ANKARA (ILO News) – International Labour Organization (ILO) provided capacity building training to the relevant units of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MoLSS) of Türkiye.

The training was organized within the scope of the Capacity Building Training Program created under the Elimination of Child Labour in Seasonal Agriculture Project for stakeholder institutions.

Via the training program, it is aimed to raise awareness about child labour and especially child labour in seasonal agriculture and organizations, and to develop the capacity to coordinate, plan, implement and monitor policies for the prevention of child labour in stakeholder individuals. A special emphasis is placed on the root causes of child labour and the reflections of the problems experienced in the working life of adults on the lives of children.

Opening remarks were delivered by ILO Office for Türkiye Governance and Compliance Officer Nuran Torun Atış and Senior Project Coordinator Fatma Gelir Ünal and MoLSS Labour Specialist Elif Bor.

The training was carried out by experts in the field, who are; Ceren Ababay Tosyalı, Dr. Ayşe Beyazova, Prof. Dr. Yücel Uyanık, Assoc. Dr. Hande Bahar Aykac, Prof. Dr. Can Umut Ciner, Assoc. Dr. Hasan Tolga Bölükbaşı, Dr. Ferman Erim.

In the first session of the training, in which the conceptual and legal framework on child labour was discussed, child rights and child labour, the current situation of child labour, its causes and consequences, global policy priorities for preventing and ending child labour and examples of good practices from around the world were given. After the section on the legislation and definitions of child labour, an introduction to seasonal migratory agriculture and child labour was conducted and working and living conditions in seasonal migratory agriculture were discussed.

In the afternoon session, cooperation, and coordination with the subject of institutional roles and responsibilities within the scope of national legislation, seasonal agricultural work and child labour, institutional mechanisms, and policy development for the prevention of child labour in seasonal agriculture, as well as case management and communication tools and practices for the prevention of child labour in seasonal agriculture and rights and responsibilities in labour relations in seasonal nomadic were explained.

On the second day, policy program and plan development and implementation, intervention methods for children working in seasonal agriculture or at risk of working, communication with children and families, and raising awareness on this issue were handled.

The trainings aim 4000 people in total, including managers and experts of the General Directorate of Labour of the MoLSS; Turkish employment agency İŞKUR, Social Security Institution SSI and Ministry of Family and Social Services MoFSS personnel working in the Anti-Child Labour Units in 81 provinces of Türkiye, public institutions underlined as the responsible and stakeholder organization in the National Program for the Elimination of Child Labour, and strategic and administrative personnel from the social parties, teachers, school principals and social workers in the project provinces, public personnel in direct contact with children and their families, agricultural employers and headmen in the project provinces, gendarmerie in the project provinces, and NGOs operating in the project provinces for the prevention of child labour.

The capacity building training program will continue in the project implementation provinces of Bursa, Eskişehir, Ankara, Konya, Düzce, Ordu, Şanlıurfa, Diyarbakır, Mardin, Adıyaman, Malatya, Adana, Mersin, Hatay, İzmir and Manisa.