By Father Marco Baragli
Counsellor for Cooperation – WOS-IPSP
Head of Initiatives Against Human Trafficking
The World Day Against Child Labour, observed every year on 12 June, calls the international community to reflect on one of the most serious wounds still affecting the field of human rights. Despite the progress achieved in recent decades, more than 160 million children worldwide continue to be involved in forms of labour that deprive them of childhood, education, and dignity. Many of these minors are victims of economic exploitation, violence, and coercion, often hidden from public view and difficult to identify in the most fragile contexts.
The fight against child labour cannot be considered a marginal issue or one limited to specific geographical areas. It is a shared responsibility involving governments, international institutions, businesses, local communities, and civil society. Each actor plays a crucial role in preventing abuse, strengthening protection systems, ensuring access to education, and promoting living conditions that do not force families to rely on their children’s work as a means of survival. The protection of children is a fundamental indicator of a nation’s democratic and social development, and no country can claim to be fully developed if it fails to safeguard its most vulnerable members.
During my pastoral and social service in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Italy, I have encountered children and adolescents forced to work in mines, fields, informal markets, or recruited by criminal networks that exploit them for profit. In many cases, child labour serves as a gateway to even more severe forms of abuse, including human trafficking. Poverty, political instability, lack of education, and the absence of adequate safeguards create fertile ground for exploiters who take advantage of vulnerable families and their lack of alternatives. Combating child labour therefore means breaking the chains of trafficking, protecting the most vulnerable, and building more just and resilient communities.
The World Organization of States encourages and supports all international cooperation initiatives aimed at combating child labour, promoting access to education, and strengthening child protection systems. The organization also continues to foster dialogue and cooperation with governments, non-governmental organizations, religious institutions, and civil society actors committed to preventing all forms of exploitation and promoting human dignity.
On this day, I wish to address an appeal to institutions, civil society organizations, and citizens in all countries: we cannot remain indifferent. Every child forced to work represents a collective failure, but also an invitation to renew our commitment to a more humane world. Protecting children is not only a legal obligation; it is an act of justice, civility, and faith in humanity. Children are not the future—they are the present entrusted to our care, and their protection is the truest measure of our moral responsibility.
