Press Release

13 November 2003, New Delhi - The three key processes affecting the future of our children are; poverty alleviation, Education For All and the elimination of child labour. In a Round Table discussion, jointly organised by UNESCO, ILO, the World Bank and the Global March Against Child Labour, the interlinkages between these three issues were highlighted. For the first time, these different agencies together clearly drew up the need to tackle the triangular relationship between them at all levels of policy planning.

"Multilateral and bilateral partners are becoming more aware of their potential to assist governments in setting a social and economic policy framework that will strongly encourage the adoption of a new vision on the future of children and their values for the development of society as a whole," said Mr. Ad Melkert, the Netherlands Executive Director of the World Bank, who chaired the Round Table, in his opening remark.

Not only did the meeting cut across the different international agencies working on poverty, education and child labour - including UNESCO, ILO, the World Bank, and UNICEF - but it also encompassed both the Ministers of Labour and of Education from Tanzania, who emphasised the importance of coordination among the different departments at the national level. Other distinguished guests included the Minister of Labour from Dominican Republic and representatives of the Ministers of Education from Brazil and Pakistan.

India's Minister of Labour, Mr. Sahib Singh Verma, made a brief appearance, during which he gave a short presentation and assured the country's commitment to ending child labour by the year 2007. Ambitiously, he promised that government schemes and programmes, including the implementation of free, compulsory education, will reach children in every corner of the country.

Calling for the harmonising of policies that link the elimination of child labour and universal primary and secondary education into the overall strategies to meet the Millennium Development Goal seemed to be a common voice shared by the delegates at the Round Table conference. It was clearly acknowledged that free, compulsory education of good quality, up until the minimum age of entering into employment, was identified as one of the key strategies in ending child labour. On the other hand, child labour is a major obstacle to ensuring education for all children.

"A girl who has just been rescued from bonded labour, when she saw us sitting at the High-Level Group, came to me and said 'I am surprised that there are so many people who want to help us and we still have so many child labourers who never get to go to school. Do you all work together?' Her exact words should be a wake-up call for us," said Kailash Satyarhti, Chairperson of the Global March Against Child Labour, which is one of the hosts of the Round Table.

At the invitation of the Brazilian Education Minister, the participants agreed to meet again in 2004, when the High-Level Group on Education for All meets there in Brazil. The coming year will be the test for the small but high-level and highly committed groups who gathered here today, to show concrete progress in bringing changes to the policy domain.

For more information, please contact:

International Secretariat
Global March Against Child Labour
L-6 Kalkaji, New Delhi 110019 India
Tel: (91 11) 2622 4899, 2647 5481
Fax: (91 11) 2623 6818
E-mail: childhood@globalmarch.org, gmis@globalmarch.org.in
Website: http://www.globalmarch.org

The Global March is one of the largest international movement in protection of the children’s rights, especially the right to free, quality education and the right to be free from economic exploitation.