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Civil society draws attention to child labour survey

By our correspondents
June 13, 2017

Last National Child Labour Survey was carried
out more than 20 years ago in 1996

Islamabad: Civil society members Monday urged the government to carry out a nationwide child labour survey so that facts and figures can be collected to eradicate the menace of child labour.

The demand was tabled by the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC) on the eve of World day against Child Labour.

Speaking on the occasion, the Executive Director of SPARC Sadia Hussain called for a detailed child labour survey across all provinces for the attainment of concrete facts and figures. She argued that the step will not only help gauge the extent of these injustices against millions of children, but would also help policy makers apply targeted interventions to help curb the menace.

“The last National Child Labour Survey was carried out more than 20 years ago in 1996, which estimated around 3.3 million children to be working in Pakistan. According to a 2015 study by the ILO, it is estimated that 5.7 million 10-17 year olds, representing almost 20% of all children in the age group, are labourers,” Sadia pointed out.

These numbers, however, account mostly for children employed in the agriculture sectors whereas a large proportion of children working within the informal economy are completely unaccounted for. For instance, the closest figures available for prevalence of domestic child labor are from a 2004 ILO report, which states this number as being 264,000 children. These numbers appear quite far from the truth, considering not only demographic changes over the last decade, but also the lack of any initiatives taken to curb this menace.

Furthermore, both natural and man-made disasters in the form of floods, famine, and war-ravaged IDP’s have taken a further toll on these numbers for which there has been little evidence or accountability across vast swathes of the country. So far, there is a significant dearth in the availability of funds and resources needed to address these issues and to immediately stop the situation from deteriorating any further.

Despite the enactment of laws against child labour, the plight of Pakistan’s child labourers remains unaddressed due to poor implementation of these laws, Sadia added.

Recent high-profile cases of tortured child maids, and indentured child labourers have just in the recent months presented stark reminders of the abysmal state of child labour within Pakistan. Curbed together with abject poverty and malnutrition faced by millions of children, the present state of child rights presents a bleak picture, specifically with regard to the progress made in these key areas. For instance, according to SPARC’s annual State of Pakistan’s Children Report, some 22.6 million children are still out of school in the country. This is a direct contradiction of Article 25-A of the Constitution under which every Pakistani child between 5-16 years of age has the right to free and compulsory education. It has been over seven years since this law was passed and there still remain glaring gaps in its implementation.

As part of its efforts to raise greater awareness on this issue, SPARC has organized petition signing events at major public locations across the country. The petitions allow ordinary citizens a chance to stand in solidarity with the millions of children working in various fields, factories, workshops and homes and to urge the authorities to take necessary action against such injustices.