By Steven Godfrey Mkweteza, Contributor

Employers’ Consultative Association of Malawi (ECAM) says it is worried with the country’s
slow efforts towards the elimination of the worst forms of child labour by 2025.

Vice President for the association, Ivy Kwatiwani, expressed the sentiments during this years’ commemoration of world day against child labour which was held in Zomba district.

Kwatiwani said while significant progress has been made in reducing child labour over the last two decades, progress has slowed over time and it has even stalled during the period 2016_2020.

The vice president however, called upon government and its stakeholders to adopt the nation’s child labour policy so as to expedite the progress towards the elimination of child labour in the country.

“While we commend government for its commitment in ensuring child labour, it is our sincere hope that the nation’s child labour policy will be adopted any time soon so as to address some of the challenges,” said Kwatiwani.

According to her, child labour in the country is denying children’s basic rights as well as alarming when employers are in to source skilled labour due to children being engaged in child labour rather than the balance of light work and education.

Among others,Kwatiwani, highlighted that her association has reviewed the employers guide on the elimination of child labor and employers code of conduct for employers on the elimination of child labour.

In his remarks, the project technical advisor for international labour organization (ILO) Gracious Ndalama concurred with Kwatiwani on calls on government and stakeholders for an urgent and quick review of all existing programs on child labour elimination in the national action plans; national child labour policy and specific project initiatives.

Ndalama, however, commended government for ratifying the ILO convention No 138 on the minimum age for entry into employment and ILO convention No 182 on the worst forms of child labour in 1999.

He said the country has put in place the normative framework necessary to protect its children from the scourge of child labour.

Child labour is widespread in Malawi with the most recent national child labour survey (NCLS 2015), showing that 38 percent of children aged 5-17 are involved in child labour.

Current global statistics indicate that 160 million children are still engaged in child labour_ some as young as 5.

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