Four days ago, countries around the world celebrated the World Day Against Child Labour with the theme: “Generation Safe and Healthy”. Although the event was not given the desired prominence in Nigeria probably due to the euphoria of the declaration of the historical June 12 as Democracy Day by President Muhammadu Buhari, it was an occasion to highlight the plight of children in many parts of the world and map out ways of eliminating them.
Underage children in many countries are daily being subjected to all kinds of inhuman treatment. They suffer despair in private homes as domestic servants, among artisans as apprentices, persecuted as child-sorcerers by religious organisations. Many of them know no home other than the streets where they beg, hawk and labour for a living. They lack the basic things of life, no role model, poor education, lack of proper nutrients and many more.
A recent UNICEF Information sheet paints a gloomy picture of the plights of children in Nigeria. It puts the number of under-14 child labourers across the country at 15 million. “Many are exposed to long hours of work in dangerous and unhealthy environments, carrying too much responsibility for their age.
“Working in these hazardous conditions with little food, small pay, no education and no medical care establishes a cycle of child rights violation,” it stated.
Just few days ago, I listened to a conversation between two women at a bus stop where we were all taking shelter from the rain. One of them was assuring the other that she would supply the “goods”, but warned that upon the delivery of the “goods”, her money must be available; otherwise the “goods” would be taken to a more ready customer.
Initially, I was not interested in the discussion as other peoples’ conversation shouldn’t be my business. However, I became curious when the first woman, once again, warned the other “not to ever give the salary to the goods, at the end of the month, you pay to me,”
I wondered how a commodity could be entitled to a monthly salary. But the picture became clearer when the other woman who appeared well-to-do, promised to keep to the agreement but insisted that the “goods” must be of high quality and ready to work. I paid more attention and was shocked to realise that the “goods” being referred to all along in the conversation was a house servant.
The goods supplier was in the business of getting children from villages and supplying them to house- holds in cities that were in need of them. While the house-helps work for their employers, the woman who brought them from villages receive their salaries at the end of the month, takes her percentage and gives the remaining paltry sum to the house-help.
Occasions like the World Day Against Child Labour should therefore provide a spotlight on the rights of all children to be protected from child labour and other violations of fundamental human rights.
It should be an opportunity to really assess the extent of domestication and enforcement of the Child Right Act already signed into law in many states. How has this act changed the ugly stories of many Nigerian children who are more or less slaves in their land?
In 2010, the international community adopted a roadmap for achieving the elimination of the worst form of child labour by 2016, which stressed that child labour is an impediment to children’s right and barrier to development. Did Nigeria achieve this target? Obviously, the answer is no.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan made effort in removing the  almajiris from the streets in some northern states and putting them in schools. He built series of schools for the almajiri children across 19 Northern states. Similarly, as part of his administration’s multi-million dollar National Social Investment Programme, Buhari re-introduced free food for school children. This programme which operates in 20 states is said to have fed nearly seven million pupils in about 40,000 public schools.
These moves are indeed quite commendable. The almajiri schools for instance can spur development in the northern region. It will also reduce the growing insecurity in the country, particularly in the north as an uneducated child-street beggar is more susceptible to the wiles of religious fanatics.
However, a lot still needs to be done, especially in the area of providing good and responsible governance that will ensure good life for Nigerians. Unless some drastic measures are taken to reduce the level of poverty in the country, abolishing child labour in Nigeria in the nearest future would merely turn to a wishful dream as poor parents would continue to use their children to provide food for their families.
The senseless looting and corruption that characterise our system will further make the elimination of child labour a mirage.
The 16th World Day Against Child Labour should therefore challenge government, parents and other stakeholders on ways of creating better living conditions which still elude the children. Parents should be more interested in the welfare and education of their children to complement the efforts of government and other stakeholders to end child labour and offer better protection for the rights of children in Nigeria and indeed make their generation safe and healthy.

Calista Ezeaku