Cuts hurt world’s most vulnerable children

TODAY is World Day against Child Labour.

According to the International Labour Organisation, there are 218 million child labourers worldwide — 100 million of them girls.

They work at anything from farming, domestic labour and factory work right through to mining, construction and other heavy work.

Child labour robs children of their childhood, is physically damaging and prevents them from attending school thus perpetuating the cycle of poverty. An estimated 22,000 children a year are killed at work.

The progress made in tackling child labour over the last decade is at real risk of being undone by the severity of the global economic crisis.

While the economic climate is a jolt for families in developed countries, it is a major shock for many vulnerable families in less developed countries.

Not only is there no social safety net to protect these families, but the burden to fill the gap and provide an income for the family often falls on children.

With increased desperation comes increased exposure to risk for these children, many of whom work in casual, poorly legislated, dangerous or even illegal jobs.

As employers look to cut costs, children become an easy option. They are cheaper to employ but they are also far more likely to end up being psychologically, physically and sexually abused.

Cuts in education budgets and international overseas development assistance is forcing more children out of school and into the labour market.

I strongly urge the Government to maintain a wider perspective, and avoid making the temptation to make any more short-term cuts that have serious long-term consequences for millions of the world’s most vulnerable children.

David Dalton

Plan Ireland

126 Lower Baggot Street

Dublin 2

www.plan.ie