KABUL (SW) – Latest estimates by the International Labour Organization suggest over a million minors in Afghanistan are busy in crippling child labor practices.
In conjunction with June 12, the International Day of “Combating Child Labor”, the ILO made this announcement. Ebadullah Ahmadi, the representative of the International Labor Organization in Balkh, says that poverty, the lack of job opportunities, the unemployment of family heads and the lack of awareness of children’s rights have caused the increase of working children in Afghanistan.
He added: “As per the last survey, more than one million working children were identified, most of them are engaged in hard work. Children are working in brick kilns, factories and roadside jobs.”
According to the official statistics of Balkh department of labor and social affairs, at least 16 thousand children are engaged in hard work in this province alone. Baryalay Faiq, head of the social affairs department said that 1,1684 children are working here. “There is no decrease in the number of working children.”
Asadollah and Akbar, two working children who are engaged in work beyond their capacity under harsh conditions, said that they are forced to work to meet the needs of their families instead of going to school.
Officials claim they are trying to eradicate poverty and put an end to child labor.
Deen Muhammad Haqbayan, the financial and administrative director of the ministry of labor and social affairs, said that 40% of child laborers have decreased: “A commission has been created in coordination with the Prime Minister’s Office. We try to [provide] work and educational opportunities for them. This is a 40-year-old problem that cannot be solved in one year.”
ENDS
