Monitoring of child labour in seasonal agricultural works takes start!
Activities take start in Şanlıurfa province through child labour monitoring mechanism developed for purposes of withdrawing from work of children who are engaged in seasonal hazel nut culture with their families, preventing their employment in this work, and supporting their school attendance.
Under the project “An Integrated Model for the Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour in Seasonal Agriculture in Hazelnut Harvesting in Turkey”* implemented jointly by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and Ministry of Labour and Social Security of the Republic of Turkey, a series of field visits and meetings took place in Şanlıurfa province to give start to monitoring of child labour in seasonal agriculture.
A team comprising officials and experts from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MoLSS) General Directorate of Labour and ILO made evaluations concerning planned activities to take place under the child labour monitoring mechanism in cooperation with Şanlıurfa Provincial Directorates of Employment Agency and National Education. Monitoring activities will be realized through the coordination of the work of relevant institutions and agencies in provinces sending and receiving seasonal workers. In this context, schools in Şanlıurfa where the majority of students in the target group are enrolled were visited to exchange opinion with school managers and teachers.
Under the auspices of Şanlıurfa Governorate, an Informative Meeting on Child Labour Monitoring Mechanism was held in Şanlıurfa on 22 February 2017. The meeting was organized jointly by the ILO, MoLSS, and Şanlıurfa Provincial Directorate of National Education and participated by representatives of seasonal worker monitoring boards, managers of schools of students in the target group, guidance teachers, and district-school monitoring teams.
On the basis of the circular “Access to Education by Children of Seasonal Agricultural Workers, and Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Families” issued by the Ministry of Education, participants discussed practices of monitoring children with families engaged in seasonal agriculture for purposes of withdrawing them from work and ensuring their access to education. Meanwhile, representatives of ILO Office for Turkey and consultants to the project in the fields of education and social support shared information about the issue of child labour at global and national levels, the problem of child labour specific to seasonal agriculture, the education based intervention model developed for this problem under the project, and profiles of children and families reached. A representative from the MoLSS made a presentation about national legislation and on-going work related to child labour.
Besides indoor sessions, there were also visits to the schools and families of children included in the target group for monitoring child labour. Cooperation with school managers yielded information about the school attendance status of children in the target group. Information about routes used in participating to seasonal agricultural works was collected during face to face interviews conducted with families. In the light of this information it is targeted to monitor children’s school enrolment and attendance and to expand the scope of child labour monitoring mechanism.
Monitoring activities geared to eliminating child labour in seasonal agriculture will continue in March with seminars covering school managers and teachers to take place at schools upon the joint initiative of ILO, MoLSS and Şanlıurfa Provincial Directorate of National Education.
*The project was launched in 2012 jointly by ILO and Ministry of Labour and Social Security to eliminate child labour in seasonal hazelnut harvesting as one of the worst forms of child labour. The project was first started in Ordu province located at Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey. Following the successfully completed first phase, the project was extended, as of 2015, to Düzce and Sakarya provinces as well as Şanlıurfa province that send seasonal workers out. The overall objective of the project is to contribute to the elimination of worst forms of child labour in seasonal agriculture in line with the framework given in Government’s National Employment Strategy 2014-2023. The idea is to contribute to local capacity building and raise awareness in removing children from worst forms of child labour and preventing children under risk from entering working life.
A team comprising officials and experts from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MoLSS) General Directorate of Labour and ILO made evaluations concerning planned activities to take place under the child labour monitoring mechanism in cooperation with Şanlıurfa Provincial Directorates of Employment Agency and National Education. Monitoring activities will be realized through the coordination of the work of relevant institutions and agencies in provinces sending and receiving seasonal workers. In this context, schools in Şanlıurfa where the majority of students in the target group are enrolled were visited to exchange opinion with school managers and teachers.
Under the auspices of Şanlıurfa Governorate, an Informative Meeting on Child Labour Monitoring Mechanism was held in Şanlıurfa on 22 February 2017. The meeting was organized jointly by the ILO, MoLSS, and Şanlıurfa Provincial Directorate of National Education and participated by representatives of seasonal worker monitoring boards, managers of schools of students in the target group, guidance teachers, and district-school monitoring teams.
On the basis of the circular “Access to Education by Children of Seasonal Agricultural Workers, and Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Families” issued by the Ministry of Education, participants discussed practices of monitoring children with families engaged in seasonal agriculture for purposes of withdrawing them from work and ensuring their access to education. Meanwhile, representatives of ILO Office for Turkey and consultants to the project in the fields of education and social support shared information about the issue of child labour at global and national levels, the problem of child labour specific to seasonal agriculture, the education based intervention model developed for this problem under the project, and profiles of children and families reached. A representative from the MoLSS made a presentation about national legislation and on-going work related to child labour.
Besides indoor sessions, there were also visits to the schools and families of children included in the target group for monitoring child labour. Cooperation with school managers yielded information about the school attendance status of children in the target group. Information about routes used in participating to seasonal agricultural works was collected during face to face interviews conducted with families. In the light of this information it is targeted to monitor children’s school enrolment and attendance and to expand the scope of child labour monitoring mechanism.
Monitoring activities geared to eliminating child labour in seasonal agriculture will continue in March with seminars covering school managers and teachers to take place at schools upon the joint initiative of ILO, MoLSS and Şanlıurfa Provincial Directorate of National Education.
*The project was launched in 2012 jointly by ILO and Ministry of Labour and Social Security to eliminate child labour in seasonal hazelnut harvesting as one of the worst forms of child labour. The project was first started in Ordu province located at Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey. Following the successfully completed first phase, the project was extended, as of 2015, to Düzce and Sakarya provinces as well as Şanlıurfa province that send seasonal workers out. The overall objective of the project is to contribute to the elimination of worst forms of child labour in seasonal agriculture in line with the framework given in Government’s National Employment Strategy 2014-2023. The idea is to contribute to local capacity building and raise awareness in removing children from worst forms of child labour and preventing children under risk from entering working life.