TP SP UGA
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Oeganda
Employers and
labour rights stakeholders in Uganda have been encouraged to amplify their
efforts towards prevention of child labour. This emphasis was made during an
event organised by the Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development and
partners to observe the World Day Against Child Labour at Mestil Hotel, Kampala
under the theme: “Let us Act Now on our Commitments: End Child Labour!”
Child Labour
refers to work that is mentally, physically, socially, or morally dangerous and
harmful to children. It is hazardous work, which by its nature or in the
circumstances under which it is performed, jeopardizes the health, safety, and
morals of the children. Child labour is also perceived as work or activities
which interfere with children’s school attendance. In all forms, Child Labour
deprives children of education, skills, and other opportunities and denies them
from securing decent incomes and stable employment as adults.
In observation
of the World Day Against Child Labour, stakeholders focus on promoting concrete
actions and fulfilling the commitments to address the root causes of child
labour, which was at the heart of the Durban Call of Action, adopted at the 5th
Global Conference for Elimination of Child Labour in May 2022 in South Africa.
According to International
Labour Organisation (ILO) global estimates, Child labour remains a persistent
problem in the world today. The latest global estimates indicate that 160
million children (63 million girls and 97 million boys) were in child labour
globally at the beginning of 2020, accounting for almost 1 in 10 of all
children worldwide. Seventy-nine (79) million children; nearly half of all
those in child labour were in hazardous work that directly endangers their
health, safety, and moral development.
In the African
continent, there are 92.2 million (21.6%) child labourers according to ILO and
UNICEF 2020 global estimates. Around 70% are in the agriculture sector,
including fishing, forestry and livestock herding, 19.7% in service and 10.3%
in industry including mining.
The recent Uganda
Bureau of Statistics National Labour Force Survey 2021 revealed that 6.2
million (40% of the 15.7 million) children aged 5-17 years were involved in
child labour excluding those doing household work, with more boys (50.4%) than
girls (49.6%) working. The rates were higher in rural (42%) compared to urban
(32%) areas. The findings revealed that eight in ten of the children aged 5-11
years were working yet they are not supposed to work. The proportion of
children involved in hazardous occupations, and working for long hours, more
than 14 hours a day was almost 3%.
The Senior
Labour Officer, Iganga, Abubaker Waiswa, said that there is a need to simplify
the parenting guidelines and translate them into local languages such that
parents can wake up and understand what their roles are. “Can we have this
integrated into the national education curriculum such that when you move to
education institutions there is signage showing, 'End Child Labour”, added
Abubaker Waiswa.
The Assistant
Commissioner for Youth, and Children Affairs at the Ministry of Gender, Labour
and Social Development, Tollea Franco said that they have embarked on training
the labour officers, senior probation and welfare officers, and community
development officers to address this vice.
The Federation
of Uganda Employers (FUE), Employment Relations Specialist, Geoffrey Kabi, said
that they started taking action in fighting child labour in 1999, by withdrawing
children from tea, rice, and sugar plantations and putting them back in school.
“We are also actively supporting training enterprises across sectors on child
labour due diligence and supporting members to take practical steps to
implement sustainable farming practices”, added Geoffrey Kabi.
The Director International
Labour Organisation (ILO) in East Africa, Khamati Mugalla said that child labour is
both a cause and effect of poverty and they will continue to support the
government in improving access to quality education and training through
vocational training, skilling, and upskilling of the many children who are
dropping out of school in recent years. “While the number of children whose
health, safety, and future development are being put at risk, our experience
confirms that achieving a world free of child labour is within our reach”, said
Khamati Mugalla.
The Commissioner
for Equity and Rights, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development,
Benard Mujuni said that the World Day Against Child Labour emphasizes the
importance of social partners, the private sector, and civil society,
especially to come together, mobilizing resources, and create platforms for the
elimination of child labour.
In an effort to end
child labour, Enabel through the Decent Work and Social Protection project, and
Advancing Respect for Human Rights by Businesses in Uganda (ARBHR) project recognizes
the pivotal role of engaging private sector and corporate stakeholders in the
fight against child labour through targeted awareness campaigns, particularly
focusing on agriculture and mining sectors to equip businesses with practical
measures to mitigate child labour within their operations through tailored
training programs, encompassing private sector representatives, civil society
organizations, government agencies, and local authorities. This is intended to
bolster their ability to monitor, report, and combat the most egregious forms
of child labour.
By harnessing
the collective efforts of stakeholders and leveraging innovative approaches,
Enabel remains resolute in its pursuit of a future where every child is
liberated from the scourge of child labour.
Speaking at the
event at Mestil Hotel, Kampala, the European Union (EU) in Uganda Head of
Governance and Social Inclusion, Nicolas Gonze noted EU support to Uganda in
tackling child labour in the coffee and sugar supply chains and said, "Let
us renew our collective commitment to free children from labour so they can
remain in school and pursue their dreams”.
The
International Labour Organisation (ILO) launched the first World Day Against
Child Labour in 2002 as a way of highlighting the plight of children engaged in
Child Labour. Since then, 12th June of every year is observed as the World Day
Against Child Labour, dedicated to renew efforts towards the elimination of
child labour.
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