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The government is currently considering revisions to its labor code. The draft legislation being discussed would raise the minimum age for work to 14 years and would establish a number of conditions and protections for working children between the ages of 14 and 17.
Small factories and workshops are occasionally subject to labor inspections although working conditions for children, as well as adults, often remain in violation of labor laws. The Ministry of Manpower noted that its 2,000 labor inspectors cited 72,000 violations stemming from 500,000 site visits in 1993. On the other hand, independent studies and interviews indicate that many employers view the inspectors as ineffective, at best.
Programs and Efforts To Address Child Labor
The most recent effort to address child labor in Egypt was the 1994 child labor workshops for government labor inspectors, jointly sponsored by the ILO International Program for the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC) and the Egyptian Ministry of Manpower and Training . UNICEF also has an active program which conducts and sponsors research on child labor.
Egyptian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) focus primarily on research and action to ameliorate the worst aspects of child labor. For example, groups conduct training sessions to teach children a marketable skill in non-hazardous industries, such as sewing. They operate health clinics and literacy programs as well as child care centers for working mothers. Campaigns are underway to raise public awareness of the detrimental effects of child labor. Still other NGOs work to promote government enforcement of existing child labor laws, particularly prohibitions against children working excessive hours, at night, or in hazardous industries.
It is a dream of every Egyptian that one day the image of working children disappears. Our children have the right to lead a happy, healthy life with access to “appropriate education and training followed by adequate support during the transition to work”.
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Shimaa Shaaban
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