Government moves to combat child labour

The Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Children (NCC), Zaina Nyiramatama, yesterday, said the organ was working closely with other institutions to come up with a policy that promotes children rights.She said, in particular, they were working with the Ministry of Public Service and Labour on a draft policy that would result in effective implementation of the law on children rights. In an exclusive interview with The New Times, Nyiramatama noted that although a lot had been done to fight the child labour, more needed to be done.“Children are being forced into activities that are even beyond their capacities just for the interest and benefit of other people,” he noted.She pointed out that among others, the policy would help address challenges children face in their homes that have led them to drop out of school.On completion of the draft policy, NCC will first carry out a massive sensitisation against child labour as well as educate the population on the need to protect and educate the young generation.“There is no reason to justify why a parent can deny children a right to education even as education is now free under the Nine-year Year Basic education system the government introduced,” she stated.The Country Director of Hope and Homes for Children, a local NGO dealing with children rights, Claudine Nyinawagaga, said more efforts were needed to protect children.“Employing children or engaging them in activities that easily affect them physically or mentally is a big loss to the country considering what we expect from them as the future leaders,” she lamented.