Pact receives grant to combat child labor in mica mining in Madagascar

Child labor in mining is one of the worst forms of child labor as defined by the International Labor Organization. This type of labor is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children.  

An estimated 10,000 children work in mica production in Madagascar’s southern regions. The mica mining sector is largely informal, which contributes to human rights concerns such as labor exploitation. Communities in the area also struggle with extremely high rates of poverty. For children, roughly half between 6 and 10 years old are without education. These conditions, among others, contribute to child labor.

Through this new project, Madagascar Shines, Pact will work to eliminate child labor by increasing Malagasy families’ resiliency, supporting the Government of Madagascar’s capacity to coordinate child protection stakeholders, and reinforcing the capability of non-governmental actors, including the private sector and civil society stakeholders, to sustainably address child labor in the mica supply chain.

“Pact has a long history of working with mining communities, governments, the private sector and civil society to combat child labor in mining,” said Amayèle Dia, child labor reporting coordinator at Pact. “Our approach is holistic and builds outward from the child at the center.”

Pact is implementing Madagascar Shines with local partners Andry Lalana Tohana Madagascar (ALT) and Madagascar Exporters of Industrial Materials Association (AEPI).

Specifically, the project will: Reach thousands of households vulnerable to child labor, providing children with educational services and adults with livelihood services and trainings on occupational health and safety; increase the capacity of government officials to coordinate the child protection measures in the mica supply chain, including establishing a code of conduct for mica mining; support the efforts of civil society organizations and the media to improve public awareness around the issue of child labor in the mica supply chain; and directly engage with private-sector stakeholders to promote the formalization of the mica sector and design a traceability system, fostering a sustainable mining industry that does not use child labor.

“We know it is possible to prevent child labor in mining when we engage deeply with communities, partner with stakeholders across the public, private and civil society sectors and use evidence-based approaches to address the root causes of child labor,” said Mirana Rakotosamimanana, Pact’s Madagascar country director.

The project will work in the Anôsy region where mica mining occurs.

For more information about Pact’s other work to combat child labor in global supply chains, visit our website at www.pactworld.org/our-expertise/mining/child-labor. 

To learn more about our work in Madagascar, visit www.pactworld.org/country/madagascar.