ILO, Counties partner to address surge in child labor and sexual exploitation

Naivasha,

Tuesday, November 28, 2023

KNA by Erastus Gichohi

The International Labor Organization [ILO] has partnered with five county governments that have recorded a surge in child labor and sexual exploitation in order to accelerate necessary interventions and policies to tackle the menace.

ILO has flagged the counties of Kajiado, Nairobi, Bungoma, Mombasa and Kwale where cases of child labor and sexual exploitation have surged in the recent past, attributed to their nature of economies.

For instance, Kwale and Mombasa and other coastal counties continue to record increased cases of children forced into commercial sex exploitation, pimping business, beach business and early child marriages.

On the other hand, Bungoma and other agricultural rich counties have recorded a surge in exploitation of children in agricultural sectors, quarrying, tea harvesting, tree growing amongst others driving high school dropout rates.

According to ILO programme Manager Grace Banya, Kajiado has also been mostly affected by children herding cattle and rearing activities with high cases of children involved in cross-border cattle herding.

 Banya said ILO has accelerated its partnerships with affected counties to roll out much needed interventions that will address the menace including influencing enactment of friendly child protection laws.

ILO, Banya said is also influencing county budgetary processes to channel adequate funds towards enactment of laws, advocacy campagns and ensuring enforcement measures to end child labor, sexual exploitation and trafficking in the country.

“Enactment and enforcement of child protection laws in the country is key towards achievement of Sustainable Development Goal target 8 of eradicating child labor and sexual exploitation”, Banya said during a press briefing in Naivasha.

Andrew Odete ILO Engagement and Partnerships Officer said child labor is mostly driven by the agricultural sector with a prevalence of 72 percent and harmful cultural practices such as Female Genital Mutilation and child early marriages.

Odete said ILO is supporting counties enrich their child protection laws, policy agendas, sensitization programmes to upscale rescue missions of victims of child labor and sexual exploitation through the County Child Labor Advisory Councils.

In addition, Odete said ILO is also partnering with the Ministry of Labor and the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics in rolling out a national survey on child labor to establish the full scale in the country.

This, he said will ensure more progressive, data informed interventions, measures and policies are put in place to address and eradicate the vice.

Courtesy; KNA