World misses target to end child labour by 2025, 138 million children still trapped - The Observer
World misses target to end child labour by 2025, 138 million children still trapped - The Observer
The international community is off track to meet the 2025 goal of eliminating child labor, with nearly 138 million children still working globally. Although significant progress has been made in reducing these numbers since 2020, the pace is insufficient to achieve the target. This failure highlights a critical gap between policy commitments and on-the-ground reality, emphasizing the urgent need to accelerate efforts and reverse the recent stagnation in global development indicators. The persistence of child labor is deeply rooted in economic vulnerability and systemic inequality. Sub-Saharan Africa bears the brunt of this crisis, with agriculture being the dominant sector for child labor. The report underscores that addressing this issue requires more than just awareness; it demands substantial investment in social protection, quality education, and decent work opportunities for adults. Without supporting families economically, vulnerable households will continue to rely on child labor for survival, perpetuating cycles of poverty. This situation is highly relevant to open_data initiatives because accurate, transparent, and accessible data is essential for holding governments accountable and guiding effective policy interventions. The joint report by major international agencies demonstrates the power of standardized, publicly available statistics in revealing hidden crises and measuring progress. Open access to such granular data allows researchers, activists, and policymakers to identify disparities, track funding gaps, and advocate for evidence-based solutions, ensuring that the voices of marginalized children are heard in global decision-making processes.
Source: observer.ugPublished on 2025-06-13