It is my great honour to welcome all of you to .

This is the first inter-regional planning workshop for the second phase of “Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Awareness Raising Campaign: Eliminating the Worst Forms of Child Labour and Providing Educational Opportunities.”

In addition to my colleagues in the ILO, it gives me great pleasure to see here our key country-level, implementing partners from the labour and education sectors in , , , , and . These include APEC government focal points, representatives from Ministries of Labour and Education, employers, teachers’ unions, and civil society groups.

The fact that all of you have taken the time to be here shows your commitment to promoting opportunities and improving the lives of the most vulnerable.

Child labour today

Today, there are nearly 246 million child labourers worldwide, two-thirds of them in the Asia Pacific region.

The majority of this is child labour in its worst forms. As well as work that is simply hazardous, this includes slavery, trafficking, debt bondage and other forms of forced labour, forced recruitment of children in armed conflicts, prostitution, pornography, and other illicit activities.

All over the world, children are being forced to undertake work which damages them psychologically and physically and deprives them of their childhood. You know all too well the harsh predicaments facing these children and their families in your own countries.

There is now unprecedented international support for both the elimination of the worst forms of child labour and the achievement of universal, quality, basic education.

All of you represent countries that have ratified the ILO Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour. This convention now has more than 150 ratifications and has led to the accelerated growth of the the largest technical cooperation programme on this issue: IPEC, or the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour.

Poverty and education

Child labour is both a cause and consequence of poverty.

The key to breaking the vicious cycle, that traps millions into a lifetime of poverty and deprivation, is basic education and skills development. Good quality education and training, relevant to the needs of the local economy, can allow poor families to escape the poverty trap. This benefits not just families, but communities and nations as a whole. History has shown how instrumental education has been to the abolition of child labour, establishing a skilled work force and promoting development based on principles of social justice.

When dealing with the problem of child labour, it is important to look at it as part of an entire life cycle. Every individual should have a fair chance to fully develop and make smooth transitions - from childhood to youth, to adulthood and working-life, and to old age.

There is a clear need to focus on decent and productive employment for young people, and the school-to-work transition. In this region, eighteen per cent of the population, or about 605 million people, are between 15-24 years. Another 30 per cent are below 15 years. Youth unemployment rates are three to six times higher than adult rates.

The APEC initiative

Like the ILO, APEC has consistently recognised the crucial connection between education and economic growth. The region will not be able to sustain growth and economic development if a segment of its youth cannot achieve their full potential.

In 2001, this regional initiative was launched. This was in response to demand within APEC to do something about the worst forms of child labour and the lack of educational opportunities for the poorest children.

This initiative was endorsed by the APEC Human Resources Development Working Group with the ILO as the executing agency and financial support from the United States Department of Labor. In the next session, you will be able to discuss in more detail the background to this initiative, the key achievements and lessons learned.

Phase one

The first phase has shown strong stakeholder involvement and an impressive breadth of materials and activities on a limited resource base. As a result the United States Department of Labor has provided additional financial support.

Our task now is to see how we can make an even greater impact, both at regional level and in our own countries. We will also examine how we can work more closely with APEC, both at regional and country levels. This will be crucial if we are to make a significant impact. There will a valuable opportunity tomorrow morning to discuss this further with the presence of Dr. Chira Hongladarom Lead Shepherd of the APEC HRD Working Group and all the APEC government focal points here today.

The next phase

In this next phase we hope to see stronger links between efforts to eradicate child labour and promote human resources development, and economic growth. Skills training, youth employment and the Asia Pacific Skill Development Programme are all relevant to what we are trying to achieve. We should also exploit any synergies between this initiative and our efforts to promote Decent Work for women and men at all stages of life.

You will have a chance to explore these themes, and others, tomorrow, with Lin Lim, the ILO’s Deputy Regional Director.

It will be remiss of me if I do not take a moment to mention the massive earthquake that took place off the coast of on 26 December 2004 . It caused a wave (tsunami) of such force bringing death and destruction to a large part of our region. The countries will need to respond to the loss of lives and livelihoods, displaced populations as well as the children who are vulnerable to the worst forms of child labour and trafficking. The ILO estimates over 1 million job losses in and . We have been very active in addressing the devastation caused by the tsunami with immediate support to these countries. We are now beginning to respond to the recent request by the Indian government. Let me also say how grateful I am to those of you from who have come for this workshop despite the hardships you are currently experiencing in your country. This shows your strong commitment to improving the lives of the most vulnerable.

I believe you will have a very worthwhile and fruitful exchange of ideas over the next three days. And I hope you will enjoy the opportunity to map out a future implementation framework among such a stimulating group. I look forward to hearing the results.

We will also have the chance to chat in a more informal environment this evening, at the welcome reception.

To conclude, I look forward to working with all of you for a future where children are not forced to work in hazardous conditions. Where they have the opportunity to learn and time for play. Let us work together for a childhood with hope of a future where dreams can come true. A future where no child is left behind.

Thank you.