KATHMANDU, JANUARY 5

The Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security has, through the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration, invited proposals from all local levels claiming eligibility to be declared child labour free zone.

Child Labour Elimination and Occupational Safety Section at the MoLESS recently wrote to the MoFAGA, requesting the latter to facilitate in soliciting and collecting proposals from local units interested in being certified as child labour free zone.

“The local levels willing to be declared child labour free zone should submit their proposal with necessary documents to the MoLESS by the end of January in line with the Procedure for Declaration of Local Level as Child Labour Free Zone-2020,” read a notice issued by the Mo- LESS. Officials said only 25 meritorious local levels would be declared child labour free zones for the fiscal year 2020-21 as prescribed by mid-term expenditure framework of the National Planning Commission.

The procedure, recently endorsed by the Council of Ministers aims to free each local level from the worst form of child labour and make Nepal a child labour free country in the long term as envisioned by the constitution, Labour Act and commitments made by the Government of Nepal in the national and international levels.

The local levels are required to focus their campaign on child labourers being used in private homes, agriculture and animal husbandry, drug smuggling, weaving, brick kilns, mines, in the entertainment sector, including sexual exploitation, transport, garment, trafficking, street vending, herbs collection, physical infrastructure, hotels and restaurants, among others.

The procedure has stipulated a provision of seven indicators based on which a local level may be declared a child labour free zone. The indicators include updated data and documentation, a separate policy regarding elimination of child labour, operation of programmes for elimination of child labour, allocation of budget for the programmes, institutional arrangements, educational status of children, and provision of cooperation, coordination and collaboration.

As per the procedure, the concerned local level shall conduct a survey based on the indicators to ascertain if it is eligible to be declared a child labour free zone. The MoLESS shall evaluate the survey results before allowing the local level to declare itself a child labour free zone on the basis of the proposal submitted by them. Enrolment of schoolage children should be at least 95 per cent in the concerned local level to be declared a child labour free zone. They should conduct various programmes for the elimination of child labour.