Child labour figure in Mozambique at more than one million – O País

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Child labour figure in Mozambique at more than one million – O País

1:18 CAT | 14 Jun 2021

Photo: O País

Natural disasters, terrorism in Cabo Delgado, the armed attacks in the centre and the Covid-19 pandemic have hastened the entry into child employment of more than one million children across the country, First Lady of Mozambique Isaura Nyusi said on Saturday during the launch of the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour.

Isaura Nyusi hopes that, under the motto “Act Now: End Child Labour”, the approval of the action plan to combat the worst forms of child labour, concrete actions will reduce the “harsh and cruel situation that many of our children experience in their daily lives”.

“It’s not just to reflect about this issue on the date, but to create fair and concrete actions, aimed at raising awareness in communities about the dangers of some practices associated with child labour,” she said.

On a day when the world stopped to reflect on the problem of child labour, the wife of Mozambique’s president expressed her concern over something which affects thousands in this country, and more than 70 million across the African continent.

Isaura Nyusi expressed her shock at the case of extreme violence perpetrated against a 17-year-old girl in Manica province, urging authorities to act severely against perpetrators of such acts.

“We must increase our demands for women victims of violence to receive the necessary assistance and for their aggressors to be exemplarily punished. It is necessary to create synergies so that victims of violence are able to denounce their aggressors, who are often people close to them,” she said.

Also read: Mozambique: Why a pregnant 17-year-old was attacked with machete by her “husband”

During her speech, Isaura Nyusi reiterated the need to involve communities in the process, as it is within communities that children are forced into work.

Child labour affects around 168 million children worldwide, of which 72 million are from the African continent.

By Inalcide Uamusse

No quadro das celebrações do dia 12 de Junho, dia Mundial da Luta contra o #TrabalhoInfantil, o Ministério do Trabalho e Segurança Social, realizou o Lançamento do Ano Internacional para a Eliminação do Trabalho Infantil em Moçambique. pic.twitter.com/wnsJhUIKXi

— UNICEF Moçambique (@UNICEF_Moz) June 14, 2021