US sees progress in global fight against child labour

The US hailed "significant advancement" in 10 countries, mostly in Latin America and Asia, in combating the worst forms of child labour, in a published report.
Three countries -- Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea and Uzbekistan -- were cited for government complicity in forced child labour.
But in a 826-page report, the Department of Labor said half of the 143 developing countries and territories it surveyed had made at least "moderate" progress towards eradicating child labor.
Ten countries made "significant advancement," including three Southeast Asian nations (Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand) and five in Latin America (Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru).

Ethiopia also made the grade, as did Gibraltar, one of several British overseas territories lumped together with developing nations for scrutiny by the Department of Labour's Bureau of International Labour Affairs.
In a first, the Department of Labour also removed three goods -- charcoal from Namibia, diamonds from Zimbabwe and tobacco from Kazakhstan -- from its running list of products made with child or forced labor.

"We're moving in the right direction, but we have a lot more work to be done," said newly-appointed Labour Secretary Thomas Perez in presenting the report, the 12th in an annual series.
The International Labour Organisation, a United Nations agency, says there are still 168 million children working worldwide, 85 million of them in conditions deemed to be hazardous.

"Nations should not build their economic futures on the backs of children," Perez told a gathering at Department of Labor headquarters. "That's categorically wrong."
In his remarks, Perez singled out Thailand for praise, noting how its government has set the minimum age for domestic workers at 15 -- although the report says enforcement of Thai child labor laws overall remains weak.
The list of 62 countries seen making moderate progress ranged from Bangladesh, India and Pakistan in Asia to Egypt and Lebanon in the Middle East and, in Africa, Kenya and South Africa.
Some 134 goods from 73 countries remained on the US list of items produced by child or forced labour. India led the list with 21 products as varied as bricks, carpets, textiles, bidis, fireworks and soccer balls.