ISLAMABAD: President Dr. Arif Alvi on Monday said that child labour could be overcome by ensuring quality education for children and promoting social justice.
“World Day against Child Labour is observed around the globe to create awareness for the prevention of child labor and encourage stakeholders to speak against this social evil,” the president said in a message on the observance of the Day on June 12.
The president said that child labor was a growing curse in the world, as according to the United Nations, around 160 million children were forced into child labor. “Globally, one out of every ten children are working.”
He said that although child labor had been reduced globally, there was still a dire need for further efforts to eradicate the social evil.
The president emphasized that poverty, terrorism, wars, and lack of access to education were the primary causes of child labor, adding that the fundamental reasons needed to be overcome to eradicate the challenge.
He said poverty forced the families to get their children to engage in work at an early age.
President Alvi claimed that child labor prevented children from acquiring a primary education and having access to medical facilities. He continued by saying that it restricted their fundamental rights to life and liberty and subjected them to dangerous and harmful conditions.
An estimated 27 million children did not go to school in Pakistan, he said, adding that in Pakistan, legislation was being made to eliminate child labor from the country.
He said child labor was banned in Pakistan, and the government provided educational scholarships to discourage child labor and attract children toward education.
President Alvi emphasized the necessity of stepping up initiatives to further the protection of children’s rights and end child labor in the nation. He also noted the need for cooperation and participation from all parties in Pakistan’s effort to end child labor, including the government, society, business sector, media, employers, and civil society. —APP