Lagos: Some legal practitioners have warned that individuals involved in child labour and trafficking risk prosecution, imprisonment, and fines under Nigerian laws. The lawyers spoke with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos, calling for stronger enforcement of child protection laws to curb the exploitation of children across the country.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, child labour involves engaging children in work that deprives them of their childhood, interferes with their education, or exposes them to physical, mental, social, or moral harm. Common forms of child labour include street hawking and domestic service, while the worst forms include child trafficking, forced labour, forced begging, commercial sexual exploitation, and recruitment by armed groups in conflict situations. Although child labour is a global challenge, it remains prevalent in many low-income countries, including Nigeria.
Mrs. Adeyinka Adeyefa, a legal practitioner with Hope Alive Educational Centre, attributed the persistence of child labour to poverty, economic hardship, lack of awareness, conflict, and internal displacement. She noted that struggling families rely on children to contribute financially, especially with the rising cost of living in the country. Some parents and employers may also not fully understand that certain forms of child labour are harmful or illegal.
Adeyefa warned that trafficking children from rural communities into cities for hawking, domestic servitude, or other forms of exploitation was punishable under the Lagos State Child Rights Law. She commended law enforcement agencies for carrying out rescue operations involving children found in illegal factories, domestic servitude, and trafficking networks. However, she emphasized that more needed to be done to protect children from exploitation, noting that many were still engaged in hawking and domestic work instead of attending school.
Similarly, Mr. Vincent Aminu, a legal practitioner, said that despite existing laws protecting children from exploitative labour practices, enforcement remained weak. He attributed poor implementation of child labour laws to institutional challenges, including a shortage of labour inspectors, overstretched welfare systems, and inadequate funding for child protection agencies. Aminu highlighted that the effectiveness of child labour laws depends largely on proper enforcement, which remains weak due to inefficiencies within the police and other law enforcement institutions.
Mrs. Nnenna Eze, Chairperson of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Ikeja Branch, emphasized the need for collective action in tackling child labour. She urged citizens and communities to play active roles in identifying and reporting cases of child exploitation, noting that government agencies alone could not monitor every household, workplace, market, or street. Eze advocated for community participation, awareness campaigns, monitoring of vulnerable children, economic support for poor families, and an end to the employment of underage domestic workers.