Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Hazardous Child Labour


In May 2002, the ILO issued a new Global report on Child labour that describes the extent of the problem. Almost 250 million children, about one in every six children aged 5 to 17 on the face of the globe, are involved in child labour. Of these, some 179 million (one in eight) are trapped in the “worst forms” of child labour. The worst form are those that endanger the child’s physical, mental or moral well-being.

Children can be found in almost any economic sector. However, at a global level, most of them are in agriculture (70%). Some hazards in agriculture are the exposure to pesticides, the use of dangerous machinery or tools (like knives), carrying heavy loads, the presence of snakes, and so on. Children working in agriculture are the ones suffering most injuries. And one of the sad characteristics of child labour in agriculture are the few, if any opportunities for advance or change.

For children working as domestic labourers, the hazards are sometimes not that obvious. Here, it can be the psychological hazards, like isolation, abuse, exploitation that make this form dangerous. Domestic labour is often called “hidden” and it is often difficult to find those children. Other sectors where children are working (although not in large proportion) are mining (1%) and construction (2%). The work done is generally very dangerous for children.

Children are often “achievers”, they want to perform well, go that extra mile, and are inexperienced and untrained in dealing with hazards. Tools are not made for them, and thus pose more hazards. There are no personal protection devices for children. Additionally, they are also not organized and powerless. Girls are at special risk. They often begin to work at a younger age and have a double work burden (at home and in the fields). They frequently work longer hours, and in different cultural settings may get poorer nutrition.

Occupational hazards cause not only short-term health effects (mainly injuries, skin problems, etc), but most effects are long-term and will only become evident in adulthood. Therefore, they are difficult to measure and to quantify. Cancer, infertility, chronic backpain and IQ reduction are some of the expected long-term outcomes.

Health professionals are in a key position to identify children at risk, advise the parents on ways to reduce this risk and recommend action to policy-makers. They should be able to recognize and assess the occupational and environmental health threats present in the places where children live, learn and play, and work, in the urban and rural communities. They should also know that these threats increase in low-income populations and minority communities, and in degraded environments. In combating hazardous child labour the most important challenge is the translation of knowledge and legislation into action, moving good intention and ideas into protecting the health of the children. For this, the involvement of the relevant stakeholders like health and safety experts ( they know about hazards and health outcomes), labour inspectors (they know how to enforce the law) and general health experts (they know about the vulnerability and health outcomes in the child and are the first-line care givers), is absolutely essential.

The elimination of child labour is a long-term objective. However, in the meanwhile, we cannot allow that children are injured or harmed at work in their struggle for survival, especially when we have the knowledge and means to prevent this.

Photo courtesy of  revcom.us

Monday, February 8, 2010

Children's Health: The Environmental Risks


Photo Courtesy of  Global Envision

Children are more susceptible than adults to environmental risks due to a number of factors:
  • Children are continually growing. They breathe more air, consume more food, and drink more water than adults do, in relation to their weight.
  • Children's central nervous, immune, reproductive, and digestive systems are still in the process of development. At certain early stages of said process, exposure to environmental toxicants can cause irreversible damage.
  • Children do not behave the same way as adults and have different patterns of exposure. Young children crawl on the ground where they are subject to danger from dust and chemicals that accumulate on floors and soils.
  • Children have very limited control over their environment. Unlike adults, they could both be not aware of the risks and not able to make choices to protect their health.

Children's health problems that are the result of their exposure to biologically contaminated water, poor sanitation, indoor smoke, common disease vectors such as mosquitoes, lack of necessary food supply, and unsafe use of chemicals and waste disposal, rank among the highest environmental burden of disease worldwide. For any significant progress to be achieved  in reducing the environmental burden of disease on a global scale,  there is much need to focus on the key risk factors, through a holistic approach. Comprehensive comparative risk assessment suggests a cluster of eight environmental issues, many of which may concur in the places where children dwell, play and learn which needs immediate and appropriate intervention
  • Hazardous child labour
  • Lack of physical activity
  • Malnutrition
  • The built environment
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Disasters and conflicts - Air pollution
  • Lack of water and inadequate sanitation
  • Disease vectors
  • Chemical hazards 
  • Accidents and injuries
  • Global environmental change
  • Radiation
  • Emerging issues

Monday, January 4, 2010

No New Year


 

Until we work together to give the future back to these children, they will never know nor have any new year.  
Photo Courtesy of  Mio Cade