Child Labour Month ends but fight against forced labour continues

In commemoration of World Day Against Child Labour, the Labour Ministry had set out on a comprehensive month-long campaign to push for the elimination of child labour and its detrimental impacts on those involved.
Friday last marked the end of these activities, with Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) hosting the final sensitisation walk which saw over 350 participants marching under this year’s theme “Social Justice for All. End Child Labour.”
The walk began at Estate Road, Experiment, Bath, and ended at the region’s Regional Democratic Council (RDC) office where a special programme was held.
In attendance were Member of Parliament (MP) for Region Five Faizal Jafferally and representatives from the Labour Ministry, Human Services and Social Security Ministry, Child Care & Protection Agency (CC&PA), ChildLink, Regional Democratic Council and Government schools.

In June, the Labour Ministry successfully hosted similar awareness walks on child labour in Regions Four (Demerara-Mahaica) and Six (East-Berbice-Corentyne).
On World Day Against Child Labour itself, following a walk from Parliament Building to the Labour Ministry on Brickdam Street, Human Services Minister Dr Vindhya Persaud stressed the need for increased collaboration from all to eradicate child labour.
“We can only stop child labour if everyone is involved, if everyone understands and if everyone’s involvement is of such magnitude that it involves not only recognising child labour where it exists but reporting on it–intervention. Once intervention happens, then there comes the process where work must be done with the child and with those persons who have employed the child or put the child into a forced labour situation,” Dr Persaud had said.
The Labour Ministry also embarked on a holistic sensitisation campaign about child labour, covering 25 secondary schools across the coast and riverine communities.
These outreaches across the country engaged community members in topics including what child labour is, its causes, its impact on education, child labour versus child work and penalties for child labour.
To supplement this effort, the Ministry has also incorporated child labour inspections into its normal inspection duties for the year.
This would complement the Ministry’s existing overarching plan, which aims to effectively address and eliminate child labour through collaboration with public and private institutions.