Global number of child laborers down by a third since 2000: ILO

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Global number of child laborers down by a third since 2000: ILO

(Xinhua) 19:34, September 23, 2013

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The global number of child laborers has declined by one third since 2000, but the rate of decline is not enough to achieve the goal of eliminating the worst forms of child labor by 2016, said a report released Monday by the International Labor Organization (ILO).

The new estimates in this report indicated that 168 million children worldwide were in child labor in 2012, accounting for almost 11 percent of the child population, down from 246 million in 2000.

The decline in child labor was greatest during the most recent four-year period from 2008 to 2012 and the Asia-Pacific region registered by far the largest absolute decline in child labor among 5-17 year-olds for the 2008 to 2012, the report showed.

Children in hazardous work that directly endangers their health, safety and moral development made up more than half of all child laborers, numbering 85 million, said the report.

Hazardous work is often treated as a proxy for the worst forms of child labor, since children in hazardous work account for the overwhelming majority of those in the worst forms, said the ILO.

The report showed that the largest absolute number of child laborers was found in the Asia-Pacific region with nearly 78 million, but Sub-Saharan Africa continued to be the region with the highest incidence of child labor in terms of proportion of the population, at over 21 percent.

ILO Director-General Guy Ryder said the fight against child labor was moving in the right direction but progress was still too slow.

"If we are serious about ending the scourge of child labor in the foreseeable future, then we need a substantial stepping-up of efforts at all levels," he said.p Child labor refers to work undertaken by children below the appropriate legal minimum working age and the worst forms of child labor, according to the ILO.

Besides hazardous work, worst forms also include slavery, prostitution and illicit activities.

（Editor：YanMeng、Gao Yinan）