The particularly hazardous nature of agricultural work makes it crucially important to integrate child labour and youth employment concerns in the organising and bargaining agendas of rural workers’ and producers’ organizations, including cooperatives and Unions. Amidst the risky nature of agriculture, it is sad to note that about two thirds of all child labour,occurs in agriculture and its various sub-sectors, including fishing, aquaculture and forestry. The world in recent times has shown deep concern about the issue of child labour, trafficking in children and other forms of slavery and slavery-like practices.
Not withstanding the above, harnessing the rural economy’s potential to create decent and productive jobs and shared prosperity is imperative to achieving sustainable development and equitable economic growth. However, rural areas in many economies and in all regions are characterized by significant decent work deficits. Unions therefore cannot pretent not to notice what is happening. It is therefore important to note that the employment of children deprives adults of employment and once children cannot be unionised the union membership is reduced. GAWU as a Union is therefore committed to the tenants of decent work and has an objective of creating and operating within child labour free zones.
It is against this backdrop GAWU initiated the Torkor model, which seeks to address the key components of SDG target 8.7, on forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking and migration. The model thus uses Torkor as an entry point to address the endemic nature of child labour on the volta lake by applying its three (3) conponents; (1) Organization of informal workers, (2) Socail mobilization through capacity building and sensitization and (3) Knowledge Sharing.
The future of our children is in our own hands. Let us therefore put our efforts together through the revision of workable agricultural policies that seek to modernise the trade and make agricultural players and actors more independent and financially sound to discourage them from using children on their farms. These are very workable by adopting the strategies and models of Unions, Civil society organisations and employer organisations. The torkor model, integrated area based approach and a child labour national plan are therefore key in this regard. It is therefore important to address the long term underlying demand and supply factors of poverty and education while strengthening the legal frameworks for preventing exploitation and foster coordination among organisations charged with different aspects of the problem if results are to be achived.
Dr. Paschal Ajongba S Kaba