The
Global March Against Child Labour started
with an 80,000 km march as groups of marchers
including children, youth and adults set
out from Manila, Sao Paulo and Cape Town
and crossed a total of 107 countries across
the world, collecting children’s thumbprints
and holding multiple events to raise awareness
along the way. This landmark event culminated
in the drafting and subsequent adoption
of the ILO Convention 182 on the Worst Forms
of Child Labour. The pace of ratification
of the convention is unprecedented in ILO
history with 154 countries having ratified
the convention so far. The Global March
through its partners has played a large
role in this and continues to lobby other
governments to ratify and subsequently implement
the convention.
Today, the Global March
is one of the world’s largest civil
society initiatives for the elimination
of child labour and this broad-based coalition
involves children (many of them former
and current child labourers), NGOs, trade
unions, teachers unions, activists, governments,
academics, journalists and celebrities.
Its tireless work and unwavering commitment
to the cause has earned Global March immense
credibility and found it a prominent place
in important transnational policy-decision
groups, which has further strengthened
its worldwide network of partners and
entrenched its advocacy movement at the
grassroots level.
By being a member of the
Global March Against Child Labour, you
can influence the policy decisions at
various levels. You can also directly
participate in the strategic workplan
of the Global March by seeking election
in the Global March organisation structure
and participating in the General Assembly.
