Fight against exploitation – “Education is the only way out of child labour”

“crown”:How many children around the world have to work and earn money? At what age are children abused?
Reinhard Heiserer: According to estimates by the International Labor Organization (ILO), approximately 160 million children between the ages of five and 17 work in conditions that qualify as child labor (97 million boys, 63 million girls). More than half of them are between five and eleven years old. 79 million of these children work under exploitative and often unhealthy and dangerous conditions. This not only threatens their health, but also violates their basic children’s rights and robs them of their future.

In the age group of 5 to 17 years, more than a third of working children have no chance to go to school. While nearly two-thirds are able to attend classes, studies have shown that lack of time and energy often means they underperform and make less progress in learning than their non-working peers.

Child labor takes many different forms: as bonded or bonded labor, in private households and industrial companies. About 70 percent of child laborers work in agriculture, one of the most accident-prone economic sectors. There are hardly any state labor inspections there and there is a lack of protection from trade unions and consumer groups. Children are also often employed in mining and in the textile and carpet industry. Only about 30 percent of children are paid for their work; most child labor is done unpaid in family businesses. Of the 160 million working children, about 87 million live in sub-Saharan Africa.

Jugend Eine Welt supports projects around the world to combat this complaint. A flagship project is in India. What is it about? What does a child’s working day look like?
In the Jhajjar district in the Indian state of Haryana, just a few hours’ drive from the metropolis of New Delhi, about 10,000 people live and work in the approximately 500 brick factories under appalling conditions. Among them are thousands of children.

The conditions are not understandable for Europeans. There is no running water, no electricity, no toilets. Simple mud houses, which are on the edge of the brick factories, serve as accommodation options. Families often have to share a small room and sleep on straw. The parents, mostly illiterate, come to Haryana with their children from other states for more than eight months to earn money and thus ensure their survival. Together with their children, they toil for twelve hours, from sunrise to sunset. Every day. There is no weekend.

Payment is based on the number of bricks produced. To generate an income of about five euros a day, a family must produce 2,000 bricks. The ability of the children to work is therefore indispensable for the families. As a result, the girls and boys have no chance to go to school. Without education, however, they remain trapped in the vicious circle of poverty.

So education is the key to success?
Having a final diploma and being able to read, write and count is the basis for a self-determined life. According to figures from UNESCO, 262 million children and young people worldwide cannot go to school. But without school or vocational training, young people have very limited career opportunities. They do not get permanent jobs, but can only do occasional work, which is often dangerous or exploitative, especially in the countries of the South.

Under the motto “Education overcomes poverty”, Jugend Eine Welt supports school and training projects in particular for children and young people who would otherwise have no chance of education due to their social situation. For example, because they come from poor families who cannot afford to send their children to school. Or because they dropped out of education as orphans or street children. To give these children a real chance of a viable future, it is important to offer them free education.

This is often not enough, as the parents depend on their children’s extra income, and in any case room and board must be provided during school hours. In many regions of the world, children also receive their only daily meal and special support or protection and access to clean water.

How can we from Austria act against child labour?
In two ways. On the one hand, there is a need for local help in countries where child labor occurs. Only then can we tackle the root of the problem. Numerous projects funded by Jugend Eine Welt give working children and young people the opportunity to break out of the vicious circle of child labour: through access to education and training, but also through caring support for young people in their first steps in working life without exploitation.

This gives young people the opportunity to live a self-determined life without poverty. Because education conquers poverty! On the other hand, Austria needs critical public awareness.

Because indirectly we are very well confronted with the problem of child labor in this country – in the form of many goods and products that were manufactured in the Global South with the help of children’s hands. We only have to look at the breakfast table here, which often unwittingly contains products that contain child labour. I am thinking, for example, of orange juice or cocoa, which is obtained in seven countries through exploitative child labour.

Or palm oil, which is in chocolate cream and is produced by children under exploitative conditions in Malaysia, Indonesia and Sierra Leone. Often we don’t even know what suffering we support with our buying behavior. It means that everyone must question their own consumption and purchasing behavior and pay attention to the origin of the products and the fair trade label.

Does child labor also exist in Europe? If so, where? Does your organization also fight against this?
Reports from the ILO (International Labor Organization) from 2019 show that child labor also occurs in Europe. Three-quarters of all hazelnuts consumed worldwide or processed into chocolate or Nutella, for example, come from Turkey. However, according to the current “2020 Product List” (ILAB – United States Office of International Labor Affairs), these are often harvested using child labor.

The International Labor Organization reports that as many as 720,000 children aged 5 to 17 had to work in Turkey in 2019. Of this incredible number of child labourers, 30.8 percent were employed in agriculture. They are exposed to risks that can lead to lifelong chronic health problems. In addition, these children often face interruptions in their schooling. Sometimes they even lose contact with the school system and remain trapped in the vicious circle of child labour.

Do the donations also come in immediately and do they make a difference?
Of course, the donations go directly to our projects. Jugend Eine Welt has held the Austrian donation seal of approval since its introduction in 2001. This confirms that the funds are used responsibly and also gives our donors the assurance that their donations are used efficiently and reliably in accordance with the commitment. Our balance sheet shows that the donations make a difference. Jugend Eine Welt annually supports more than 134 social projects on four continents for underprivileged children and young people worldwide and also provides emergency aid in the countries of the Global South.

Together with our Don Bosco partners, Jugend Eine Welt has been supporting projects in more than 107 countries since 1997. In our project partners’ more than 7,400 facilities, including education and leisure centres, schools and homes for street children, more than 1.8 million underprivileged children and young people receive the education and attention they need to make their lives successful and good. can look forward to a hopeful future.

Youth One World Donations Account: AT66 3600 0000 0002 4000