The role of social protection in the elimination of child labour: evidence review and policy implications

WHY WE LIKE THIS PIECE

Now is a critical time in our fight to end child labour. With the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crises and conflict, progress to eliminate the practice has stalled. An estimated 160 million children are reported to be involved in child labour worldwide, and without mitigation strategies, this number could rise by almost 9 million by the end of 2023. We need evidenced-based solutions that can accelerate action to address this. 

UNICEF and ILO have teamed up to develop knowledge and actionable best practices for one solution for countries – government-led social protection systems. Their new report argues that strong social protection systems are necessary for the reduction and eventual elimination of child labour, explores the mechanisms by which social protection can impact the practice and assesses the role of programme design features across contexts. It builds on previous research, ILO work and new impact evaluations. 

Designed to inform programme development and policy making, it also makes recommendations to strengthen social protection systems to make them more efficient in eliminating child labour.