160 million kids worldwide victims of child labor
MANILA, Philippines — There are 160 million children around the world working instead of going to school, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO).
“Child labor rarely happens because parents are bad, or do not care. Rather, it springs from a lack of social justice,” said ILO director-general Gilbert Houngbo on Monday, coinciding with World Day against Child Labor.
For the first time in 20 years, child labor is on the rise.
In a Twitter post, Houngbo stressed that the “most effective solutions” to child labor are decent work for adults and improved social protection.
He added that ending child labor requires ending forced labor, creating safe and healthy workplaces and ending discrimination, as child labor often affects the most marginalized.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that agriculture accounts for 70 percent of child labor globally and that the numbers of young people working in the sector are on the rise.
Child labor was three times more prevalent among rural smallholders in farming, fisheries or forestry than in urban areas, according to FAO.
“For too many children, their work, particularly in agriculture, goes beyond the limits of safety and well-being and crosses into a form of labor that can harm their health or educational opportunities,” FAO said.
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