Hazelnut Panel brought together hazelnut producers and exporters to discuss current issues in the sector as well as a call made to all the stakeholders of the sector to end worst forms of child labour and to collaborate on ways of solution on August 31, 2015 in Akçakoca District of Düzce Province. Hazelnut exporters and producers attended to the panel, which is organised by Turkish Exporters Assembly, İstanbul Exporters Association, Black Sea Exporters Association and Hazelnut Promotion Group. Nejat Kocabay, Senior Programme Officer for International Labour Organisation (ILO) Turkey Office has attended to the panel as speaker to give information about “Integrated Model for the Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour in Seasonal Agriculture in Hazelnut Harvesting in Turkey Project”

Panel moderator Ali Haydar Gören, Board Chair of İstanbul Hazelnut and Hazelnut Products Exporters' Association stated that they were part of the solution since the child labour problem occurred in the hazelnut sector. “None of us want to see children in hazelnut fields. We are actively working with the ministries to eliminate the problem as well as working with Ministry of Labour and Social Security and ILO” said Gören and gave floor to Nejat Kocabay, Senior Programme Officer for ILO Turkey. Kocabay underlined the importance of private sector participation and called for expanding the private sector collaboration to combat worst forms of child labour and guide the children under 16 to schools instead of fields.


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The overall objective of this project is to contribute elimination of worst forms of child labour (WFCL) in seasonal agriculture in line with the Turkish Government’s strategy drawn by the National Employment Strategy 2014-2023. A model has been developed through the Dutch Government and CAOBISCO* funded “Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour in Seasonal Commercial Agriculture in Hazelnut Harvesting in Ordu” project 2013 and 2014. The project aims contributing to the withdrawal of children from work and prevention of at-risk children to be engaged in seasonal hazelnut agriculture. It will bring added value through the replication of the strategic intervention model in the different regions and contribute to a sustainable child labour monitoring mechanism in seasonal agriculture. The project will step up efforts to attain the goal of contributing to the policy making and efficient implementation on the elimination of WFCL in seasonal agriculture.

*Contributing members of CAOBISCO to the ILO PPP Project: Ferrero, Nestlé, August Storck KG, Barry Callebaut, Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG, Mars incorporated, Chocosuisse, NATRA S.A., Griesson - de Beukelaer GmbH & Co., Cémoi chocolatier, Gebr. Jancke GmbH, Neuhaus NV, Stollwerck GmbH, Koenig Backmittel GmbH