The government, international agencies and local organizations working in child protection are discussing a national action plan to combat the child labor in Timor-Leste.
The plan will act as a guideline for the government and its partners when implementingprograms during the period 2016-2020.
Secretary of State for Vocational Training Policy and Employment (SEPFOPE) Illidio Ximenes da Costa said child labor was a complex issue that needs multi-sector help.
The Timor-Leste constitutionensured children protection and the government has ratified the international convention on child labor, but so far there has been no coordinated action plan to address the issue.
“It is important to make a good plan that reflects the reality in Timor-Leste,” he said at a national workshop on combating child labor at Timor-Plaza, Dili.
“This plan should be based on the national development plan,” he said.
He said the issue was also linked to the Timorese culture of sharing the work, particularly agriculture and household domestic work, therefore the government and partners neededto consider and look at these traditions.
The government has proposed the budget for an education program encouragingcommunities not to send their children to work, but instead allow them to study and play.
Da Costa said the government would provide the human resources for a monitoring and evaluation program to be implemented by international agencies, local organizations and other institutions.
Meanwhile, Trade Union Federation (KSTL) representative Jose da Conceição da Costa expressed his appreciation for the government’s effort to establish an action plan to combat child labor and said the federation was ready to work with them.
“We should speed up the process because many children are already involved [in the workforce],” he said.
Two years ago, KSTL launched a national campaign targeting child labor and urging families not to send their children to work.
Meanwhile, the President of National Commission against Child Labor (KNTI), Aniceto Leto Soro, said the aim was to implement the plan in all municipalities as child labor was a problem right across the country.
“This is so we can eliminate child labor,” he said.
Established in 2014, KNTI assists in coordinating and implementing the government programs to combat child labor.
The commission is headed by SEPFOPE) and its members include representatives from civil society and the workers union.
He said KNTI had already launched a campaign in some municipalities in order to increase among families about the importance of a good education for their children.
