C HILD L ABOR IN K ENYA By Sonya Das, Nolan Fahey, Vittorio
Orlandi and Alicia Zhang
Slide 2
G ENERAL S TATISTICS At the present, 3 million minors are
enslaved in Kenya 10% of these children are under ten years of age
60% of the workforce in the central plantations in the Central
Province are children In 1999, 3.5 million children aged between 6
and 14 were child laborers Thats 11.4% of the population 25% of the
agricultural workers in Kenya are children
Slide 3
T HE W ORK T HEY D O Most of the work is agricultural They work
on tea, coffee, sugar, and rice plantations Here they are
constantly exposed to harmful pesticides as shown on the arm of the
boy in the picture Many children will work all day on farms and
plantations Even those who go to school will go to work after their
classes have finished
Slide 4
H OW T HEY W ERE E NSLAVED Poor parents give their children
away for money They hope for a better life Children with no parents
are especially vulnerable
Slide 5
T HINGS A LREADY B EING D ONE Donations are being collected
Without awareness, though, little money is made Other than this,
very few are seriously pushing for justice The corruption in the
government doesnt allow for any one politician to make serious
changes Serious reforms need to be made and international support
needs to be raised
Slide 6
P EOPLE A LREADY H ELPING Solitary Center Works to give
children education who were forced to work on coffee plantations
and supports the families Kenya Plantation and Agricultural Workers
Union Gives financial aid for education Stolen Childhoods
Organization making a documentary to raise awareness They also take
in donations to help enslaved children
Slide 7
O UR A CTION P LAN : P REVENTION Our action plan involves both
ways to prevent child labor and ways to help those already being
abused Prevention is much more difficult to institute because the
number one reason children are sold or given into slavery is
poverty 60% of all Kenyans live below the poverty line. Most
families live on less than one dollar a day so they need kids to
help earn money. To prevent more child slaves in Kenya we should
give more money to the families in need. More fundraisers should be
made and programs to actually go over there and help struggling
Kenyans. It is extremely difficult to simply eliminate poverty in
children but with awareness and proper funds being raised, it is
possible to make a difference
Slide 8
P REVENTION (C ONTINUED ) Another huge reason there are so many
child laborers in Kenya is because the children are vulnerable Many
have no parents and no where to go and live This makes them easy
targets for traffickers Instituting foster-home organizations and
orphanages would ensure that children are cared for instead of
neglected, and that they will not be abused in the future
Slide 9
O UR A CTION P LAN : P ROTECTION Many parents take their
children out of school is because they can not afford it. Public
schools could be built so that more kids are able to go to school.
Orphaned children and children found on streets are vulnerable to
trafficking. Adoption agencies or shelters could be made so that
the children can be safe from the traffickers. The government has
been working with NGOs to shelter and rehabilitate victims The
Ministry of Gender and local NGOs work together to operate a
24-hour hotline for victims
Slide 10
O UR A CTION P LAN : P ROSECUTION Many laws have been passed to
put a stop to slavery such as the Employment Act which outlawed
forced labor. Despite several measures, though, reports of human
trafficking continue. The government does not do much to end the
trafficking. In response the following was done: The Kenyan Police
Training College trained the police on anti-trafficking and child
protection. A recruitment agency that was reportedly illegally
selling Kenyan immigrants to foreign countries was shut down by the
Ministry of Labor. Also, in July 2010, the Counter-Trafficking
Persons Bill was signed by the president into law. It prohibits and
outlaws trafficking as well as increases the previous sentence for
violators. The problem of corruption in the government is one that
is very difficult to fix and yet one that needs to be solved if
child trafficking is to be stopped Our solution is to have
governments from other countries or large organizations like the
UN, investigate the government system and ensure that it is
just
Slide 11
E DUCATION NPOs (Non-Profit Organizations) could also raise
money and institute public schools in Kenya Implementing public
schools and education would be a big step towards liberating the
children of Kenya Making education free would help ensure that a
greater majority of children participate, thus making them less
likely to fall victim to kidnappers and traffickers This is
supported by evidence from 2003, when, after public schooling was
made free, 1.5 million students showed up on the first day of
school
Slide 12
I MPORTANCE OF E DUCATION It is important for Kenyan children
to go to school so that they may eventually work in more
intellectually based jobs This allows them opportunities for the
future so they wont be stuck in poverty and more importantly, there
kids wont be passed up to traffickers Even for people like Margaret
Basigwa, though, head of the National Council for Childrens
Services (NCSS), it is hard to make a change She herself admitted
in 2003 that about 1.9 million [children] of ages five to 17 have
not yet been able to access free primary education because they are
busy working (Mulama). Once again, we believe support from outside
the country is essential to putting an end to this problem
Slide 13
R ESOURCES (NGO S ) Non-government organizations such as
ANPPCAN and KPAWU receive most of their funds from donations
Spreading awareness of the issue and the organization increases
donations Volunteer workers help directly in Kenya Building homes
and necessities for the city Educating children and adults in
school systems An example of spreading awareness: a magazine for
youth education educates kids and parents.
Slide 14
R ESOURCES (G OVERNMENT ) With a centralized tax system set by
the government, the Kenya can help fund: Labor saving inventions
for the plantations Public education Centralized centers in
villages Incentives for landowners to not use child labor Kenyan
president Mwai Kibaki gives a speech
Slide 15
E XPANSION OF P UBLIC E DUCATION Though primary education in
Kenya is free, there are not enough facilities or resources to
teach all of the children Qualified teachers coming to work in
Kenya would also be a huge help Despite the free education, many
children in rural areas were seen attending school for part of the
day, then leaving to work in the fields to make money Almost 20% of
the children attending the schools were orphans, and needed to
support themselves as well as educate A crowded primary school
classroom
Slide 16
I NTERNATIONAL R ATING Kenya is rated by the 2011 Trafficking
in Persons Report as a Tier 2 Country A Tier 2 Country is defined
as a country that does not fully comply with the set standards but
that is trying to make significant change Reports by the US
Department of State show that Kenyas efforts to combat human
trafficking have been reinforced and that they are making an
impact
Slide 17
I NTERNATIONAL A SSISTANCE Use resources and assistance from
international organizations such as the United Nations The added
assistance could help keep the plan organized through its execution
Assistance could also be granted from more stable and less corrupt
governments in close proximity to Kenya
Slide 18
A CTION P LAN S UMMARY Prevent child labor by redirecting
government funds and by NGOs and NPOs raising money Increase
technology and research in order to lower the demand for manual
labor Protect the children by creating more orphanages and adoption
agencies More educational facilities would also ensure better
education for the children so that they could have a better future
Even though there are organizations and laws against child labor,
they are inefficient with all the corruption in the government We
need to raise awareness by using the media Prosecute the
traffickers and corrupt persons in the government
Slide 19
S UMMARY OF R ESOURCES Centralized tax system instituted by the
government which could raise money This money would be used for
public education, investigation of illegal labor institutions, and
to improve technology NGOs and NPOs could raise money and awareness
in different countries International aid from other countries with
stable governments and the UN to supply resources and volunteers
Volunteers would be needed to teach and help build facilities
Slide 20
P ICTURES A 13 year old coffee plantation worker (above) A
worker with her younger sister on a plantation. Both are in contact
with chemicals (above). A whole family sorting coffee beans
(above). A boy gathers spilled beans to bring back to a sorting
center (above)
Slide 21
W ORKS C ITED "Child Labor in Agriculture." International Labor
Organization. International Labor Organization, 2010. Web. 25 Oct
2011.. "Child Labor in Kenya." Irights. International Labor Rights
Fund, 2003. Web. 25 Oct 2011.. "Coffee Worker." Photograph. First
Last. 2003. Web. 25 Oct 2011.. "Crowded Classroom." Photograph.
Evoke. First Last. Web. 25 Oct 2011..Mulama, Joyce. "Kenya lacks
the resources to save enslaved children, severely abused and
excluded from primary education - Siriel- Media." Siriel-Media.
N.p., 4 Nov. 2004. Web. 25 Oct. 2011.. "Magazine Cover."
Photograph. First Last. 2003. Web. 25 Oct 2011.. "Mwai Kibaki."
Photograph. Nuxur: Media Network. First Last. 2011. Web. 25 Oct
2011.. "UNCHR The"Photo Galleries: Coffee Plantation Archives."
Untitled Document. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2011.