WORLD DAY AGAINST CHILD LABOUR
Around the world, millions of children are exploited through child labor. World Day Against Child Labor is an international day observed on June 12 that aims to build awareness of this serious, life-threatening issue.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) launched World Day Against Child Labor in 2002. According to the ILO, the goal of this day is to “focus attention on the global extent of child labor and the action and efforts needed to eliminate it.”
What is Child Labor?
It’s estimated that about 200 million children around the world are engaged in some form of child labor. According to the ILO, child labor is defined as “work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development.”
This means work that’s mentally, physically, socially or morally harmful. It also means work that keeps children from going to school, which directly impacts their growth and development.
There are many examples of child labor, including child trafficking, forced armed conflict recruitment, forced prostitution and physically demanding or hazardous work like mining,children Hawking in parks or on the roadside and factory work
When Margaret Joshua’s parents living in Kebbi State agreed to send their daughter to Plateau as a domestic servant in 2021, fleeing from insecurity in her community, they were reassured by promises of enrolling her in a good school. They had no idea the decision would mark the beginning of a life-altering ordeal for their child.
On the cold night of November 2022, Nneamaka Nwachuku, Margaret’s guardian started confronting her with the claims that she caught her masturbating and forced her to sit in a container of hot water, which was said to have burned her buttocks.
Margaret ran out of the house in pains and didn’t come back until some neighbours saw her almost 24 hours later and took her to the Police station. Sadly, she was said to have given up the ghost hours after she was taken to the hospital on November 14, 2022.
Margaret’s case reflects the story of many other children in Nigeria that are trapped in child labour, as contained in data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in 2024.
The data established that 39.2 per cent of Nigerian children between 5-17 years were in forced labour.
According to NBS, child labour is endemic in Nigeria, with children aged five to 14 years accounting for 39.7 per cent of the incidences, while those aged 15 and 17 years accounted for 37.3 per of minors in forced labour.
The agency noted that the prevalence of child labour was higher in rural areas, where 44.8 per cent of children were engaged in the activity compared to 30.0 per cent in urban areas.
On this World Day, we will call for full ratification of ILO Convention No. 138 on the Minimum Age and the implementation of ILO Convention No. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour. Their effective ratification and implementation remain essential to achieving the goals set by the Durban Call to Action, which urges us to aim for strengthened prevention, protection, and partnerships to eliminate child labour.
CALL FOR CONCERTED ACTION
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), in a statement in keeping with this year’s observance , states that child labour still affects around 138 million children globally, with 54 million of them involved in dangerous occupations.
The Honorable Commissioner for Women Affairs & Social Inclusion ; Honourable Mrs Toyin Balogun in a statement to the media has stated that all stakeholders within the Child Protection Ecosystem in OYO State must collaboratively accelerate efforts to end child labour across our state and ultimately, the entirety of the Country describing the situation as unacceptable and detrimental to the future of Nigeria’s children.
On this years edition of the World Day to end Child Labour, she called for full ratification of the ILO Convention No. 138 on the Minimum Age and the implementation of ILO Convention No. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour.
Their effective ratification and implementation remain essential to achieving the goals set by the Durban Call to Action, which urges us to aim for strengthened prevention, protection, and partnerships to eliminate child labour.
Together, she stated, we must create safe spaces and opportunities for our children to evolve into the best versions of themselves.
