Regional consultations in preparation of the Sixth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour (Morocco, 2026)

In 2026, the Government of Morocco will host the Sixth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour. The Conference will bring together representatives of governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, civil society, regional and international organizations, the private sector and academia. Its objective is to discuss the major issues involved in the elimination of child labour, and to collectively explore concrete and effective solutions.

This Sixth Global Conference takes place at a critical time. According to the ILO-UNICEF 2024 Global Estimates of Child Labour, while child labour has almost halved since 2000, considerable efforts are still required. The international community has failed in meeting Sustainable Development Goals Target 8.7, which aims to end child labour by 2025. Today, 138 million children remain in child labour, including approximately 54 million in hazardous work. Progress must be significantly accelerated. It is crucial to sustain recent achievements, scaling up efforts, guiding policies, and strengthening funding, both nationally and internationally.

Building on the outcomes of previous Global Conferences – Oslo (1997), The Hague (2010), Brasilia (2013), Buenos Aires (2017) and Durban (2022) – and guided by the six priority areas of the Durban Call to Action, adopted at the Fifth Global Conference in May 2022, the Sixth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour will serve as a platform for exchange, enabling the sharing of innovative and effective solutions, highlighting persistent gaps, and identifying urgent and concrete actions towards the elimination of child labour globally.

Preparatory process

The ILO Governing Body has endorsed the preparatory process and mandated the convening of regional tripartite consultations across Africa, the Americas, the Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, and Europe and Central Asia (see GB.353/POL/4, paragraphs 12–17). These consultations will engage representatives of governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations to ensure that regional priorities and perspectives are fully reflected in the global dialogue.

The consultations will take place as follows:

• Africa: 9-25 September 2025
• Americas: 24 September - 23 October 2025
• Arab States: 2 and 6 October 2025
• Asia and the Pacific: 16 October 2025
• Europe and Central Asia: 21 October 2025

These consultations will be informed by regional statistical profiles on child labour, developed using the global estimates dataset and completed by national and subnational data sources. These profiles will provide robust, region-specific insights to address the diverse challenges faced across regions.