Child labour in Nigeria is the employment of children under 18 years to restrict or prevent them from basic education and development. Such work includes; work that is mentally, physically, socially, or morally dangerous and harmful to children or interferes with their schooling by depriving them of the opportunity to attend school; obliging them to leave school prematurely, or requiring them to attempt to combine school attendance with excessively long and heavy work.
On June 12th, the World Day on child labour, UNICEF revealed the Covid 19 threatened to reverse years of progress in tackling the problem. More than ever, the need to intensify effort in wiping away this evil from our society is expedient.
Are you wondering how you can help eliminate child labour in your communities? Here is how:
1. Accessible Education for All
A child’s place is in the school where they can receive proper education and use it to build a promising future in the society, they live in. As an individual against child labour, you can speak to the right authorities in ensuring education should be affordable and of the best quality that can be accessed by all classes of people.
2. Educate Yourself
Education is a fundamental part of any effective effort to eradicate child labour. You need to be aware of the state of child labour in the world, understand the complexities surrounding this stubborn problem, the needs and rights of children combined with other vital pieces of information. Only then will you be able to inform others about the evil of this problem and encourage them to help eliminate this problem.
3. Share your Resources
It would be of great benefit if you channel your resources to supporting reputable groups that are helping free children from exploitative labour and helping them get a good education. Identify NGOs around that are helping connect donors with needy children and volunteers. Your time and money can positively change the life of a child forever.
4. Make the Government Responsible
Channel your energy towards ensuring the government does not ignore child rights violations under the guise of having a more urgent crisis to tackle. They need to implement policies that bring long-lasting social change from child labour and show how these changes can bring numerous benefits to children. Also, the country needs to groom formally educated adults that can contribute to nation-building and the country’s economic growth.
5. Spread Awareness
Speak up, the negative impact of child labour cannot be overemphasized. Awareness ensures communities tap into growth, education, employment opportunities and create a healthy economic environment where children suffer much less. Parental awareness of the evils of child labour is very important because aware communities and parents can respond better to children’s issues much more effectively.
The truth is, we can achieve a child-labour-free world if only we work together to eliminate child labour in Nigeria.