On 31 March 2021, the African Union and the International Labour Organisation together launched the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour, calling for a multi stakeholder approach in order to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Target 8.7. Under this target, member states are required to “take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms”. Child labour is among the most common corporate human rights violations with the highest prevalence rates in Africa. According to estimates in 2016, around 152 million children were involved in labour, and, of the total, 72.1 million children were in Africa. Corporates are reaping huge profits from child labour in supply chains while children are working for poor wages in pitiable working conditions.
Due to the effects of Covid-19, the International Labour Organisation anticipates that child labour will rise as the economic situation worsens. While schools have reopened in many countries, it does not mean that every child will enjoy the human right of sitting behind the desk. Some children have been forced by circumstances to work before the pandemic, some are now forced to work due to loss of income by parents and guardians as jobs were affected during the lockdown period. A report by UNICEF states that a 1 percent point rise in poverty leads to at least a 0.7 percentage point in increase in child labour. As an example, Zimbabwe is one of the African countries with the worst rates of child labour, with Covid-19 related increases already manifesting. The Midlands province in Zimbabwe witnessed a growing number of children working in the mining sector in the early months of 2021. Most child workers across Africa are in the agricultural sector, for instance in the tobacco cocoa, tea, cotton and sugarcane plantations.
PROMOTING THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION
It is a sad reality that while some children are in school, other children work hard to earn poor wages. Over 152 million children are barred from their right to education, among other rights, because of child labour. It is worth remembering that education is the solution to current and future problems faced by children and the society. It guarantees access to other fundamental rights and once denied, it can result in the denial of other rights. Education breaks cycles of poverty in families and communities and contributes positively to economic development. In Africa, access to education is becoming a growing concern, for instance in sub–Saharan Africa, which has recorded the highest rates of education exclusion. The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation provides that over one fifth of children between the ages of 6 and 11 are out of school, followed by a third of the youth between 12 and 14 years old and almost 60% of youth between the ages of 15 and 17.
CORPORATES UNDER SCRUTINY
The major chocolate companies Nestlé, Mars, and Hershey are currently facing a child slavery lawsuit launched by the International Rights Advocates on behalf of former child workers from Ivory Coast. The former child workers accuse the big chocolate manufacturers of forcing them to work without pay, in unfavourable and hazardous working conditions. This is just one example of corporations profiting off child labour. Law firm Leigh Day initiated legal proceedings in 2019, seeking to sue the British American Tobacco for “unjustified enrichment” from the use of child labour in tobacco farms in Malawi. Children are forced to work because the farmers, who are their parents and guardians, are not paid well enough to sustain their families. On 15 December 2019, the International Rights Advocates (IRA) filed a lawsuit against Apple, Google, Microsoft, Dell, and Tesla in the United States of America. The IRA accused the big tech companies for “knowingly benefiting from, and aiding and abetting the cruel and brutal use of young children in Democratic Republic of Congo to mine cobalt, a key component of every rechargeable lithium-ion battery used in the electronic devices these companies manufacture”. Consequently, these children have suffered serious injuries, exposed to many other hazards and some died in mine collapses. These cases demonstrate there is a long way to go in ending child labour in certain supply chains.
MULTI STAKEHOLDER APPROACH TO ENDING CHILD LABOUR
A multi stakeholder approach is critical because it draws collective efforts towards the eradication of child labour. It yields maximum results as it allows stakeholders to gather resources, expertise, and other contributions in different capacities. This includes governments, through formulation and strengthening policies that regulate corporate behaviour. Governments can also ensure that regular assessments are conducted to guarantee compliance. Stakeholders also include civil society organisations which act as watchdogs and push for accountability for human rights violations. Corporates, with their financial resources can invest more in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes that can help address child labour. Lastly, community leaders and the community contribute through being transparent on how corporates profit on child labour on the ground. However, it would be reassuring to find corporates at the forefront of the campaign since they are gaining much from the situation as it stands.
CORPORATES MUST RECOMMIT AND ACT
Corporates as key stakeholders can make significant contributions towards ending child labour in supply chains since they have the financial resources to do so. They need to adopt a dual approach by which, through due diligence mechanisms, they ensure that children are removed from supply chains and, in addition, facilitate access to education. More corporates can invest in quality education for disadvantaged children by initiating or enhancing philanthropy CSR programmes through donations and collaborating with local schools as well as local NGOs. Education should be a priority, as reducing the number of children excluded from education reduces the number of children in child labour. This enables corporates to go beyond simply ensuring their supply chains are free from child labour by actively making a positive difference in the communities. Corporates operating in different African countries must ensure that adults receive better wages so they can be able to afford sending their children to school and creating more jobs with healthy working conditions. It is time for corporates to act beyond pledges by amplifying CSR programmes targeting children`s access to education. This will complement efforts by other stakeholders towards ending child labour.
One domestic corporation, Aqua Tobacco Zimbabwe, is an example of the positive impact that can be made in communities. Through its corporate social responsibility programmes, Aqua Tobacco Zimbabwe paid tuition for 100 pupils, and donated building materials, stationery, and computers to different schools. Its aim is to achieve sustainable agricultural methods in rural communities, to develop, and to empower. In 2020, the Corporate Social Responsibility Network of Zimbabwe awarded Aqua Tobacco Zimbabwe with the Top Charitable Organisation Award. At an international level, Nestlé is making its contributions towards ending child labour through its child labour alleviating programmes by sending children back to school. Under these programmes, schools have been built and renovated, school kits and uniforms provided, funds donated for income generating projects, and birth certificates financed to facilitate the registration of children in schools. In addition, this programme raises awareness on the importance of preventing child labour. These programmes are in recognition of the role that education plays in ending child labour.
If more corporates manage to invest in education through CSR programmes, backed by efforts from other stakeholders, it means that the coming years will witness millions of children going back to school. It important to acknowledge the programmes that some corporates have already put in place, yet considering the magnitude of the problem and the rising complaints against corporates, it is a fraction of the commitment that is required. More resources ought to be invested in education in order to free children working in supply chains. While 2021 sees the launch of the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour, intending to rekindle the commitment to end child labour in all its forms, it is unsettling that the campaign has not yet gained momentum as expected for such an important cause with limited time set to achieve the goal. This casts doubt over its ability to realise practical change.
This article was written as part of the Human Rights Pulse Writer’s Workshop programme.
Yeukai Gezah is a law graduate from the University of South Africa. She is passionate about Human Rights Law and the development of Africa. Yeukai looks forward to growing experience in human rights advocacy and research. She is a human rights blogger and her particular interests are business and human rights, corporate accountability, children's rights, gender equality and transitional justice.