Cape Verde will raise the age at which teenagers can engage in minor activities

Cape Verde will increase the age at which a teenager can engage in small-scale activities from 15 to 16 and tighten rules against child labor, the family affairs minister told Lusa.

The official spoke about the Day Against Child Labor, which takes place on Wednesday.

“From the point of view of the labor code, a child from the age of 15, with the permission of his parents and during his studies, is allowed to engage in small activities: we are going to increase this age to 16,” said Elisio Freire.

The government’s message is to “let children be children” and requires “greater understanding on the part of families” as child labor reported in Cape Verde mainly concerns domestic activities such as agriculture.

Official statistics published in February show that the situation affects 4.2% of the country’s children (ages 5 to 17), or about 4,900 minors.

These figures put Cape Verde in a better position than its Portuguese-speaking counterparts in Africa and much of the continent.

“Although this is not a serious phenomenon, it exists and we must eliminate it,” added Elisio Freire.

Measures announced by the government include a new Children and Young People’s Act, “with stricter rules for those who allow children to work”, which is due to be approved by the Council of Ministers by the end of July and then referred to parliament.

Definitions of hazardous work “that children should not do” will also be revised and so-called light work will be regulated.

“All this is to narrow the scope of our responsibilities: to act at the level of legislation, supervision and awareness,” he said.

Along with the announced measures, awareness-raising activities are being carried out among families to show that “children need care and protection, not work.”

In the same context, the government has allocated funds from the Social Security Fund (Fundo Mais) for the construction and rehabilitation of 11 centers on the islands, places where activities for children will be held at any time of the day.

The goal is to “allow the child to be either in the school or learning space and playing.”

According to Elisio Freire, everything is “in full swing” and resources have been mobilized to open the centers, and competitions are being held to select non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that will occupy these premises.

Five centers will operate in Praia, three in Sao Vicente, two in Boa Vista and one in Sal.

Child labor is any activity that deprives children of their childhood and harms their physical and mental health.

This concept covers actions that violate children’s fundamental rights, especially the rights to education, health and full development.

According to the ILO, about 160 million children (that is, almost one in ten in the world) are subject to child labor and almost half are involved in potentially hazardous work.