“Child labour should not be confused with chores” – Minister

The Human Services and Social Security Minister, Vindhya Persaud on Wednesday stressed the importance of being able to identify child labour, stating that chores should not be confused with child labour.
The minister made these remarks at the closing ceremony of the annual child labour awareness day walk which was conducted by the Labour Ministry and Human Services and Social Security Ministry.
Persaud said that to effectively deal with child labour persons must be able to identify it, as such she stressed that not all forms of labour can be categorised as child labour. She highlighted that parents or guardians assigning chores to a child cannot be considered as child labour. She asserted that these tasks help with the development of children and establishes some form of discipline in the home and at school. “Child labour, as was mentioned, should not be confused at all with chores. We all grew up doing chores and in our culture that exists in Guyana, we do not want to be in conflict with that sensitivity that really permits some discipline in the home setting and the school setting. I say that because if we are not conscious of those settings, then we will, I would say, engender in children a resistance to many things that can help in their self-development” she asserted.

More measures
Persaud also underscored that the theme for Child Labour Awareness Day 2024 hints that more measures should be established to combat child labour. In this regard she highlighted the significant strides Guyana has made to protect its children from this scourge. With children being the pillar of society, the minster noted that the government over the years has been working assiduously to protect its children by implementing initiatives such as conventions and the crafting of various pieces of legislation to develop an encompassing framework which will uproot child labour in Guyana.
“This year’s theme speaks to the core issue of acting on our commitments, and Guyana has made many commitments over the years through the ratification of various conventions and also through the enactment of multiple pieces of legislation, all of which are very robust and give us the opportunity to craft an all-encompassing framework to ensure that we root out child labour wherever it exists,” she stated.
Additionally, Persaud revealed that the discussion was held to identify ways in which the Labour Ministry and the Human Services and Social Security Ministry can be more impactful in their operations. One measure outlined is the training of officers which will allow them to be more impactful when engaging with children and families in the community. She also stressed the importance of educating children on the matter so that they will be able to identify if they are a victim of child labour and what being a victim takes away from them.

Committed
Meanwhile also delivering remarks at the closing ceremony was Chief Labour Officer Dhaneshwar Deonarine, who highlighted that the government is committed towards sustainable development. As such Deonarine made reference to sustainable development goal eight and identified the important role in which target 8.7 of this goal plays in protecting the children of the nation from child labour.
“We are indeed committed to the Sustainable Development Goals. Goal 8 aims to promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. As this relates to children, target 8.7 of this goal aims to eliminate the worst forms of child labour including the recruitment and use of child soldiers as well as to end all forms of child labour by 2025” he stated.
He further noted that the Ministry of Labour is committed to eliminating child labour and has been working assiduously since 2020 to implement the national action plan for the elimination of child labour across Guyana.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in 2020, 160 million children were victims of children labor worldwide with majority working in the agricultural sector. This combined with the 28 million people that are enforced labourers, reveals that globally a total of 188 million people are engaged in forms of work that should be abolished. The Walk commenced from Parliament building and concluded at the forecourt of the Ministry of Labour. The event was part of their ongoing efforts to raise awareness about the issue of child labour, and to engage the community in meaningful dialogue and action. Child Labour Awareness Day 2024 was celebrated under the theme “Lets Act on our commitment end child labour!