June 24, 2025
Staff Report
LAHORE
A powerful coalition of civil society leaders, academic institutions, and the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) has issued an urgent call to the Punjab Government: adopt a sustainable and comprehensive strategy to end child labour—immediately.
The collective warning came during a Provincial Policy Dialogue on “Child Labour in Punjab: Challenges, Gaps, and the Path Forward”, where experts and advocates laid out a grim picture of child exploitation in the province.
Hosted by Search for Justice, CAN Pakistan, Child Rights Movement (CRM) Punjab, the Centre for Public Policy & Governance at FC College, and the NCHR—alongside international partner Kindernothilfe (KNH)—the event brought together key stakeholders pressing for immediate policy overhaul.
Punjab, home to over 56 million children under 18, is grappling with an alarming child labour epidemic. In total, 16.9% of children aged 5–17 are engaged in work, with nearly half of working children aged 10–14 trapped in hazardous occupations, according to the Punjab Child Labour Survey (2019–2020).
Executive Director of Search for Justice, Mr. Iftikhar Mubarik, called for immediate activation of the Provincial Child Labour Committee and notification of district-level protection bodies to begin addressing the crisis locally.
“This is no longer just a labour issue—it’s a protection emergency,” said Mubarik, emphasizing the need to harmonize legal definitions of ‘child’ across all provincial laws for enforcement to have any teeth.
From among the academia, Dr. Saeed Shafqat of FC College stressed that child labour cannot be tackled in isolation and must be addressed through long-term policy backed by child-focused social protection and cross-sectoral coordination. He underlined the critical role of evidence-based policy and academic research in shaping real-world responses.
In a rare official disclosure, Mr. Tauseef Dilshad Khatana, Additional Secretary, Labour & Human Resource Department, confirmed the government’s intent to table a new Labour Code in the Punjab Assembly—one that could raise the minimum employment age to 16 to match compulsory schooling laws.
NCHR Member Mr. Nadeem Ashraf went a step further, proposing a pilot Child Labour Eradication Program in one division of Punjab as a model for province-wide implementation. “This is not just a legal obligation under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child—it is a moral imperative,” he stated.
Dr. Abdullah Khoso of FC College focused attention on a frequently ignored demographic—child domestic workers, many of whom endure hidden forms of abuse. He urged legislative amendments including a proposed new Section 374A in the Pakistan Penal Code to criminalize their abuse explicitly.
Meanwhile, child representatives from the Child Protection Forums, Ammad and Aliza, delivered impassioned appeals directly to policymakers. Their demanded that the government consult children in policy decisions and ensure no child’s right to education is compromised.
The unanimous agreement was that there could be no more waiting. Punjab could not afford to wait. “With millions of children at risk, the demand for a decisive, coordinated response has become louder than ever—and this time, it’s coming from every corner of society,” said Mubarik.