eLearning Tools on Child Labour

  1. eLearning tools on child labour

    The eLearning tools are designed to help to better understand what child labour is and the key role ILO stakeholders can play.

Child Labour

  • Eliminating child labour is an important facet of the ILO's work. Child labour not only prevents children from acquiring the skills and education they need for a better future, it also perpetuates poverty and affects national economies through losses in competitiveness, productivity and potential income. Withdrawing children from child labour, providing them with education and assisting their families with training and employment opportunities contribute directly to creating decent work for adults.

  • 2021 declared International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour

    The UN General Assembly has urged the international community to step up efforts to eradicate forced labour and child labour, and declared 2021 as the Year for the Elimination of Child Labour.

  • World Day Against Child Labour - 12 June 2019

    Children shouldn’t work in fields, but on dreams!

    This year, the World Day Against Child Labour will look back on progress achieved over a 100 years of ILO support to countries on tackling child labour.

  • © F. Vindas, G. Bolanos

    Child labour in domestic work

    Learn more about what is child domestic work and what does constitute child labour in domestic work?

  • ILO InfoStories· website on labour issues

    The website allows users to delve into a broad range of multimedia content on particular themes, such as child labour, forced labour, collective bargaining and discrimination in the workplace.

  • © Lisa Kristine

    Alliance 8.7: For a world without forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking and child labour

    Building on the new momentum created by the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Alliance 8.7 brings together all interested parties to join forces in achieving Target 8.7 aiming at a world without forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking and child labour.

Facts and figures

  • Worldwide 218 million children between 5 and 17 years are in employment.
    Among them, 152 million are victims of child labour; almost half of them, 73 million, work in hazardous child labour.
  • In absolute terms, almost half of child labour (72.1 million) is to be found in Africa; 62.1 million in the Asia and the Pacific; 10.7 million in the Americas; 1.2 million in the Arab States and 5.5 million in Europe and Central Asia.
  • In terms of prevalence, 1 in 5 children in Africa (19.6%) are in child labour, whilst prevalence in other regions is between 3% and 7%: 2.9% in the Arab States (1 in 35 children); 4.1% in Europe and Central Asia (1 in 25); 5.3% in the Americas (1 in 19) and 7.4% in Asia and the Pacific region (1 in 14).
  • Almost half of all 152 million children victims of child labour are aged 5-11 years.
    42 million (28%) are 12-14 years old; and 37 million (24%) are 15-17 years old.
  • Hazardous child labour is most prevalent among the 15-17 years old. Nevertheless up to a fourth of all hazardous child labour (19 million) is done by children less than 12 years old.
  • Among 152 million children in child labour, 88 million are boys and 64 million are girls.
  • 58% of all children in child labour and 62% of all children in hazardous work are boys. Boys appear to face a greater risk of child labour than girls, but this may also be a reflection of an under-reporting of girls’ work, particularly in domestic child labour.
  • Child labour is concentrated primarily in agriculture (71%), which includes fishing, forestry, livestock herding and aquaculture, and comprises both subsistence and commercial farming; 17% in Services; and 12% in the Industrial sector, including mining.
Source: Global Estimates of Child Labour: Results and trends, 2012-2016, Geneva, September 2017.

News

  1. ILO 100

    Timor-Leste launches its first National Child Labour Survey Report and Mini Labour Force Survey Report 2016

    07 October 2019

  2. G20 Labour and Employment Ministers’ Meeting

    "Ending child labour, forced labour and human trafficking in Global Supply Chains"

    01 September 2019

  3. Call for expression of interest

    Analysis of the situation and evaluation of the needs of cooperative societies of cotton producers in Burkina Faso for the promotion of fundamental principles and rights at work

    15 August 2019

  4. Child Labour

    2021 declared International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour

    26 July 2019

  5. UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development

    Accelerating action to end forced labour, human trafficking, modern slavery and child labour; experiences from Alliance 8.7 pathfinder countries

    22 July 2019

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Publications

  1. Publication

    IPEC+ Global Flagship Programme Implementation

    10 April 2019

  2. Second edition (2018)

    Ending child labour by 2025: A review of policies and programmes

    10 December 2018

  3. Publication

    Assessment of the effects of annual drought and floods on child labour (hazardous and non-hazardous) and child welfare in Sri Lanka

    30 November 2018

  4. Statistical Report

    Child labour in herding in rural areas of Swaziland

    15 August 2018

  5. Child labour in Africa

    Meta-analysis of evaluations on ILO child labour programmes and projects in Africa 2009-2014

    03 July 2018

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Good practices

A mobile application against child labour

  1. Eliminating and preventing child labour: Checkpoints for Companies

    This app allows business managers and auditors to create interactive checklists that will help them ensure a child labour-free operation. There are 18 checkpoints in total, divided into six categories. Each checkpoint provides best-practice recommendations for taking action.

Videos on child labour