From the 15th till the 20th of May, the V Global Conference on Child Labour is taking place in Durban, South Africa. Here, you can find the draft agenda for the event presented by the South African Government. Momentum is building towards the Conference and particularly in regard to children’s participation. 

Child Rights Connect and 11 of its members have signed up to a joint call to ensure equal, inclusive and transparent children’s participation at the forthcoming Global Conference on Child Labour. The statement was elaborated and supported by children’s representatives including over 150 NGOs and 100 researchers who support working children. It aspires for an equal and equitable representation of working children from all regions of the world in different settings and contexts.  

The joint call welcomes that the conference will put into practice Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the right to be heard through a children’s forum, and that child ambassadors will be selected beforehand to speak on behalf of the diverse group of working children globally. Whilst welcoming this initiative, the joint call suggests expanding the involvement of children by including them in broader sessions and encourage effective, fair and meaningful child participation.

Dialogue Works is the global campaign to promote and encourage working children’s participation. Two of our members, Kindernothilfe (KNH) and Terre des Hommes International Federation (TDHIF), launched this campaign. The main goals of this campaign are to reinforce working children’s participation in various debates, assist Children Advisory Teams by building their capacity and encouraging children to advocate, establish a community to exchange experiences, good practices and ideas, facilitate working children’s communication worldwide and promote working children’s participation at the V Global Conference.

Child Rights Connect has been coordinating in advance of the Conference with its members and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, who are playing a key role in supporting child participation in the Conference and is advising the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in this regard. 

Sources: 

9 Basic Requirements for meaningful and ethical children’s participation  

Child-friendy version of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 

Tweet by Terre des Hommes  

News piece by Dialogue Works