By Simone Galimberti*
KATHMANDU, Nepal | 26 August 2024 (IDN) — Child labour remains one of the most pressing issues of our times. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), child labour remains a pervasive and persistent issue, 160 million children – 63 million girls and 97 million boys—are in child labour, accounting for almost 1 in 10 of all children worldwide.
A recently completed five-year major action research project, Child Labour: Action-Research-Innovation in South and South-Eastern Asia or CLARISSA came up with new insights on the complex underlying issues related to child labour in the two of most unequal regions of the wide Asian Pacific region.
The program was implemented, with the financial support of the British government, by a consortium from the academic world and local and international civil society and led by the Institute of Development Studies under Professor Danny Burns, the most prominent theorist and practitioner of action research worldwide.
The program, thanks to its innovative approach of truly and meaningfully involving children and other key stakeholders, not only generated new insights but also proposed a variety of policy propositions that, if implemented, could drastically help reduce and eliminate child labour.
Among the numerous research outputs of CLARISSA, is a ground breaking research paper entitled “Drivers and Dynamics of the Worst Forms of Child Labour in Kathmandu’s Adult Entertainment Sector”.
The paper, targeting some of the key transit points in Kathmandu, sheds new lights on the causes and dynamics behind child exploitation and sexual harassment in informal and extremely precarious jobs in an industry highly unregulated that mostly operates in a gray area between what is legit and what it is not.
Interview
To better comprehend the issues at stakes and possible solutions, I interviewed Kriti Bhattarai, one of the authors, a member of a wider group of practitioners and advocates involved in the research.
We might tend to think of quick “fixes” to eradicate child labour.
Instead, a combination of actions across the policy spectrum, from stronger health care system to better quality education to a resilient and comprehensive social security system, are going to be necessary.
None of these actions are easily implementable especially because a drastic overhaul of the way policy making works would be required and the high costs of enforcing them.
After all, the underlying issues at its core, are deeply entrenched in a system that, founded on inequities is still unable to provide for the millions of children.
Yet despite the challenges in their enforcement, they are technically feasible and, despite the difficulties, some important improvements have been achieved.
At the same time, a lot of work remains in order to protect, safeguard those children, especially girl children and young women that have been forced, due to the precariousness of their family situations, to be engaged in the adult entertainment industry.
Currently, hundreds of adolescent girls and young women in the Kathmandu Valley have no better options than earning some money for their own and their families’ survival through this unsafe and unprotected sector.
Offering them new pathways and opportunities remain a key challenge for policy makers and elected officials both at federal and local level as explained by Kriti Bhattarai.
Bhattarai is a Senior Program Manager at VoC and was the Qualitative Researcher and Thematic Lead for the CLARISSA project. She is also a MPhil/PhD scholar in International Relations and Diplomacy at Tribhuvan University.
Q: Which urgent measures should be taken by the authorities? Who, according to you, should be taking the lead? Local Government, Federal Government, combination of both?
The urgent measures that should be taken by authorities to address the worst forms of child labour in Nepal, particularly in the adult entertainment sector as per my understanding after this program are the following:
- Strengthening Legal Frameworks: Authorities should enhance existing laws and regulations to better protect children from exploitation and ensure strict enforcement against child labour practices.
- Initiatives must be implemented to ensure that children have access to quality education, and no one are deprived of basic level education in the absence of their birth certificate, which can serve as a preventive measure against child labour.
- Launching awareness campaigns to educate families and communities about the dangers of child labour and the importance of education is crucial.
- Providing financial and social support to families in poverty can reduce the economic pressures that lead to child labour.
- Monitoring and Reporting Mechanisms: Establishing robust systems for monitoring child labour practices and reporting violations can help in taking timely actions against offenders.
Both local and federal government should take the lead in these initiatives. Local governments can implement community-specific strategies and engage directly with affected families as they are provided with the legal rights to formulate necessary policies, execute them and monitor them as per the local context.
On the other hand, the federal government can provide overarching policies, funding, and legal frameworks to support these local efforts. This dual approach ensures that interventions are tailored to local needs while maintaining a cohesive national strategy against child labour.
Q: In the long term, what could be done by authorities? Do you think agencies coordinate enough among themselves? What about the role of NGOs?
In the long term, authorities can implement several structural measures to combat the worst forms of child labour in Nepal, particularly in the adult entertainment sector. Combating child labour in Nepal requires a multi-faceted approach involving comprehensive policy frameworks, integrated education programs, proper health service facilities and economic empowerment initiatives.
Establishing robust legal and policy measures addresses root causes like poverty, health services and education access, while quality education and vocational training equip children for better employment opportunities.
For NGOs’ role, economic programs, such as microfinance and job training for adults, reduce reliance on child labour. Strengthening child protection systems and investing in ongoing research are crucial for safeguarding children and informing policies. Public awareness campaigns are essential to change societal attitudes.
NGOs play a vital role in advocacy, direct support services, capacity building, and research, as demonstrated by the CLARISSA program’s participatory evidence generation. This comprehensive approach is essential for long-term success in eradicating child labour in Nepal.
Q: Has been any improvements in trends? Any best practices that proved to be effective?
The CLARISSA program has documented notable improvements in trends related to child labour in Nepal, particularly in the adult entertainment sector, and identified best practices that have proven effective in addressing the worst forms of child labour (WFCL). Recent trends indicate a reduction in child labour incidence in Nepal, driven by increased awareness and understanding of the issue, as evidenced by qualitative analysis of 400 life stories and sharing during the action research group meetings.
More children are accessing educational opportunities, and local communities are actively engaging in child protection efforts, fostering a cultural shift against child labour. Best practices include participatory evidence generation, multi-stakeholder collaboration, targeted awareness campaigns, engagement with the business owners, support services for families, and robust monitoring and reporting mechanisms.
The CLARISSA program highlights the importance of involving children and business owners in research. Despite ongoing challenges, these efforts have led to positive trends, and continued focus on these best practices is essential for sustaining and amplifying improvements.
Q: What’s the role of public schools (considering the challenges they face) in preventing young children from falling into adult entertainment jobs?
Schools in Nepal play a crucial role in preventing children from entering hazardous jobs in the adult entertainment sector by providing a safe and supportive learning environment, empowering children through quality education, and raising awareness about the dangers of child labour.
Effective measures to enhance their impact include investing in teacher training, implementing flexible learning options, offering financial incentives for attendance, and collaborating with NGOs for additional resources. Community engagement and parental involvement are also vital, as they help foster a culture that prioritizes education and children’s rights.
Monitoring systems to track attendance and performance, along with community-based programs addressing the root causes of child labour, further support these efforts. By focusing on these strategies, schools can significantly contribute to a safer and more educated future for vulnerable children in Nepal.
Q: A proper Care/Fostering System being in place, benefiting vulnerable children, could make a difference?
A well-designed care and fostering system in Nepal could significantly support vulnerable children by placing them in safe, nurturing homes with trained caregivers, ensuring stability, emotional support, and protection from exploitation. It would facilitate access to education, breaking the cycle of child labour by empowering children with knowledge and skills.
Addressing trauma through social workers and counselling services would promote emotional well-being and resilience. By providing a safety net, the system would prevent children from entering hazardous labour sectors. Againeffective collaborations would strengthen child protection mechanisms, ensuring a coordinated response to child labour. Such a system offers a holistic approach to prevention, protection, and rehabilitation, crucial for eliminating the worst forms of child labour in Nepal.
Q: What have been your major lesson learned throughout CLARISSA?
The CLARISSA program’s intervention and findings reveal that child labour is driven by complex, interconnected factors like poverty, family illness, and school dropout. It highlights children’s agency, showing they navigate their circumstances in varied ways, and underscores the critical role of quality education in preventing child labour.
The program emphasizes the importance of involving families and communities, adopting holistic approaches that address socio-economic conditions, and using participatory research to empower children and gather nuanced data. Through various methodology used to gather evidence in this program has also enabled me to learn about how children are vulnerable in their journey to work and wayback home.
It is not just their homes or workplace but many children are at risk as they travel in between the oddest hours and with no safety mechanisms such as safe dropping facilities or adequate lights in the narrow alleys people walk.
It is also essential trusting children and their ability is a must, an indispensable component while conducting such research works and de-learning our own assumptions and thoughts regrading children is very important. This created a non-judgemental platform to children for expressing themselves and exploring actions to contribute creating an environment for themselves.
*Simone Galimberti, based in Nepal, writes about SDGs, youth-centered policy-making and a stronger and better United Nations. [IDN-InDepthNews]
Photo: Child labour comprises work that children are too young to perform and/or work that, by its nature or circumstances, is likely to harm children’s health, safety or morals. Credit: UN/MINUSTAH / Logan Abassi