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Labour Ministry Signs Int’l. Agreement To Address Child Labour, Force Labour & Human Trafficking

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PHOTO: Officials after the signing ceremony in Monrovia

By Augustine Octavius, augustineoctavius@gmail.com

The Ministry of Labor and Winrock International have signed a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at addressing the high rate of child labor, forced labor and human trafficking in Liberia.

The MOU is signed under the project named “Attaining Lasting Change for Better Enforcement of Labor and Criminal Law to Address Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human Trafficking (ATLAS).

The MOU was signed in Monrovia on Tuesday, December 21, 2021 at the Ministry of Labor by James Yekeh,  the Country manager of  the  Winrock International on behalf his institution and  Madam Hannah Macaulay Karbo, Deputy Minister for Manpower Planning and Human Resource Development of the Ministry of Labor, signed on behalf the Labor Ministry.

The Winrock International Institute for Agricultural Development is an international non-profit organization based in the United States and it is involved to empower the disadvantaged, increase economic opportunity, and sustain natural resources around the world.

It is funded by the Labor and Criminal Law to Address Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human Trafficking (ATLAS) in Liberia.

ATLAS is funded by the United States Department of Labor (USDOL).

In a brief remark, Deputy Minister Karbo thanked Winrock International  and the United States Department of Labor to buttress government efforts in the fight to eliminate the worst forms of child labor, forced labor  and human trafficking in Liberia.

She recounted that few months ago, Winrock working with the National Commission on Child Labor and Trafficking In Person Secretariat conducted trafficking in persons training for Counties Educational Officers, District Educational Officers and Coaches in Margibi, Grand Bassa, Bong, Nimba and Lofa counties. This is a means of increasing their capacity to participate in the fight to eliminate these practices.

The Liberian Labour Ministry has assured Winrock of its preparedness to ensuring the full implementation of the MOU.

For his part, Country Manager of Winrock International,  James Yekeh, on behalf of his institution congratulated the Ministry of Labor for its willingness to support the ATLAS project in Liberia.

He promised to work along with the MOU in proving training that are geared towards the eliminating child labor, forced labor and human trafficking in Liberia.

Currently, The ATLAS Project is working to implement two main outcomes in Liberia.

Firstly, it is to strengthened labor and/or criminal legal frameworks concerning child labor, forced labor and human trafficking .

Lastly,  it is  improved enforcement of the labor and/or criminal legal framework, specifically related to child labor, forced labor, and human trafficking.

The project will achieve these  two outcomes through support to Liberia’s legislative process and technical support to the Ministry of Labor’s Child Labor and Anti-Human Trafficking Divisions, as well as other actors in Liberia, via the implementation of three strategic interventions referred to as “Differentiated Models of Practice for Enforcement (DMOPs).

DMOPs are-an Enforcement Training Program (ETP), a TOT training for local-level actors, and support to the child labor monitoring system (CLMS)- aim to improve enforcement of labor and legal framework to address child labor, forced labor and human trafficking in Liberia.

According to the MOU, the Ministry of Labor through its National Commission on Child Labor (NACOMAL) is responsible for the coordination of national efforts on the elimination of child labor, including the worst forms of child labor.

The MOL is also responsible for coordinating national efforts on the elimination of force labor and human trafficking in Liberia.

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