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Noémie Wiedmer verpasste bei ihrer Olympia-Premiere eine Medaille nur ganz knapp. Besonders mitgelitten hat im Zielraum ihr grösster Fan: Grossmutter Vreni.

FDP-Nationalrat Hans-Peter Portmann poltert in den sozialen Medien über das Wallis. Er reagiert damit auf die Brandkatastrophe von Crans-Montana. Aus dem Kanton schlägt ihm nun ein eisiger Wind entgegen.

13-year-old Ojulu Omod comes to the gold mine site before the day gets too hot. He is out of school and supports his family by mining gold the traditional way. Credit: UNICEF/Demissew Bizuwerk

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 13 2026 (IPS)

Although global rates of child labour have declined since 2020, the practice remains a serious and persistent violation of children’s rights, undermining their safety, social development, and long-term economic stability. These risks are intensified by structural pressures— poverty, climate shocks, protracted conflict, and unsafe migration— that continue to push vulnerable children into crisis, and in some cases, trafficking and exploitation. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warns that African countries remain among the most affected regions, underscoring the urgent need for coordinated policy action, cross-border cooperation, and sustained investment to protect children on the move and those at risk of labour exploitation.

Roughly 137.6 million children across the world are engaged in child labour, representing 7.8 percent of all children globally. Of this number, approximately 54 million children are engaged in particularly hazardous work—such as mining and construction, or work performed for over 43 hours per week.

In a newly-released data brief analyzing child labour trends across Eastern and Southern Africa, UNICEF found approximately 41 million children—nearly one third of the global total—are engaged in child labour as of 2024, accounting for roughly one in five children in the region. While this represents progress from the 49 million children recorded in 2020, UNICEF warns that these gains remain fragile and could be reversed without strengthened policies and adequate financing.

“Children belong in classrooms, not workplaces,” said Etleva Kadilli, UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa. She emphasized that ending child labour requires an inclusive approach that aims to revitalize education systems and strengthen protection measures for children worldwide.

“Supporting parents with decent work is essential so children can go to school, learn, play, and build a brighter future,” Kadilli added, urging governments, the private sector, civil society, and communities to work together to build a coordinated response aligned with “national and continental commitments” to put a definitive end to child labour.

The report highlights the severity of the crisis: 13.4 million children in Eastern and Southern Africa are engaged in hazardous work. It is only second to West and Central Africa when it comes to the prevalence of child labour globally. Education disparities are particularly pronounced, with six in ten adolescents engaged in child labour out of school, compared with just two in ten of their non-working peers.

According to the report, Eastern and Southern Africa has a disproportionately high share of young children engaged in child labour compared to other regions. Roughly 65 percent of children in child labour in the region are between the ages of 5 and 11, which greatly contrasts with other parts of the world where older adolescents make up a larger share. Although notable progress has been made in reducing child labour across all age groups, the decline has been slowest among the youngest children.

UNICEF notes that child labour in Eastern and Southern Africa is heavily concentrated in agriculture, which accounts for approximately 78 percent of all cases among children aged 5 to 17. This is even more pronounced among younger children, with more than 80 percent of those aged 5 to 11 working in agricultural fields. However, hazardous work is disproportionately concentrated in other sectors, with 55 percent of child labor in industry and 56 percent in services being classified as hazardous, compared to the 26 percent found in agriculture.

On February 11, during the Sixth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour in Marrakesh, Morocco, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) called on governments to strengthen protection measures, enhance international cooperation, and improve monitoring systems to ensure that migration and trafficking are central to efforts to end child labour. The agency emphasized that unsafe migration is a key driver of child labour, as displaced communities often resort to it in the absence of access to basic services, stable livelihoods, and social protection.

“If we are serious about ending child labour, we must face a reality that is still too often overlooked: migration,” said Amy Pope, IOM Director-General. “Today, millions of children are on the move, they’re forced by conflict, they’re pulled by poverty, they’re displaced by the impact of climate shocks. And they’re searching for opportunity and for safety. Evidence shows that migrant children are often the most exposed to child labour. They work longer hours, they earn less, they are less likely to attend school, and they face higher risks of injury, exploitation, and death.”

According to the latest figures from IOM, approximately 30,000 child victims of trafficking have been identified globally, though the true number is likely far higher due to widespread underreporting and gaps in detection. Children account for nearly one in four detected trafficking victims worldwide, with roughly 20 percent aged between 9 and 17 years of age.

Among all identified victims, 61 percent face sexual exploitation, with girls being disproportionately affected. Recruitment into armed groups is common among boys. Traffickers commonly exert control through psychological, physical, and sexual abuse, as well as threats against victims or their families and restrictions on finances, medical care, essential services, and freedom of movement.

Pope underscored the urgency of closing systemic gaps in labour governance and protection systems that leave migrant children vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation. “These children are often missing from child labour policies, overlooked in protection systems, and invisible in the data that guides decisions,” she said. “Along migration routes, children are exploited in agriculture, domestic work, hospitality, and construction — and these abuses follow them across borders wherever protection fails. Protection must move with the child: prevention must reflect real labour and mobility realities, and systems must work together across sectors and borders.”

UNICEF is calling on the international community to address both the root causes and consequences of child labour. The plan includes expanding social protection programs for vulnerable families, promoting universal access to quality education, strengthening monitoring efforts to identify at-risk children, ensuring decent work opportunities for youth and adults, and enforcing stronger labour laws to enhance corporate accountability and eliminate exploitation across supply chains. Together, these efforts aim to ensure that families are not forced to rely on their children for survival—and that children are free to learn, grow, and simply be children.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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L’organisation de défense du consommateur « Himayatec » tire la sonnette d’alarme. Elle exige une intervention immédiate des autorités publiques concernant des lots de lait […]

L’article Lait infantile contaminé : « Himayatec » saisit le ministère du Commerce est apparu en premier sur .

Péntek délután lavina zúdult le a Magas-Tátrában, meghalt egy 32 éves cseh férfi. Az eset a Gerlachfalvi-csúcson történt.

Für den erhofften Coup gegen Kanada darf sich das Team von Patrick Fischer in Mailand auf lautstarke Unterstützung freuen. Einige Fans reisen jedoch zu früh an und stehen vor verschlossenen Toren. «Wir haben eine Fanmeile erwartet», sagen zwei Schweizer enttäuscht.

Nahe des Arc de Triomphe hat Brahim B. (48) am Freitag einen Polizisten mit einem Messer angegriffen. Die Polizei reagierte mit Schüssen – der mutmassliche Terrorist schwebt in Lebensgefahr. Er hatte den Anschlag zuvor telefonisch angekündigt.

Weekly schedule of President António Costa, 16-22 February 2026.

Main agenda items, approximate timing, public sessions and press opportunities.

During the press conference held at the end of the Informal EU leaders' retreat of 12 February 2026, President António Costa presented the main topics of the discussions.

Press briefing ahead of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council will take place on 16 February at 11.30. The briefing will be "off the record".

Weekly schedule of President António Costa, 16-22 February 2026.

Main agenda items, approximate timing, public sessions and press opportunities.

Auf der Pressekonferenz im Anschluss an die informelle Klausurtagung der EU-Führungsspitzen vom 12. Februar 2026 stellte Präsident António Costa die wichtigsten Themen der Beratungen vor.

Press briefing ahead of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council will take place on 16 February at 11.30. The briefing will be "off the record".

Weekly schedule of President António Costa, 16-22 February 2026.

Main agenda items, approximate timing, public sessions and press opportunities.

Az uniós vezetők 2026. február 12-i nem hivatalos, kihelyezett ülése után tartott sajtókonferencián António Costa elnök ismertette a megbeszélések során áttekintett főbb témákat.

Press briefing ahead of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council will take place on 16 February at 11.30. The briefing will be "off the record".