County Child Labour Committee Meeting – 2nd Quarterly Review

On 14th October, Baridi Kwa Baridi participated in the 2nd Quarterly County Child Labour Committee Meeting, convened to review the progress made since the inception of the committee, assess challenges and plan future actions to combat child labour in Busia County. The fight against child labour is guided by the following legal framework:

• Employment Act Cap 226 of 2022
• Labour Institutions Act
• Children Act

Objectives of the Meeting:

• Reflect on past activities.
• Assess the progress in addressing child labour.
• Chart a way forward and strengthen collaboration among stakeholders

Current Status:

• Busia County currently faces a child labour prevalence rate of 59%.
• Progress has been made in Matayos and Teso North sub-counties.

Key Achievements:

Progress in establishing of a technical working group and a sub county child labour committee.

• Training of all the relevant stakeholders in child labour in Matayos and Teso North sub-counties under the child labour committee courtesy of Terre des Hommes Netherlands in Africa.

• Successful cascading of the County Child Labour Committee to the sub-county level in the two sub-counties.

Challenges:

• lack of clear and harmonised data , referral pathways and monitoring in regards to child labour.
• Difficulties in repatriation and reintegration of Ugandan children found in child labour in Kenya
• Lack of similar technical working groups and sub county child labour committees in the remaining 6 sub-counties.

Way forward

1. Cascade child labour committees to all sub-counties and wards to ensure local realities are captured.
2. Include children with disabilities, especially in cross-border areas, in child labour initiatives.
3. Collaborate with sub-county education boards to trace school dropouts and develop targeted interventions.
4. Develop and implement Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to track progress.
5. Harmonize data collection and monitoring methods across all sub-counties.

Conclusion

Baridi Kwa Baridi remains committed to ending child labour in Busia County, ensuring that every child is protected, educated, and given the opportunity to thrive.

A child in labour today is a compromised adult and a future generation!

Special thanks to Terre des Hommes Netherlands in Africa for supporting the meeting.

#EndChildLabor

#BusiaCounty

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