ILO Child Labour Convention (No. 182) Achieves Universal Ratification

• 17 Aug 2020

• On 4th August, Convention No. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour achieved universal ratification, following last submission by the Kingdom of Tonga.
• It is for the first time in the ILO’s history, an International Labour Convention has been ratified by all member States.
• All 187 member States of the International Labour Organization (ILO) have ratified the ILO Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour, 1999 (No. 182).
• India ratified Convention 182 and the instrument prescribing the minimum age of work for children in 2017. 

Convention No. 182 and its Goals 

• It is one of the ILO’s eight Fundamental Conventions.
• Convention No. 182 calls for the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including slavery, forced labour and trafficking. It prohibits the use of children in armed conflict, prostitution, pornography and illicit activities such as drug trafficking, and in hazardous work.

Other Information

 Sustainable Development Goals & Child Labour

• “Ending child labour by 2025 in all its forms” is included under Target 8.7of the Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by all UN Member States in 2015. 

International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour

• This landmark achievement comes just months before the start of theInternational Year for the Elimination of Child Labour in 2021, to be led by the ILO in collaboration with partners. Its aim is to raise awareness of the issue and to help accelerate the pace of progress.