Malawi and other Member States under the International Labour Organisation (ILO) have agreed to review resolutions on elimination of child labour.

Malawi’s Vice President Saulos Chilima said this upon arrival from South Africa where he represented the country at the Fifth Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour.

Chilima, who was speaking to journalists in Lilongwe, said child labour is a major concern affecting the ILO member states.

“The calls that were made were around making that the call making sure that the previous resolution were looked at and whatever resolutions we passed should also be put into practice.

“We have a tendency of passing resolutions and then not following up,” Chilima said.

The conference has been organised against the backdrop of concerns raised by a 2021 global report on child labour indicating that the number of children involved in child labour has risen to 160 million worldwide, representing an increase of 8.4 million children since 2017.

The vice president added that Malawi needs to work on policies and guidelines that will ensure children in the country are well protected from the vice.

He said: “There is an issue around domestic chaos which is cultural issue but then that said we still need to make sure that we allow them full childhood development.

“Together with the other member states, be it in SADC or the African continent and beyond we hope that this issue is going to be looked at seriously and resolutions passed.”

The 5-day conference seeks to identify good practices and viable solutions to reinforce commitment of all stakeholders to accelerate the fight against the vice in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The conference started on Sunday May 15, 2022 and will run up to Friday May 20, 2022.