The international community's efforts to achieve “Education For All”(EFA) and the progressive elimination of child labour are inextricably linked. On the one hand education - and in particular free and compulsory education of good quality up to the Minimum Age for entering into employment as defined by ILO Convention No: 138 – is a key tool in preventing child labour. Children with no access to quality education have little alternative but to enter the labour market where they are often forced to work in dangerous and exploitative conditions. But on the other hand, child labour is a key obstacle to EFA since children who are working full time cannot go to school. For those who combine work and school, their educational achievement will suffer and their tendency to drop out of school to go to full time employment is very high. Therefore; the prevention and elimination of child labour should be a key objective for education policy worldwide.

IPEC Turkey has acquired a great deal of experience with both formal and non-formal educational interventions within its action programmes in Turkey . Every single programme has had an education component and since 1992, more than 15,000 children under the age of 15 have been enrolled into primary education system and more than 20,000 children have been benefited from vocational training opportunities.

IPEC's achievements in Turkey have been founded on the willingness of government, employers and employees , in their cooperation in addressing the problem of child labour. The capacity of social partners has been developed, as can be seen through the creation of innovative approaches to address child labor. One of the major facets of IPEC's approach has been the empoverment of the major institutions with the capacity to improve the working conditions of children and to eliminate worst forms of child labour.