The International Cocoa Initiative took part in a recent live chat of The Guardian about the role of businesses on tackling child labour. The panel of experts included representatives from Anti-Slavery International, UNICEF and the United Nations Global Compact.
As a summary of this one-hour live discussion, The Guardian has published a follow-up article, 10 things we learned about eradicating child labour, quoting the most relevant expert comments on the issue. The participants of the panel agreed that achieving a supply chain 100% free of child labour is a never ending task – while it should be the goal of every business.
On paying price premiums to farmers Nick Weatherill, ICI’s Executive Director, said that ‘improved income but no access to school doesn’t prevent child labour, whilst access to school with no poverty eradication merely means that kids undertake hazardous work instead of school or outside of school hours.’
“A business dependent on child labour is by definition unsustainable, compromising future generations’ wellbeing to meet the needs of today,” he added.
Read the full article here and get a quick overview on the complexities of child labour in supply chains and the roles and responsibilities of companies, governments and consumers.