8 million Indian children between the ages of 5 and 17 were working as child laborers, many of them in dangerous settings, according to the 2011 census. However, on Wednesday, the eve of World Day Against Child Labour, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and UNICEF revealed the data. In 2024, about 13.8 crore children worked as children worldwide, with at least 5.4 crore doing dangerous jobs that could endanger their development, safety, or health. However, the global goal of ending child labor by 2025 has not been met yet. In 2024, nearly 138 million children were engaged in child labour. Though progress has been made since 2020, millions are still being denied their right to learn, play and and simply be children. UNICEF and @ilo are urging governments to take action. — UNICEF (@UNICEF) June 11, 2025 How to end child labour in India and worldwide? In India, children are employed in industries like mining, construction, agriculture, carpet weaving, brick kilns, restaurants, and tea shops. India and on a global platform, it has taken a number of measures to eliminate child labor, including: • National Policy on Child Labour (1987) • National Child Labour Project (NCLP) by Ministry of Labour and Employment • District Project Societies (DPS) • Monitoring & Reporting: In 2017 • International Labour Organization (ILO) • United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) • Durban Call to Action • International NGOs such as Save the Children, World Vision, and Bachpan Bachao Andolan.
