Labor and Employment Minister Senator Chris Ngige said on Tuesday that the federal government hopes for an 80% eradication of child labor by 2025.
Ngige said this during a press conference to mark World Day Against Child Labor in Abuja.
The theme for World Day Against Child Labor 2021 is titled: “Act Now: End Child Labor”.
The Nigeria News Agency (NAN) reports that recent ILO and UNICEF publications estimate that 160 million children are in child labor.
Ngige said no government has made efforts to eradicate child labor in Nigeria like the current administration, with the introduction of a school feeding program to attract children to school.
“The International Labor Organization (ILO) has estimated that more than 160 million children are involved in child labor, half of whom are engaged in the worst forms of child labor that affect their health, safety and total well-being.
“The Government of Nigeria, through the Federal Ministry of Labor and Employment, in collaboration with the ILO and other stakeholders, has the primary responsibility to ensure that children are not engaged in work.
“It is work which constitutes child labor and young workers of legal working age are duly protected and work in safe conditions,” he said.
The Minister added that the theme of the celebration focuses on the promises made for the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labor 2021.
He also said that this theme focused on the need to take immediate action to accelerate progress in the elimination of child labor.
“This is the first International Year for the Elimination of Child Labor since the ratification of ILO Convention 182 on the ‘Worst Forms of Child Labor‘.
“This comes as the COVID-19 crises threatened to undo years of progress in the fight against child labor,” he said.
Ngige, however, said the government has created an enabling environment to tackle the threat through the ratification and adoption of key ILO conventions.
He said these ILO conventions included the elimination of the worst forms of child labor, No.182 (1999), Minimum age, No.138 (1970), Forced labor, No.29 (1930 ), the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. , among others.
Ngige said Nigeria has also approved policy documents on the National Child Labor Policy, the National Plan for the Elimination of Child Labor in Nigeria and a Comprehensive List of Hazardous Work among many other measures adopted. .
He added that the ministry was reviewing the Labor Law and other labor laws in order to address any gaps and obstacles to effective labor administration and the elimination of child labor in Nigeria.
Earlier, ILO representative in the country, Venessa Phala, lamented that 92 million children in Africa are involved in child labor, including 41 million in the most dangerous work.
Phala urged African governments to tackle poverty, which was the main driver of the threat.
She said the ILO would continue to support Nigeria in the fight against child labor.
Phala added that the ILO is committed to working with the Ministry of Labor and Employment in the quest to save Nigerian children from social unrest.
Ms Adenike Ajala, Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), representative of the Abuja office, said NECA will ensure that child labor is eradicated from supply chains.
She added that the association is also raising awareness among its members to ensure that children are not employed in companies and factories.
