ILO supports the participation of over 1500 children to the Abidjan District International Marathon
On the celebration of the National Day of Peace in Côte d'Ivoire, and a few days before the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Labour Organisation provide over 1500 T-shirts to children participating in the International Marathon of Abidjan District, an event bringing together more than 20,000 people with about 50 athletes nominated by National Federations of Algeria, Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, France, Ghana , Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, DR Congo, Senegal, Togo and Tunisia.
On the celebration of the National Day of Peace in Côte d'Ivoire, and a few days before the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Labour Organisation provide over 1500 T-shirts to children participating in the International Marathon of Abidjan District, an event bringing together more than 20,000 people with about 50 athletes nominated by National Federations of Algeria, Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, France, Ghana , Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, DR Congo, Senegal, Togo and Tunisia.
"We wanted to involve children because the Marathon is positioned as a channel for strengthening cohesion and social dialogue in a context where children are constantly involved in child labor," says Kouassi Konan, President of the Movement for Education, Health and Development, MESAD, a partner organization of the Organizing Committee of the Abidjan District International Marathon, COMIDA.
Accelerating Action for the Elimination of Child Labour in Supply Chains in Africa, ACCEL Africa, is an ILO projects funded by the Government of the Netherlands to accelerate the elimination of child labour in Africa through targeted actions in a number of supply chains: cocoa, tea, gold, coffee, and cotton; in six countries in Africa: Cote d'ivoire, Egypt, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria and Uganda.
”We provided more than 1,600 t-shirts to children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds throughout the city of Abidjan who wished to participate in the marathon which is one of the leisure activities to which every child should have a right,” explains Sophie DE CONINCK, Acting Director of the Country Office of Abidjan.
The Ivorian economy relies heavily on the market and is highly dependent on the agricultural sector. It contributes 22.3% of the GDP (2013, BM) and represents 47% of the country's total exports in 2013 (62% excluding oil). It occupies 46% of the country's working population and is a source of income for two-thirds of a population with a rural population of 50.3%. Côte d'Ivoire is also the world leader in cocoa production. It supplies 40 percent of global production with more than 1.5 million tonnes in 2017.
The country also holds one of the largest gold deposits in the world. The gold sector is growing. Industrial gold production rose to 24,488 tonnes of gold at the end of 2018, compared to 7 tonnes of gold in 2009, an increase of 249.83% over the period 2009-2018. Informal artisanal mines experienced strong growth over the period of 1999-2011. The gold is exploited in a traditional way in several regions of Côte d'Ivoire.
The sectors most affected by child labour are agriculture (53.4% of children) and services (35.6%). About 20% of children (still in the age group 5-17) work, three-quarters of whom are under 14 years of age.
"My friends and I came to participate in this marathon in order to have fun, enjoy all this atmosphere of joy, and warmth," says Amina Ouedraogo, 13, street vendor and former student of the School Group Industrialists in Youpougon, one of the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods of the city of Abidjan.
The National Survey of the Worst Forms of Child Labor (2011) conducted by the National Institute of Statistics (INS) found that 73.5% of boys work in agriculture against 35.2% of girls.
"In Côte d'Ivoire, we are addressing child labour in cocoa and gold supply chains, thus constituting an ILO contribution to the implementation of the National Action Plan to Combat Labour (2019-2021)," says Minoru Ogasawara, Regional Senior Technical Advisor, ACCEL AFRICA project.
For any contact: Ms Aimee Nsimire, Communications Officer, +225 20318938 Email: nsimire@ilo.org
"We wanted to involve children because the Marathon is positioned as a channel for strengthening cohesion and social dialogue in a context where children are constantly involved in child labor," says Kouassi Konan, President of the Movement for Education, Health and Development, MESAD, a partner organization of the Organizing Committee of the Abidjan District International Marathon, COMIDA.
Accelerating Action for the Elimination of Child Labour in Supply Chains in Africa, ACCEL Africa, is an ILO projects funded by the Government of the Netherlands to accelerate the elimination of child labour in Africa through targeted actions in a number of supply chains: cocoa, tea, gold, coffee, and cotton; in six countries in Africa: Cote d'ivoire, Egypt, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria and Uganda.
”We provided more than 1,600 t-shirts to children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds throughout the city of Abidjan who wished to participate in the marathon which is one of the leisure activities to which every child should have a right,” explains Sophie DE CONINCK, Acting Director of the Country Office of Abidjan.
The Ivorian economy relies heavily on the market and is highly dependent on the agricultural sector. It contributes 22.3% of the GDP (2013, BM) and represents 47% of the country's total exports in 2013 (62% excluding oil). It occupies 46% of the country's working population and is a source of income for two-thirds of a population with a rural population of 50.3%. Côte d'Ivoire is also the world leader in cocoa production. It supplies 40 percent of global production with more than 1.5 million tonnes in 2017.
The country also holds one of the largest gold deposits in the world. The gold sector is growing. Industrial gold production rose to 24,488 tonnes of gold at the end of 2018, compared to 7 tonnes of gold in 2009, an increase of 249.83% over the period 2009-2018. Informal artisanal mines experienced strong growth over the period of 1999-2011. The gold is exploited in a traditional way in several regions of Côte d'Ivoire.
The sectors most affected by child labour are agriculture (53.4% of children) and services (35.6%). About 20% of children (still in the age group 5-17) work, three-quarters of whom are under 14 years of age.
"My friends and I came to participate in this marathon in order to have fun, enjoy all this atmosphere of joy, and warmth," says Amina Ouedraogo, 13, street vendor and former student of the School Group Industrialists in Youpougon, one of the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods of the city of Abidjan.
The National Survey of the Worst Forms of Child Labor (2011) conducted by the National Institute of Statistics (INS) found that 73.5% of boys work in agriculture against 35.2% of girls.
"In Côte d'Ivoire, we are addressing child labour in cocoa and gold supply chains, thus constituting an ILO contribution to the implementation of the National Action Plan to Combat Labour (2019-2021)," says Minoru Ogasawara, Regional Senior Technical Advisor, ACCEL AFRICA project.
For any contact: Ms Aimee Nsimire, Communications Officer, +225 20318938 Email: nsimire@ilo.org