June 12, 2025
On the occasion of the World Day Against Child Labor, observed annually on June 12 and established by the International Labour Organization in 2002, the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States, the Arab Labor Organization, and the Arab Council for Childhood and Development in Egypt issued a joint statement.

The statement emphasized that this year’s occasion comes at a time when the global target of eliminating all forms of child labor by 2025 remains far from reach. Despite the grim reality—exacerbated by a series of successive crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, conflicts and wars, accelerated technological transformation, and growing socio-economic inequalities—the statement expressed hope for ending the phenomenon of child labor. It also stressed the importance of mobilizing Arab and international attention, renewing the call for strengthened regional and global commitments to eradicate all forms of child labor.

In this context, the organizations noted that the forthcoming Second World Summit for Social Development, scheduled for November in Qatar, is expected serve as a platform to advance strategies aimed at promoting decent work and addressing poverty—widely recognized as a key driver of child labor. They further noted that the outcomes of this Summit are anticipated to contribute meaningfully to the Sixth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labor, to be convened in 2026 in the Kingdom of Morocco, thereby fostering greater coherence and complementarity across national, regional, and international efforts.

The organizations affirmed their full readiness to continue joint efforts to combat child labor and to support related global movements and United Nations-led initiatives. They announced that during the current year they will convene the Arab Conference on Child Labor and Social Protection Policies, underscoring the critical role of comprehensive social protection systems in promoting social justice and securing a sustainable future for generations to come.

The statement also drew attention to the genocide being endured by children in the Gaza Strip, emphasizing that they are living through a harrowing humanitarian catastrophe. It called on the international community to fulfill its moral and legal responsibility to protect the children of Palestine and to uphold their rights to health, education, safety, and dignity.

In conclusion, the organizations called on all stakeholders to take urgent action to protect children from all forms of exploitation and to safeguard their rights as enshrined in international instruments and conventions—particularly the rights of working children, who have been deprived of their childhood and innocence.