CTRP signs a regional commitment against child labor

Ministries of labor, business and trade union organizations of Latin America and the Caribbean signed a commitment to accelerate efforts to eradicate child labor in the region on the occasion of the World Day Against Child Labor on June 12.

For Panama, Confederation of Workers of the Republic of Panama (CTRP), through its Secretary General, Guillermo Puga, signed a commitment that reaffirms the goal of achieving the first generation free of this scourge. eIn the frame Regional initiative Latin America and the Caribbean without child labor in which 31 countries participate.

High-level representatives have pledged to implement Accelerated Action Plans for the country, which promote coordination between high-impact public and private programs and services, with the goal of breaking the path that leads to child labor situations.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, it is estimated that more than 8 million girls, boys and adolescents are engaged in child labor, of which 5.5 million perform particularly hazardous work.

These figures emphasize the importance of taking urgent and effective measures to protect children’s rights and eradicate child labor in all its forms.

In the period from 2019 to 2023, the Directorate against Child Labor and the Protection of Adolescents Mitradel responded to 98 complaints, of which 32 were boys who were abused, explained director Roderick Chaverri.

Around 230 adolescents in a situation of risk and child labor were detected in the street tours, for which approaches were made with the technical committee and judicial authorities.

About 3,500 boys have also been helped with child labor stipends and more than 12,000 people have been sensitized, including experts and adolescents, the official explained.

Claudia Coenjaerts, ILO Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbeanhe emphasized the need to speed up efforts in social justice, noting that “every girl and boy who works is a reminder that there is still much to do, and that progress in social justice is urgently needed.”

The Child Labor Free Latin America and the Caribbean Regional Initiative is a space where 31 countries work in an articulated and tripartite manner to achieve the first generation of child labor free people in the region.

Currently, the Regional Initiative consists of: AAntigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and Venezuela, together with International Organization of Employers (IOE) and Confederation of American Trade Unions (CSA).

The Regional initiative Latin America and the Caribbean without child labor It operates with the technical assistance of the ILO and the ongoing support of its partners, the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the Andalusian Agency for International Development Cooperation (AACID), the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC) and the United States Department of Labor (USDOL).

In Panama, unions are very careful about child labor in their companies. In all collective agreements, there are clauses for this topic, he explained Directorate against child labor and protection of adolescents Mitradel.

with National Council of Private Entrepreneurship (Conep) We signed a contract on December 30, 2021, where the Business Network was formalized, we trained and certified 30 companies. We review training modules from another 60 companies. Tripartism functions as an axis and driver of public policies on child labor.