ILO marks Child Labour Day 2015
ILO took part in a seminar held in Dhaka 11 June to mark World Child Labour Day.
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Speaking at the event Gagan Rajbhandari, Deputy Director, ILO Country Office for Bangladesh said, “There has been very good progress in Bangladesh towards the elimination of child labour in formal sectors such as ready made garments. However additional efforts need to be made with regards to the worst forms of child labour that still exist in certain industries. For this reason we call upon the government to ratify ILO Convention 138 concerning minimum age for admission to employment.”
The theme for the 2015 event was “No to child labour, Yes to quality education” which focused on the importance of access to education as a key step in tackling child labour.
Mr Rajbhandari echoed the words of ILO Director General Guy Ryder stating that, “On this world day, we highlight the link between education and child labour. A collective challenge and responsibility is to enable all children, girls and boys, to have access to quality education. Second class education perpetuates second class citizens. We all know that a solid education and good teachers can make a world of difference to the lives and futures of children and young people.”
The event was organised in collaboration with Ministry of Labour and Employment, Save the Children, Manusher Jonno Foundation and Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum. Also taking part were employers’ and workers representatives’, NGOs and the media.