The world’s march towards the total elimination of inappropriate work by minors by 2016 takes another step forward as the world descends on Brazil for the third Global Conference on Child Labour.
South Africa will be represented by the Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant who leaves at the weekend to attend this International Labour Organisation (ILO) conference in Brasilia, Brazil from 8 to 10 October.
The conference aims to promote consistent policies and integrated strategies for addressing child labour across the world. It will evaluate the actions taken to date on the fight against child labour and encourage the exchange of experiences.
The ILO Global estimates and trends 2000-2012 revealed that the global number of child labourers has declined by one third since 2000, from 246 million to 168 million. But even the latest improved rate is not enough to achieve the goal of eliminating the worst forms of child labour by 2016.
The forum provides an opportunity for reflection and joint dialogue between government, civil society and international organisations on the progress made in the process towards the elimination of child labour, especially its worst forms, as well as a space for presenting proposals of mechanisms to accelerate the elimination of this phenomenon.
Child labour is defined as any type of labour activity performed by children in disagreement with the age established by law as the minimum age for admission to the labour market. According to ILO activities which involve hardship and hazards in child labour that, should be prohibited until 18 years of age.
In her address during the National Day against Child Labour in Badplaas, Mpumalanga in August Oliphant said: “It is heartening to report that Government and its partners have performed well in the areas of strengthening legislation, raising awareness, training and the development of materials as evidenced in the second phase report adopted by Cabinet in September 2012. Some of the legislation includes the proposed amendments in the Basic Conditions of Employment Bill that will strengthen the prohibition of child labour in the informal trading sector”.
Oliphant will be reporting to conference strides South Africa has taken while also hearing how other countries have fared so far.
The Global Action Plan points out that special efforts need to be made in Sub-Saharan Africa, considering that it was the only region in the world where child labour has grown in both absolute and relative terms in the last decade. Most of the countries facing child labour are exposed to high level of under-employment and prevalence of low productivity activities in both urban and rural areas, high HIV/Aids rates and, high propensity towards informal economy.
This conference which is co-hosted by the Brazilian Government follows on the Hague Global Child Labour Conference held in May 2010, and will be used to measure progress in implementing The Hague Roadmap and towards the goal of 2016. The Hague Roadmap - has four axis: education and training, national legislation and enforcement, labour market policies, and social protection - which it seeks to achieve.
Education, especially basic component is viewed as one of crucial component in any efficient effort to eliminate child labour.
Despite all the progress achieved and the international community’s growing commitment to the elimination of the worst forms of child labour in the last decades, major challenges remain to be overcome in order to reach the 2016 targets.
