Child Labour in the Agricultural Sector (Part 2)
Mr. Olsen, who assumed the leadership of UNICEF’s country programme in Malaysia in February 2010, gave the following speech on 18 March at the launch of Sime Darby‘s Child Protection Policy.
Freeing children from the chains of bonded labour and hazardous work
Making a difference is possible. Taking child labour again as an example, the ILO was able to report a positive trend of 20 million fewer child labourers in the 5-14 year core age group from 2000 to 2004 and a particular reduction of children’s involvement in hazardous work during the same period. Overall, Latin America and the Caribbean saw the greatest decline in children’s work. While it is not enough, it certainly provides us the will and the courage to seek solutions that work for children, not just for today or next month, but for the long term.
We know this. For agricultural and rural development to be sustainable, it cannot be based on the exploitation of children. There is growing consensus that agriculture is a priority sector in which to develop and implement strategies, policies and programs to combat child labour, safe guard children’s rights, reserve employment for the adults and put agricultural and rural development on a sustainable footing.
Since the causes of child labour are complex and include poverty, economic exploitation, social values and cultural circumstances, solutions must be comprehensive and must involve the widest possible range of partners in each society, that include not only governments, but also local communities, NGOs, religious leaders, child labourers and their families and just as important – employers, businesses and trade unions.
Ending hazardous child labour must advance on several fronts and of course deal with the consequences :
- Release children immediately from the most damaging situations, such as bonded labour and prostitution;
- Rehabilitate those children who are released from work through the provision of adequate services and facilities ;and,
- Protect working children who cannot immediately be released, making their life as safe and as conducive to development as possible.
But the most important front of all is, as always, Prevention: ensuring that new generations of children are not driven into the most hazardous forms of work. Education that is safe, affordable, accessible and of a high quality is the best way to encourage families to send their children to school.
In 2004, the International Program on the Elimination of Child Labour released a report on the costs and benefits of eliminating child labour.
The study found that the elimination of child labour and its replacement by universal education yields enormous economic benefits. Over the period 2001 to 2020, the total sum it would cost is estimated at 760 billion US dollars, while the benefits that accrue during this period are estimated at 5,106 billion US dollars. This means a cost benefit ratio of 6.7 to 1. This amounts to an internal rate of return of 43.8 per cent.
Constructive alliances to serve the best interest of children : IKEA Social Initiative
Engaging with businesses is a critical element to realise children’s rights and to put an end to child exploitation. Constructive cooperation, even partnership, can sometimes serve the ‘best interests’ of working children.
In the mid 1990s, IKEA (a global furniture brand) became acutely aware of widespread child labour in South Asia, as it was accused of child labour in the supply chain. This marked the company’s starting point for an extraordinary engagement for children. As a first step, IKEA formulated a child labour code of conduct, “The IKEA Way on Preventing Child Labour,” which clearly states that all actions taken shall be in the best interests of the child. With this principle in mind, IKEA knew it was not enough to simply monitor compliance at IKEA suppliers but wanted to extend its commitment to the communities beyond the factory gates of sub-contractors, providing education for children and income for parents.
The IKEA Social Initiative was born in 2005 to address the company’s commitment to investments in social programs on a global level. What once started as IKEA’s fight against child labour in the supply chain developed into a broad commitment “to create a better everyday life for the many” children.
IKEA Social Initiative shares common values with its partners – UNICEF and Save the Children — and those values begin with children. The IKEA Social Initiative invests in a range of programs with a holistic approach to create a substantial and lasting change in the lives of children and women; improving their health, enabling access to a quality education for children, and empowering women to create a better future for themselves and their communities. The Initiative believes that many small steps yield big results and takes its lead from IKEA’s core values in striving to invest in simple, cost effective and meaningful approaches.
For more than 10 years, IKEA has been a key partner, contributing to UNICEF’s work through strategic social investments, cause-related marketing promotions, sales of UNICEF Greeting Cards, in-kind assistance and national-level fundraising and promotional activities by IKEA customers and employees around the world. It is UNICEF’s largest corporate cash donor, having committed more than 180 million USD in cash and in-kind donations to UNICEF’s programs.
IKEA’s social engagement has also provided a commercial argument for customers to choose its products. Exactly like environmental considerations (going green) becomes a sales argument.
Several other multinationals, like Levis Strauss, GAP, H&M and British retailer C&A have also become engaged and have developed strategies to improve employment practices at the local level, in some cases asserting the right to cancel, without compensation, consignments in which child labour has been found to be used.
Corporate social responsibility : Charting a new course for children[1]
Corporate engagement in advancing the agenda for children can take many forms and there are basically three areas we have seen so far:
a) Corporate Social Responsibility
The first is through incorporating CSR as part of doing business. The degree of integration of CSR programs in daily business is what makes the difference. Its impact on practices and policies in business operations, upstream and downstream activities, supply chains, and overall decision-making mechanisms of companies, is what matters. CSR does not simply mean ethical practices. Nor is it singularly a company’s commitment to community. It is not just environmental stewardship or commitment to fair wages. It is not just good governance and transparency in interactions. It is all these things and more. It is a way of thinking and acting.
For UNICEF, this is obviously linked to encouraging changes in business-practices that enhance and support the well-being of children, ensuring compliance with child rights standards
And good corporate behaviour is taking these steps not only because being legally compelled to do so but because it is essentially the right thing to do, it reduces risk and in the long run it is good for business.
b) Corporate Philanthropy
The second area where the corporate sector has a major role to play is to encourage innovations, collaborate on the development of new initiatives, and mobilise resources that can contribute in health, education, equality and protection.
Philanthropy is playing an increasingly important role in international development. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, with total grant commitments since inception of 16.2 billion USD, is clearly a new global stakeholder with unprecedented funding capacity, particularly for global health.
A number of foundations are also playing important roles. This is not only about resource mobilisation for development programs, but also funding innovation that can make a difference in poor people’s lives.
Resource mobilisation is critical for UNICEF as we are funded solely by voluntary contributions. We are able to bring about transformations in children’s lives because of the support we receive from individual donors and the corporate sector. The private sector is a significant contributor for our delivery in child survival, health and education for children. But, we have also seen how companies can express their own commitment to community partnerships, the environment, children’s rights and more by supporting our programs. By joining forces we do more than any one organisation can do alone.
c) Strategic Development Partnerships
A third area of corporate involvement is private-public partnerships. Governments and the private sector are now joining up to deliver critical services for the poor, including in health and education. Several corporate partners are investing in the research and development of a vaccine to prevent HIV. Others are active in concrete development projects on the ground. The GAVI Alliance and the Global Fund to fight HIV and AIDS, TB, and Malaria are examples of such private-public partnerships.
UNICEF partners with many of these initiatives. Much more can – and should be done. If we jointly can ensure that our efforts are coordinated and our deliverables are achieved through collective action, significant headway can be reached in the fight against poverty and its devastating impact on children and their ability to develop to their full potential.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Corporate profitability and community wellbeing
The process of globalisation has changed the way economies and nations run. As a result, the roles, relationships, demands and expectations of various stakeholders have changed. With the private sector becoming the primary driver of economies, they are beginning to hold great power to influence social development.
At the same time, increased awareness and pressure from consumer groups is making demands on the corporate sector to commit to socially and ethically responsible business practices.
Earlier this month, Malaysia’s Prime Minister, Yang Amat Berhormat Dato’ Sri Najib Tun Razak pointed out that “Corporate Social Responsibility is at the heart of the challenges we face as a nation.”
And I would like to quote the Right Honourable Prime Minister further: “Today, more companies than ever before are recognising the significance and value of integrating Corporate Social Responsibility into all aspects of their business operations and decision-making processes. Communities are seen as more than just a market for the roll-out of products and services. Instead, there is growing consensus among opinion leaders globally, that the corporate sector can make a huge difference in solving social and environmental problems.”
And the Government of Malaysia is putting funding behind these words by pledging 100 million Ringgit Malaysia, under the National 2010 Budget, to improve CSR initiatives in Malaysia.
Again, I would like to salute Sime Darby for embedding its CSR practices into its operational activities across all businesses, discharging the company’s social responsibility by leveraging its considerable reach and impact on society. We look forward to engaging with Sime Darby further and hope its actions to protect children and give them the future they deserve, will inspire other businesses to do likewise.
Thank you.
[1] Excerpts from Speech by Hilda Johnson. “How Corporate Philanthropy Can Contribute To Advancing The Millennium Development Goals, Particularly For Sustainable Development”, 25 February 2008
