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(NYASATIMES) Malawi vows to rid child labour with tobacco tenancy bill -Minister

Malawi vows to rid child labour with tobacco tenancy bill -Minister
By Nyasa Times
Published: March 25, 2010

Government has set up several initiatives to eliminate child labour on tobacco farms, Malawi Labour Minister Yunus Mussa has said.

Mussa told Capital Radio Straight Talk programme hosted by Brian Banda that his ministry through district and regional offices had put in place initiatives to build capacity in rural communities to combat child labour.

Malawi has been accused of being the worst offender in the region for exploiting child labour in the tobacco industry. Tobacco provides 70 per cent of country’s foreign exchange earnings.

“I am told with the school-feeding programme, a lot of children are going to school. We’re actually addressing the issue with the assistance of International Labour Organization. We have a programme to eliminate child labour,” the minister said.

“We have rescued a number of children of being child-labourers. Out of those some have gone back to school. Some we have given them start-up capital and equipment so that they are self-employed in brick-laying, carpentry, tailoring and even farming,” he said.

“Our district labour offices, regional labour offices are on the ground, yet we are facing a lot of challenges,” Mussa added.

The Minister disclosed that government, through the Minister of Women, Children Welfare and Gender, would table a tenancy bill in parliament which proposes an age limit.

“No child shall be employed until the age of 18 years otherwise there will be a punishment of up to K1 million or imprisonment,” the minister said.

Malawi is a signatory to numerous conventions against child labour, including the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of a Child, the 1973 International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 138 (setting a minimum working age of 18), and the 1999 ILO Convention 182 (outlawing child labour).

Apart from eliminating child labour, Mussa said the government was committed to creating jobs and economic empowerment to the youth.

“This DPP-led government under the wise and dynamic leadership of the beloved leader Ngwazi Dr Bingu wa Mutharika is doing a lot. We must really appreciate. There is so much job creation.

“We have embarked on the Public Works Programme. You are very aware about that. We have given out so many loans through the institution called MARDEF so that people should engage in various businesses.

“There is what you call cash transfer for vulnerable group. Youth Development Fund….There is no sitting idle. We are moving forward under the DPP government,” he said.

In other labour issues, the minister said government had made consultations with Employers Consultative Association of Malawi and labour unions on the minimum wage.

“We met and came up with a figure and government will make its position and then that will be a minimum wage.

“We are looking at so many indicators. We are looking at the economy itself, and we are taking even consideration a person in Kawale, in Area 18, in Ndirande even in villages. Government will come up with a position,” he said.

He said his surprise tours to work-places revealed that there were so many challenges ranging from psychological, physical and economic abuse, lack of condition services, lack of contractual agreement, lack of knowledge of their rights on labour laws and discrimination against HIV-positive employees.

Labels: CHILD LABOUR, TOBACCO, YUNUS MUSSA

posted by MrK @ 4:02 PM