Elimination of child labour

ILO supports the elimination of child labour in Sri Lanka by 2016

The ILO Colombo continues to provide technical support to the Ministry of Labour and Trade Union Relations to set in place mechanisms at district level towards elimination of child labour by the end of 2016, as pledged in the Hague in 2010

The ILO's project on Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour, especially in the plantation sector, is working with all key stakeholders namely the Ministry of Labour and Trade Union Relations, Department of Labour, Chamber of Commerce, regional plantation companies, the Plantation Human Development Trust, Ministry of Education and other relevant authorities working on children's affairs.

School children

A group of 110 persons consisting of Zonal Deputy Commissioners of Labour, Directors of Planning of District Secretariats, District Labour Officers representing all provinces of the country along with staff of the Women & Children’s Affairs Division of the Department of Labour, Ministry of Labour and Trade Union Relations were sensitized on the rights-based approach to child labour prevention and elimination and push factors towards child trafficking.

The participants contributed richly with their own experiences at District level and commenced the process of developing their District Child Development Action Plans taking a cue from the District of Ratnapura. A significant feature was the coordination with the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment in ensuring children of migrant worker families are given special attention. Leadership is provided to the District Secretariats by the Department of Labour to ensure greater coordination at the district level and for effective implementation of the action plans for the remainder of the year.