NAY PYI TAW, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar Minister of Labor, Immigration and Population U Thein Swe on Monday called on related ministries, locals and international organizations to cooperate for eliminating child labor in the country.
The minister said in his address at the conference for National Level Planning in Nay Pyi Taw that child labor issue is not only a big challenge to Myanmar but also a global issue, adding that elimination of child labor cannot be done only by the ministry itself.
The minister urged related ministries, local employee and employer organizations, labor organizations, international organizations such as International Labor Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Children's Fund to cooperate, as the child labor issue is also related to poverty and natural disasters.
There are nearly 1.3 million child labors in Myanmar, according to a survey last year.
About 80 percent of child laborers are from rural areas, according to the report.
Myanmar signed ILO Convention 182 for prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labors in 2013 and submitted the implementation report in 2015.
ILO has implemented a four-year programme on the Elimination of Child Labor in Myanmar since 2013.
