Abusing the youth: Support programme holds child labour workshop

Other organizations call on NGOs, govt departments to work alongside NRSP to remove child labour from the country.

KARACHI:

The National Rural Support Programme (NRSP) organised a workshop to inform stakeholders about the successes of its child labour campaign in Sukkur district.

The NRSP is backed by the European Union and the International Labour Organisation (ILO), with the international organisations providing them with technical and financial support, said a statement issued on Thursday. Children between the ages of five and 17 are working in harsh conditions where they are forced to risk their lives on a daily basis, said the chief guest of the event, Lubna Salahuddin. It is the government’s responsibility to end child labour in Pakistan, she added.

NRSP’s action programme ‘Elimination of Abusive Child Labour in Sukkur’ focuses on eliminating the issue through education and training as well as social and economic empowerment of poor families. The organisation evaluated the programme, discussing its success in eliminating child labour in the area.

Representatives of other organisations such as Pakistan Workers Federation and ILO praised the work done by NRSP while also calling for NGOs and government departments to work alongside NRSP to remove child labour from the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 1^st, 2013.