By Toba Owojaiye
As the world commemorates the World Day Against Child Labour, a sobering reality continues to cast a shadow over millions of childhoods: 138 million children globally are still trapped in child labour, according to new figures released by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
Truth Live News gathered that ILO’s Director-General, Mr. Gilbert Houngbo, while speaking at the 113th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva, Switzerland, revealed that 54 million of these children are engaged in hazardous work, tasks that directly endanger their health, safety, or development.
Despite a modest reduction of 22 million cases since 2020, the international community has missed its target of eliminating child labour by 2025, a commitment previously enshrined in global development goals. Between 2016 and 2020, a sharp and concerning spike in child labour reversed prior gains, a trend now only just beginning to stabilize.
“Progress is possible,” Houngbo said. “But it cannot happen in isolation. Parents must be supported with access to decent work so their children can be in classrooms, not in markets or fields.”
In comparison to some developing countries, Nigeria’s child labour challenge is emblematic of broader continental struggles. According to the United Nations, Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for the highest rate of child labour globally, with one in every five children affected. In Bangladesh, for example, millions of children are engaged in informal manufacturing and garment-related work, while in India, child labour remains prevalent in agriculture and domestic service, despite stringent laws.
The UNICEF Executive Director, Catherine Russell, reiterated the urgency of a multifaceted approach:
“We need legal safeguards, expanded social protection, investment in free and quality education, and decent work for adults,” she said. “Child labour is not just a labour issue, it’s a development, rights, and equity issue.”
UNICEF and the ILO jointly called for investment in universal child benefits and stronger child protection systems to mitigate the risk of children falling into exploitative labour.
According to the latest data:
61% of child labourers work in agriculture, from subsistence farming to cash crop production.
27% are in services, including street hawking, domestic work, and informal trading.
13% are involved in industry, such as mining and manufacturing.
This trend is consistent with patterns observed across West Africa, South Asia, and parts of Latin America, where rural poverty and lack of schooling infrastructure continue to drive children into the workforce prematurely.
Speaking on Nigeria’s efforts, Minister of Labour and Employment, Alhaji Mohammad Dingyadi, noted that the country is designated a Pathfinder Country under the Global Alliance 8.7 framework and is working to:
Review national labour laws,
Strengthen enforcement capacity,
Scale community-based interventions, and
Rescue and rehabilitate vulnerable children.
Despite these efforts, millions of Nigerian children remain in informal labour, particularly in Northern Nigeria, where insurgency, poverty, and low school enrolment intersect to perpetuate child exploitation.
Also speaking, Mr. Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, Director-General of the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), called for accelerated collective action:
“It’s unacceptable that millions of Nigerian children are in dangerous work, sacrificing their health, education, and future potential.”
Oyerinde stressed that both the government and private sector must go beyond policies to sustain implementation, invest in child education, and break the poverty-labour cycle.
While the world has missed its 2025 deadline to eliminate child labour, the latest figures suggest a glimmer of hope, with coordinated efforts, progress is still possible. But the question remains: Will global and national leaders move fast enough to protect the next generation from exploitation?
Without bold investment in education, social protection, and adult employment, child labour will remain a stain on the conscience of developing economies, robbing millions of children of their right to a future.