A campaign organized by civil society organizations to end child labour and ensure all children are enrolled in school by 2020 has commenced in Maridi State.
More than 13 local NGOs are taking part in the campaign, which is part of resolutions reached during a civil society symposium held in Maridi town on November 23.
Gismal Raison, the chairperson of the Maridi civil society forum, said on Friday that the campaign was organized to highlight the dangers of child labour in the society.
“We organized the forum to show the effect of child labour, especially in Maridi markets where children are subjected to hard labor and most of them have developed back pain and chest problem. If we don’t stand as the community, we will not have people to lead Maridi State in future,” he stressed.
For his part, the Maridi municipality mayor, Gasper Kinako urged parents and chiefs to embrace the campaign to end child labour. “It is both the responsibility of the parents and the chiefs to make sure that all children are enrolled in school by 2020,” he said.
Esther Williams, a mother of eight children, complained of the high fees levied by schools, saying it hinders enrolment of children in the state.
“As parents, we have a lot of problems like school fees, some schools are very expensive. Where do we get money from?” she asked.
The campaign organized under the theme, “Stop child labour and send all children to school by 2020”, was supported by World Vision.