Local govt. responsible to control child domestic labour

Bhaktapur, Aug 14: Stakeholders and experts have opined for the implementation of existing laws to control child domestic labour.

The local government should work proactively to end child domestic labour and ensure child-friendly local governance by implementing the existing laws, the speakers said at a programme organized here Wednesday by Children-Women in Social Service and Human Rights to release a report entitled “Life as Child Domestic Workers in Kathmandu”.

Organization’s founder chairperson Shanti Adhikari stated that the laws are formulated, but the implementation part was weak, adding that the local government has a serious role to end child domestic labour. Member Secretary of National Child Rights Council Indradevi Dhakal shared that several locals have worked to end child domestic labour since several initiatives, including the child-friendly local governance, declaration of child-labour free local levels and other measures are being implemented.

Likewise, Director of National Planning Commission Shivanandan Paudel mentioned that the local levels should be robust and efficient to control child labour, as this was banned by the laws. He viewed that education and employment should be focused on preventing children from entering this field. On the occasion, key findings of the research “Life as Child Domestic Workers in Kathmandu” were shared.

The organization stated that altogether 40 participants were present at the event, including the representatives from the National Planning Commission, the National Child Rights Council, the Ministry of Education, civil society organizations, child rights networks, schoolteachers, media, ILO, child rights experts, and others. “Discussions focused on the hidden realities of child domestic labour, the pathways that push children into domestic work, and the urgent need for policy and programmatic actions to protect children from exploitation,” according to the Children-Women in Social Service and Human Rights.

According to a study carried out by the UN Agency ILO, domestic child labour is defined internationally as children working in an employer’s house with or without a wage. Domestic child labours are employed to perform domestic chores such as washing dishes, cooking, cleaning the house, looking after young children, and other household activities, it stated.