Contributions to prevent and eradicate child labour and protect adolescent labour in the agricultural sector

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (OIT Noticias) — The project Offside: Marking the Field! was an initiative led by the International Labour Organization (ILO) Country Office for Argentina. It ran from 2019 to 2024 thanks to funding from the United States Department of Labor (USDoL).

The project aimed to encourage efforts and improve the capacity of actors in the agricultural and agro-industrial sector to address the issue of child labour and unprotected adolescent labour in rural areas of the country, mainly in the agricultural sector and with a focus on the provinces of Buenos Aires, Mendoza and Santa Fe.

It was also aligned with the National Plan for the Prevention and Eradication of Child Labour and the Protection of Adolescent Labour, the current national and international legal framework and the commitments acquired as a Pathfinder Country of the 8.7 Alliance.

In order to consolidate the findings, research, campaigns and contributions made throughout its six years of implementation, the document Conocimiento y acción participativa para proteger derechos, a comprehensive publication that brings together in detail the materials, objectives achieved and the main reflections generated, was prepared.

This publication also includes an infographic designed to facilitate the dissemination of information and promote a wider reach of the results obtained.

The project generated different research, activities and products that can be categorised into the following dimensions:

• Actions aimed at capacity building for the better integration of the prevention and eradication of child labour and the protection of adolescent labour in policies, programmes and services;
  
• Development and systematisation of participatory intervention models in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Santa Fe and Mendoza to be replicated and scaled up in different local, national and international contexts;
  
• Awareness raising from a human rights and economic perspective through campaigns, audiovisual and educational material, events, podcasts, seminars and workshops;
  
• Production of studies, evidence and knowledge on child and adolescent labour in the rural sector at sectoral and local level jointly with academic institutions, under the supervision of tripartite actors (state actors, trade union organisations and employers).

As a result of this process, 2,500 leaders, civil servants, agents and technical staff in the country were trained. In addition, 15 research studies were carried out to generate evidence, and four nationwide communication and awareness-raising campaigns were conducted. Similarly, 30 strategic materials were produced, including studies, protocols, procedure manuals, surveys, interactive maps, training booklets, educational games, podcasts and others.

To mark the closing of the project after six years of implementation, ILO Argentina held a day to celebrate the achievements together with tripartite constituents and key actors in the sector to present these main contributions and reaffirm its commitment to the fulfilment of Target 8.7 on the eradication of forced labour and child labour in all its forms.