Evaluating the practice of child labour in Lesotho and identifying strategies to provide for better protection

Abstract

The overwhelming prevalence of child labour globally continues to be a matter of concern. Millions of children below the age of eighteen years are found engaging in exploitative and life-threatening economic activities, leaving them susceptible to human rights violations and ultimately death. The African continent accounts for a greater number of child labourers, calling therefore for an immediate action against child labour, particularly the worst forms of child labour. As a result of harsh and appalling social, economic, political and cultural realities evident within the continent, child labour remains inevitable for many African countries including the Kingdom of Lesotho. In an attempt to help their economically ailing families, children engage in labour activities as either sole providers or contributors to the little household income. Resultantly, a vast majority of children are found working within hazardous and unregulated informal sectors; comprising of street vendors, domestic workers, working on farms and caring for livestock to state but the least. Due to lack of official regulation of the informal sector, children are then exposed to abuse, exploitation and violation with little to no protection. In response to the incidences of child labour, several treaties and conventions aimed at protecting the rights of children and ultimately eradicating child labour have been adopted by both international and regional communities. These include the Convention on the Rights of the Child, International Labour Organisation Conventions on child labour, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target 8.7, which prohibits and seek to eliminate child labour by 2025, the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights as well as the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child among others. The endorsement and domestication of these treaties have been evident in many African countries including the Kingdom of Lesotho through the enactment of laws and adoption of policies aimed at promoting the rights of children and protecting children against harmful practices such as child labour. While there have been evident and positive progress in terms of the ratification of treaties and conventions that address the issues of child labour globally, the Kingdom of Lesotho included, child labour practices continues to be a challenge for Lesotho. The study identified that these could be attributed to the lack of implementation and enforcement of both adopted international conventions and enacted domestic laws in Lesotho, therefore a matter of concern. Moreover, failure to conform to international human rights treaties aimed at promoting and protecting the rights of children by the Kingdom of Lesotho has resulted in failure to protect children, particularly those involved in child labour. Furthermore, the evident inconsistencies and ambiguities in the definition of child labour, conception of work, childhood and adulthood, posed a major challenge in understanding the severity of the practice of child labour and its effects on children. Child labour should also be considered a security issue, calling therefore for an immediate action. It is however crucial to note that, while the Kingdom of Lesotho continues to grapple with the plight of child labour, a number of African countries have made great progress in responding to child labour and bringing about a reduction in its prevalence. This includes the Republic of South Africa, the Republic of Tanzania and the Kingdom of Morocco among others. Cognisant of these advancements, the study critically evaluated practices of child labour in these countries and the responses thereto as means to identify good practices to be emulated by the Kingdom of Lesotho. These good practices will help provide strategies that will ensure better protection for children involved in child labour and ultimately end the practice of child labour in the near future.