Global Decline in Child Labor Remains Steady Yet Insufficient

Recent estimates reveal that nearly 138 million children worldwide were engaged in child labor last year, with approximately 54 million involved in hazardous work that poses risks to their health, safety, or development. This information comes from a new report released by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and UNICEF.

Although the data indicates a reduction of over 20 million children since 2020, the report titled Child Labour: Global Estimates 2024, Trends and the Road Forward emphasizes that millions of children are still deprived of their right to education, play, and a carefree childhood.

In Asia and the Pacific, there has been a significant decline in child labor from 49 million to 28 million since 2020. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the number of affected children decreased from eight million to about seven million. Conversely, Sub-Saharan Africa continues to bear the heaviest burden, accounting for almost two-thirds of all children in child labor, approximately 87 million. While the percentage of child laborers dropped from 24% to 22%, the absolute number remains largely unchanged due to population growth, ongoing conflicts, extreme poverty, and strained social systems.

Agriculture remains the largest sector for child labor, comprising 61% of cases, followed by services at 27%, which includes domestic work and market sales, and industry at 13%, which encompasses mining and manufacturing. Boys are more frequently affected by child labor across all age groups; however, when unpaid domestic work of 21 hours or more per week is included, this trend reverses.

Since the year 2000, the total number of children engaged in child labor has nearly halved from 246 million to 138 million. Nonetheless, progress is too slow, and the goal of completely eliminating child labor by 2025 has not been met. To achieve this objective within the next five years, the current pace must accelerate elevenfold.

According to Gilbert F. Houngbo, the Director-General of the ILO, the findings of the report provide hope and demonstrate that progress is achievable. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that children are in school rather than at work. Parents also need support and access to decent work opportunities to allow them to send their children to school instead of forcing them to work for survival.

UNICEF Director Catherine Russell acknowledged the significant strides made in reducing child labor. However, she highlighted that far too many children are still toiling in mines, factories, or fields under perilous circumstances just to survive. She pointed out that progress can be fostered through legal protections, enhanced social safety nets, investments in free, quality education, and better access to decent work for adults. However, cuts to global funding threaten to undo these hard-won achievements. There is an urgent need to renew commitments to ensure children are seen in classrooms and playgrounds, not in the workforce.

Both UNICEF and the ILO are urging governments to take action, warning that sustainable and increased funding--both globally and nationally--is more crucial than ever to preserve recent successes. Cuts to support for education, social safety systems, and livelihoods could further marginalize vulnerable families, compelling some to send their children to work. Additionally, reduced investment in data collection hampers visibility and efforts to tackle the issue.

To expedite progress, the organizations are calling on governments to invest in social safety nets for at-risk households, strengthen child protection systems, ensure universal access to quality education, provide decent work opportunities for adults and youth, and enforce laws holding companies accountable to end exploitation and protect children within global supply chains.