Ei-iE

The 10th Education International (EI) World Congress, meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from 29 July to 2 August, recalls:

1. The earlier EI Resolutions on Child Labour adopted by the Congress, the last one being adopted in 2019;
2. The fundamental rights of children, notably the right to education, and the fundamental rights for adults, among which the right to decent work.

Welcomes

3. The commitment made by many countries to defend the fundamental rights of children by ratifying the 1989 International Convention on the Rights of the Child;
4. Earlier progress made towards Education for All and the eradication of child labour, as shown in Global Education Monitoring Reports and ILO Global Estimates on Child Labour reports;
5. The adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals by 193 UN Member States in September 2015, which include important goals on education (SDG 4) and on child labour (SDG 8.7);
6. The fact that since 2016 the ILO Global Estimates address the relationship between education and child labour;
7. The Durban Call to Action adopted in May 2022 by more than 1000 representatives from governments, employers’ and workers’ organisations, international and regional organisations and civil society organisations from all over the world, urging governments in a 6-point plan to upscale actions among which realising children’s right to education and ensuring universal access to free, compulsory, quality, equitable and inclusive education and training. The action plan recognizes the need to support teachers’ unions as part of the effective measures to realise the right to education;
8. The persistent work of education unions on quality publicly financed education and inclusion of all children, including their role in new initiatives, often in cooperation with other civil society organisations, that show positive outcomes, including on girl’s education and the reduction of early marriages and pregnancies;
9. The repeated confirmation of the positive impact for education unions that engage in the struggle against school dropout and child labour; their work showing clearly positive and sustainable outcomes, not only for children and their families, but also for teachers in the field of professional development and for education unions, experiencing increasing membership and improving status and visibility as result of their involvement.

Notes however (with great concern)

10. That progress in reaching SDG4 on quality inclusive education for all as well as progress towards SDG 8.7 on reducing modern slavery and child labour, have slowed down alarmingly over the last years; evidence showing that even before the covid pandemic the number of working children had started rising again (ILO Global Estimates 2021);
11. That the covid pandemic, the lockdowns, confinements, travel restrictions and school closures, with all their consequences for health, livelihoods, school enrolment and learning, are expected to keep millions more children out of school over the next years and push them into in child labour (including in modern forms of slavery), with girls and vulnerable children being affected first;
12. That domestic investment in education in many countries is still very low even in countries where there is economic growth, this growth does not translate in increased funding for the sector. The low investment in public education particularly affects the poorest families, excluding girls and boys from school and making them more vulnerable to child labour;
13. That most donor governments are not contributing financially to education in development cooperation; and that the few who did until recently, are limiting their contributions;
14. That in a number of countries World Bank or IMF restrictions on public spending severely inhibit attempts to invest in education;
15. That many governments still do not enforce existing laws, (international) conventions or regulations on education and child labour nor apply adequate sanctions to those who break them;
16. That (forced) migration, conflicts, virus outbreaks and contagious diseases as well as natural disasters still keep children out of school and push them into child labour;
17. That climate change not only increases the likelihood and magnitude of the above mentioned issues, but also contributes to increased incidence of child labour in itself (ILO 2023)1;
18. That ongoing privatisation and commercialisation of education undermine access to and quality of education.

Also condemns

19. Tendencies in several parts of the world to defend, accept and/or legalise child labour, and to organise children in trade unions;
20. Tendencies in child labour responses to only focus on intervention in specific sectors, such as in product chains, ignoring the broader contexts;
21. Lack of understanding and/or clarity on what is child labour (as defined by the ILO) as well as confusion on terminology related to child labour ( “child labour”; “worst forms of child labour”; “hazardous forms of child labour”; “children’s work”; “light work”; “age-appropriate work”).

Recognises

22. That quality inclusive education for all is key to eradicating all forms of child labour and that education unions are in a position to play a crucial role in the accomplishment of this goal.

Congress determines that Education International shall

23. Continue and where possible scale up the work on addressing school dropout and child labour from the perspective of education for all;
24. Link the work on combatting school dropout and child labour as much as possible to larger EI campaigns on free quality inclusive public education;
25. Further cooperate with ILO and participate in future Global Conferences on Child Labour;
26. Further cooperate with relevant stakeholders and seek new partnerships;
27. Continue to seek funding to support education unions in their fight for quality inclusive education and against child labour;
28. Facilitate the exchange of relevant practices and successes between unions and their partners;
29. Continue to promote, and step up where possible, programmes focusing on the area-based approach/child labour free zones;
30. Contribute to a better understanding of what is child labour and what is not.

Congress calls on member organisations to

31. Continue to advocate for quality public and inclusive education as the best way to eradicate all forms of child labour;
32. Contribute to a better understanding of what is child labour and what is not;
33. Advocate for the ratification, implementation and real enforcement of international conventions on child labour such as ILO conventions 182 and 138, for the adoption and enforcement of national legislation on child labour; to support projects or initiatives against child labour and in favour of quality inclusive public education for all;
34. Encourage and implement South-South exchange where education unions provide guidance, expertise and mentoring to others, share relevant practices from the classroom up to unions actions;
35. Seek cooperation with other education unions, trade unions from other sectors and civil society like-minded organisations, nationally and internationally, for a stronger voice in lobby and advocacy; and to join networks and lobby groups to put pressure on employers and companies which continue to employ children, depriving the children of their fundamental rights.