Child Labour and Slavery: An Unfinished Fight
Slavery was formally abolished in nearly every country long ago, yet it never fully disappeared. It changed form. Today the term "modern slavery" covers forced labour, debt bondage, human trafficking and forced marriage. On any given day in 2021, an estimated 49.6 million people were in modern slavery, including 27.6 million in forced labour and 22 million in forced marriage. Child labour is closely linked to this. Both exploit people who have little power to refuse, and both thrive where poverty, weak laws and demand for cheap goods meet. (walkfree)
Child labour is not the same as children helping with light chores or a family farm. It becomes a problem when it harms a child's health, safety or schooling. Nearly 138 million children were in child labour in 2024, around 54 million of them in hazardous work. There is real progress: there are over 100 million fewer children in child labour than in 2000, even as the child population grew by 230 million. But the world missed its target of eliminating child labour by 2025. The gains are also fragile, threatened by climate change, conflict, state fragility and economic instability. (Despite progress, child labour still affects 138 million children globally – ILO, UNICEF +3)
The causes are tangled. Families in poverty often rely on children's income. Schools may be too costly, too distant or of poor quality. Debt can trap whole families into bonded labour, and crises such as war and displacement leave children especially exposed. Global supply chains add another layer. Cheap clothing, cocoa, minerals and electronics can pass through many hands before anyone asks who made them, and in what conditions.
What works is well understood. Governments can enforce labour laws and fund free, accessible schooling. Social protection, such as cash transfers, lets families keep children in school instead of sending them to work. Companies can map their supply chains and be held legally accountable for abuses. Workers' unions, civil society and consumers all have a role in pushing for transparency.
Ending child labour and slavery is not a matter of unknown solutions. It is a matter of political will and sustained investment. The numbers show the world can make progress, but only if it moves faster than it has so far.