Our Impact
Panel members and attendees at the Child Rights Action Hub launch
The Child Rights Action Hub, implemented under the MY Voice initiative, was launched in Malaysia on World Day Against Child Labour.
The Action Hub is building a community-based, long-term child labour prevention and remediation system guided by children's best interests. It facilitates collaborative action, enabling brands, retailers, and local plantations to participate in joint activities and address child labour risks in their palm oil supply chain, including in the most remote areas. It is supported by a network of local remediation service providers and case managers.
Panel discussion
During the launch event, key palm oil industry stakeholders discussed the need for a collaborative approach to address child labour in the sector. The panel session highlighted the following key points:
Growing global demand for responsible labour practices. There is a global push to make human rights due diligence (HRDD) mandatory, specifically focusing on addressing child labour. Although HRDD is not mandatory in Malaysia now, the government has started providing guidelines, and they are likely to become more stringent in the future.
Businesses play a crucial role in the fight against child labour. They are urged to adopt HRDD and demonstrate their commitment to addressing child labour issues. This includes acknowledging child labour risks within the business and taking proactive steps to identify, mitigate, and remedy actual and potential impacts.
Many tools and resources are already available. Existing guidelines, toolkits, manuals, and training provided by organisations such as the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and large palm oil companies can be utilised to help lower-tier businesses meet their recruitment needs.
Collaboration is essential. This includes collaboration among different entities within the value chain, such as brands, retailers, growers (including large plantations, medium plantations, and smallholder farms), business associations, and non-business entities like government and civil society organisations.
Attendees were asked about their expectations of the launch
Upholding child rights and child protection is only possible through commitment from all stakeholders. Parents, communities, government, employers, international palm oil companies, and others all play an important role in establishing an industry-wide social compliance system that effectively prevents and remediates child labour. Additionally, investing in training teachers, who are the central welfare officers to these children, is one step in setting them up for a vibrant and healthy life.
If you or your business in the palm oil sector are interested in participating in this initiative and getting our support to address the risk of child labour in your premises and supply chain, the MY Voice initiative can help. Reach out via email. Together, we can create a brighter future and bring positive changes to the children in these communities.
More information about the Child Rights Action Hub here: https://myvoiceproject.org/
Photos:
Photos courtesy of: The Centre for Child Rights and Business
Funding for the MY Voice project is provided by the United States Department of Labor under cooperative agreement number IL-37321-21-75-K. 100% of the total costs of the project is financed with USG federal funds, for a total of $5,000,000 dollars. This material does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the United States Department of Labor, nor does it mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the United States Government.
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