News
From May 15-10, 2022, business leaders, governments and civil society groups think tanks, academia, youth and children will gather online and in-person at the 5th Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour (5GCCL).
The Centre for Child Rights and Business invites you to join two virtual side events we are holding at the global conference on Monday 16th and Tuesday 17th.
The first session explores the role of companies and investors in addressing child labour in cobalt artisanal and small-scale mining. The second looks at how businesses can best respond to child labour in times of crisis, with leading companies sharing their experiences and best practices to address child labour.
On Thursday May 19, The Centre's CEO Ines Kaempfer will also speak at a further UNICEF-organised side event on "Preventing Child Labour in Global Supply Chains: The Role of Business in Tackling Root Causes".
Further details and links to sign up below! We hope you will join us at the 5th Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour.
Side Event 1: “Addressing Child Labour in Cobalt Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining: The Role of Companies and Investors”
Organiser: The Centre for Child Rights and Business
Date: Monday, May 16 from 16:45 - 17:45 Durban Time / 22:45 - 23:45 Hong Kong / 15:45 - 16:45 London / 16:45 - 17:45 Berlin / 10:45 - 11:45 am New York
Access: Click here to join via Zoom
Overview: Cobalt is a key ingredient to power the rechargeable lithium batteries used in millions of products, and as such is an essential mineral for the green transition. Despite controversy surrounding cobalt soured via Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) in global supply chains, ASM is an essential lifeline for over 200,000 workers and families in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where most of the world’s supply of cobalt is sourced from. Child labour is prevalent in cobalt ASM in the DRC, with 1 in 6 children in ASM communities working in hazardous work. Children in these ASM communities face an education crisis, gender inequalities, exposure to air-borne pollutants from the mines, a high risk of road accidents and poor psychological health, driven by negative emotions including stress, worry and anger.
This session will draw on recent research from Save the Children in Germany and Netherlands and The Centre for Child Rights and Business (The Centre) to explore how companies and financial institutions can play an active role in addressing the severe child labour and child rights risks in Cobalt ASM in the DRC.
The session will:
Shed light on the current situation of children in Cobalt ASM communities and opportunities for companies and investors to improve child rights in the extractives sector
Highlight which actions are necessary to accelerate action to address the root causes of child labour in Cobalt ASM communities, from prevention to remediation
Present case studies from financial institutions working to address child labour and child rights risks in the extractives industry (with a specific focus on cobalt)
Speakers:
Moderator: Mark Robertson, Mark Robertson, Senior Vice President, The Centre
Panel speakers:
Kees Gootjes, Business & Human Rights Advisor, ABN AMRO Bank N.V.
David Sturmes, Director for Programme and Business Development at The Impact Facility
Gillian Davidson, Sustainability Advisor, Eurasian Resources Group
Ines Kaempfer, CEO, The Centre for Child Rights and Business
Additional speakers on cobalt study findings:
Anne Reiner, Senior Manager Sustainable Supply Chains, Save the Children Germany
Josje Beukema, Lobby & Advocacy officer Children's Rights & Business, Save the Children Netherlands
Side Event 2: “Responding to Child Labour in Times Of Crisis: Best Practice Case Studies From Companies”
Organiser: The Centre for Child Rights and Business
Date: Tuesday, May 17 from 11h15 to 12h15 (Durban Time)
Access: Click here to join
Overview: COVID-19 has created a heightened risks of child labour, with the numbers of child labour cases rising even before the pandemic hit. To achieve faster progress in addressing child labour - and to avoid reversing progress in the global fight against child labour - it’s critically important that businesses, governments and policy makers, learn from and replicate the strategies which are proved to be most effective in tackling child labour.
This session will present examples and best practice case studies from businesses who are showing leadership and taking effective action to address child labour in extended global supply chains. The session will highlight practical actions that the private sector can take to develop scalable, effective and resilient systems to prevent and remediate child labour which are better able to withstand future socio-economic shocks. These case studies will address a broad range of child labour themes including transparency and traceability, direct engagement with communities and bottom-up communication, living wage, decent work and child labour, child rights-centred remediation systems, and linking child labour response with responsible business practices. Key learning outcomes for delegates will include:
Understand what private sector approaches are to address both the ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors for child labour
Learn from best practice approaches to tackling child labour cases, presented by leading companies with global supply chains
Discover steps that businesses need to take to develop robust and scalable strategies which are effective in preventing and remediation child labour in the long-term
Speakers:
Moderator: Mark Robertson, Senior Vice President, The Centre
Speaker 1: Eleni Georgiopoulou, Corporate Responsibility Manager at ALDI
Speaker 2: Julie McBride, Child Rights and Community Developer at Tony's Chocolonely
Speaker 3: Jazz Smith-Khaira, Project Specialist Child Labour, UNICEF
Details about this event can be found on the conference website here.
Side Event 3: “Preventing Child Labour in Global Supply Chains: The Role of Business in Tackling Root Causes”
Organiser: UNICEF
Date: Thursday, May 19 from 11h15 to 12h15 (Durban Time)
Access: Click here to join
On May 19, The Centre's CEO Ines Kaempfer will also speak at a UNICEF-organised side event on "Preventing Child Labour in Global Supply Chains: The Role of Business in Tackling Root Causes" from 11:15-12:15 Durban time.
The objective of this event is to explore gaps in current business approaches to tackling child labour in global supply chains. It will highlight and discuss promising practices how businesses can support child labour prevention though systems strengthening and addressing root causes, and the implications for effective global policy and regulatory environments.
Details about this event can be found on the conference website here or access it directly via Zoom here.
Visit the website of the 5th Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour here for the full agenda.
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