Covid-19 crisis could push more into child labour
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| Child labour in Malawi (AFP) |
June 12 is observed as United Nations World Day Against
Child Labour. Taking place amid the economic and job turmoil of the Covid-19 crisis,
it is feared that millions of vulnerable children could be forced into child
labour.
By Robin Gomes
Today, throughout the world, around 218 million children
work, of whom 152 million are in (forced into)child labour, including 73
million who work in hazardous conditions. Of that 152 million, 64 million
are girls and 88 million boys, which translates as almost one in ten of all
children worldwide working as child labourers.
Covid-19 and child labour
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO) and
the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, millions more risk being pushed into child
labour as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, which could lead to the first rise
in child labour after 20 years of progress.
According to a report by the two UN agencies entitled, “COVID-19
and child labour: A time of crisis, a time to act”, child labour
decreased by 94 million since 2000, but that gain is now at risk.
“As the pandemic wreaks havoc on family incomes, without
support, many could resort to child labour,” said ILO Director-General, Guy
Ryder. “Social protection is vital in times of crisis, as it provides
assistance to those who are most vulnerable. Integrating child labour concerns
across broader policies for education, social protection, justice, labour
markets, and international human and labour rights makes a critical
difference.”
“In times of crisis, child labour becomes a coping mechanism
for many families,” warned UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore. “As
poverty rises, schools close and the availability of social services decreases,
more children are pushed into the workforce. As we re-imagine the world
post-COVID, we need to make sure that children and their families have the
tools they need to weather similar storms in the future. Quality education,
social protection services and better economic opportunities can be
game-changers.”
Pope Francis’ appeal
Many of the child labourers work full-time without the
opportunity to go to school and have little or no time to play. Many do not
receive proper nutrition or care and are denied the chance to be children.
Considering the crisis of Covid-19 pandemic, the World Day
Against Child Labour 2020 is calling for the protection of children from child
labour, now more than ever.
In this regard, Pope Francis has appealed to the
international community to protect the numerous boys and girls who, deprived of
their childhood, are forced into child labour. Speaking during his
weekly general audience on Wednesday, he expressed concern that the Covid-19
lockdown, which has pushed families into conditions of extreme poverty, could
force many children into inappropriate jobs.
ILO and child labour
The UN’s International Labour Organization (ILO) launched
the World Day Against Child Labour in 2002 to focus attention on the global
extent of child labour and the action and efforts needed to eliminate it. Each
year on 12 June, the World Day brings together governments, employers and
workers organizations, civil society, as well as millions of people from around
the world to highlight the plight of child labourers and what can be done to
help them.
ILO figures show that more than half of the world’s 152
million child labourers are exposed to the worst forms of child labour such as
work in hazardous environments, slavery, or other forms of forced labour,
illicit activities including drug trafficking and prostitution, as well as
involvement in armed conflict.
No all work is bad
However, not all work should be classified as child labour
that is to be eradicated. Certain types of healthy work, in fact,
contribute to children’s development and to the welfare of their
families. Activities such as helping their parents around the home,
assisting in a family business or earning pocket money outside school hours and
during school holidays, provide children with skills and experience, and help
to prepare them to be productive members of society during their adult life.
Prevalence in Africa, Asia
Africa ranks highest among regions both in the percentage of
children in child labour - one-fifth - and the absolute number of children in
child labour - 72 million. Asia and the Pacific region ranks second highest in
both these measures - 7% of all children and 62 million in absolute terms are
in child labour in this region.
Africa and the Asia-Pacific regions together account for
almost nine out of every ten children in child labour worldwide. The remaining
child labour population is divided among the Americas (11 million), Europe and
Central Asia (6 million), and the Arab States (1 million). In terms of
incidence, 5% of children are in child labour in the Americas, 4% in Europe and
Central Asia, and 3% in the Arab States.
UN aims to end child labour by 2025
This year’s World Day Against Child Labour is being observed
as a virtual campaign, organized jointly by the Global March Against Child
Labour and the International Partnership for Cooperation on Child Labour in
Agriculture (IPCCLA).
In 2015, leaders of UN member states committed themselves to
achieve the UN’s Agenda for Sustainable Development by the year 2030. The
agenda has set 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect
the planet and improve the lives and prospects of everyone and
everywhere. SDG # 8.7 calls for an end to child labour in all its forms
by 2025, which is just 5 years away.
For this reason, the UN General Assembly last year adopted a
resolution declaring 2021 as the International Year for the Elimination of
Child Labour. The resolution highlighted the member states’ commitments
“to 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.”
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