5th Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour

From 15 to 20 May 2022, the Government of South Africa will host the Fifth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour. This landmark event will build on the legacy of the four previous Global Conferences held in Oslo (1997), The Hague (2010), Brasilia (2013) and Buenos Aires (2017). Together, these events placed the elimination of child labour firmly on the global agenda, mobilized resources and set the strategic direction for the worldwide movement to end child labour.

The Fifth Global Conference will take place at a pivotal moment. In 2020, the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) achieved universal ratification, a historic milestone for the ILO and its constituents. The following year, 2021, was declared the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour by the United Nations. The Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), one of the most widely ratified ILO Conventions, continues to serve as a cornerstone in global efforts to eliminate child labour.

Despite these unprecedented commitments, an estimated 160 million children are still engaged in child labour worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing vulnerabilities, threatening to reverse hard-won progress and deepen inequalities. The effective implementation of ILO child labour Conventions is now more urgent than ever.

The Conference will convene with only three years remaining to achieve the goal of eliminating all child labour by 2025, and eight years to reach the target of eradicating forced labour by 2030, as set out in Sustainable Development Goal target 8.7. It will also take place during a period of global recovery from the multifaceted impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, which has severely affected public health, economic stability, social development and equality.

In this context, the Fifth Global Conference will provide a critical platform to review progress towards achieving the goals of Sustainable Development Goal target 8.7, to exchange knowledge and good practices among stakeholders, and to identify gaps and urgent measures needed to accelerate the elimination of child labour and forced labour in all their forms.