Together to eliminate child labour
More than 150 million children across the world are still affected by child labour and modern slavery. The number has decreased in the last decade, but the Covid-19 pandemic is threatening to reverse the trend. Joint, global action is needed, and this year kick offs a four-year action period to end child labour by 2025. The UN has declared 2021 as the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour, and it provides an opportunity to get the positive development back on track. The International Labour Organization (ILO), a Nobel Peace Prize awarded organization, has initiated a global partnership to encourage legal action and practical change.
Last week, ILO and their partners launched the International Year for the -Elimination of Child Labour in a virtual event, where Kailash Satyarthi, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 together with Malala Yousafzai, took part.
"Nobody is free until every single child is free from exploitation."
The aim of the global partnership called Alliance 8.7 is to eradicate forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking and child labour around the world by 2025 as described in the Sustainable Development Goal 8.7.
"The aim of the global partnership called Aliiance 8.7 is to eradicate forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking and child labour around the world by 2025 as described in the Sustainable Development Goal 8.7."
According to ILO, almost 90 per cent of child labour happens in Africa, Asia and the Pacific. 70 per cent of children in child labour work in agriculture, and almost half of them are doing work that is considered dangerous for their lives and health.
“There is no place for child labour in society,” said ILO Director-General, Guy Ryder. “It robs children of their future and keeps families in poverty. This International Year is an opportunity for governments to step up and achieve Target 8.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals by taking concrete actions to eliminate child labour for good. With COVID-19 threatening to reverse years of progress, we need to deliver on promises now more than ever.”
The International Year will prepare the ground for the V Global Conference on Child Labour (VGC) that will take place in South Africa in 2022. To commit the stakeholders, governments, organisations and individuals are encouraged to identify concrete actions they will take during the International year. Among the member states who took part in the kick off event was the Unites States, who promised a renewed commitment to end child labour under the new Biden administration.
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