The United States Department of Labour has announced a $4 million award to support the International Labour Organization’s work to implement a technical assistance project in West Africa.
The department made this known in a press release on its website on Tuesday, stating that the ILO is expected to work with the government of Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States to catalyze regional, national and local action to address child labour in agriculture sectors and communities.
The ILO and UNICEF currently estimate that more children are working in child labour in Africa than in the rest of the world combined. In the West Africa region covered by ECOWAS, at least 23 percent of all children are estimated to be used as child labour.
Administered by the department’s Bureau of International Labour Affairs, the project includes technical assistance to ECOWAS in support of its regional plan of action to address child labour.
Project work in Nigeria will support that government’s efforts to improve the legislative, enforcement and policy environment on child labour issues and promote local efforts to address child labour in cocoa-producing communities.
