Education lessens child labour

EDUCATION is key to alleviating child labour, Department of Labour and Industrial Relations secretary Mary Morola said.
Morola told The National that only through education, children make better judgment of the situation in their own life.
“When children get educated and they know their rights, they have the knowledge on how to manage their life with the help of their parents and guidance.
“I can’t see anywhere else we could do that, parents can give them advice and mold them but if they are educated they get a best judgment of their own situation and their own life,” she said.
Morola said according to the law, employment of persons 15 years and below is considered child labour.
She said the law stops people, companies or parents from exposing underage children to employment.
The department is putting together a National Action Plan on the elimination of child labour in PNG with assistance from International Labour Organisation.
She said studies have been carried out in 2011 and 2012 and the plan is now almost at its conclusion.
“We almost come to the conclusion of our law review findings and just about to go to State Solicitors Office to give us the certificate of necessity and we can go to Parliament for amendment,” she said.
“This is culmination of stakeholder consultation that we’ve had in the last few years and now we’ve come up with this plan.
“This programme as soon as it gets endorsed by cabinet would be launched by the Minister for Labour.
“That’s what we are doing now in addressing child labour, we are now bringing it right down to the regional and provincial level through the organization of road shows.
“We hoped this would create a better awareness and understanding in curbing child labour.”