Platform for Labour Action (PLA) is a National Civil Society Organization that was founded in the year 2000. PLA is focused on promoting and protecting the rights of vulnerable and marginalized workers through empowerment of communities and individuals in Uganda.
Lives impacted
years of service
INTRODUCTION As the world commemorates the International Day Against Child labour on Friday, 12th June 2020 under the theme; “COVID-19: Protect children from child labour, now more than ever”, PLA takes stock of the situation of child labour in the wake of COVID-19.
COVID-19 has plunged the world into a crisis of unprecedented scope and scale. In Uganda the pandemic has and continues to worsen the country’s development challenges of poverty, unemployment and limited social protection coverage. The Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MFPED) Uganda provided preliminary assessment on March 20, 2020 of the short-term impact of the pandemic, anticipating the increase in the number of poor people by 2.6 million. The business climate index published by the Economic Policy Research Centre (EPRC) estimated that 4,000,000 Ugandans could lose their jobs and source of livelihood if the Corona virus pandemic persists for the next six months.
The uncertainty and prolonged periods confined to small homes is leading to an increasingly stressful environment. Many households are being pushed into extreme poverty and hunger as parents who have lost income are increasingly unable to feed their families.
As a result, children are increasingly forced into hazardous and exploitative work to support their families. In one survey by a Joining Forces partner, 56% of respondents reported an increase in children working since lock down began (Save the Children child protection assessment, May 2020). In many parts of the country 60% of people surveyed have observed an increase in children involved in worst forms of child labour and child exploitation including girls drawn into commercial sexual exploitation, trading sex for money, food and even materials such as sanitary towels. Other young children have been observed selling alcohol, firewood and other items, or digging and planting to try and make ends meet. It should be noted that prior to COVID-19 outbreak, two million children were engaged in child labour activities (National Labour Force and Child Activity Survey (2011-2012). With the high prevailing poverty rates which have been worsened by the crisis, it is envisaged that more children will be forced and exploited in child labour activities. The suspension of schools has kept children home all the time and not learning, they are likely to be involved in child labour longer than if they were attending school.
Covid-19 has also increased the demand for cheap labour for youth (15-17 years) and exploitation. The fall in economic activity due to the quarantine measures will disproportionately impact legal working youths (15-17 years) in agriculture, domestic service and industrial sectors.
Criminal networks may actively use this global crisis to exploit vulnerabilities of children and incidences of child trafficking for labour exploitation both within and at the regional level are likely to increase during and post COVID-19 period.
In Uganda, child labour has persisted even with the prevailing robust legal and policy frame work against child exploitation, this has been exacerbated by poverty, the growing levels of orphan-hood, and negative cultural norms that attach low importance on education especially for the girl child and that children are a source of labour, famine and food insecurity. This is therefore to call on government to address the above underlying major drivers of child labour.
Make Social Protection accessible in the informal sector
Betty Iyamuremye
As the world prepares to commemorate the World Women’s Day 2019, under the theme “Empowering women through innovative approaches to social protection; a prerequisite for inclusive and sustainable development”, it critical to note that the labour force in the informal sector stands at 90%, according to the Uganda National Household Survey, 2016/17 in Uganda.
On 12th June 2025, Platform for Labour Action (PLA), alongside fellow civil society organizations in Uganda, joined the global community in commemorating the World Day Against Child Labour. This year’s theme is a powerful call to accelerate efforts to eliminate child labour, especially as the 2025 deadline for Sustainable Development Goal 8.7 approaches.
Uganda continues to face a high prevalence of child labour, with over 6.2 million children aged 5–17 engaged in work, and more than 1 million in hazardous conditions. The most affected sectors include agriculture, domestic work, mining, and informal trade, especially in regions like Karamoja, Busoga, and Northern Uganda.
Despite progress in legislation and policy, implementation remains slow and underfunded. The informal economy, where 90% of child labour occurs, is largely unregulated. Economic pressures, including rising living costs and post-COVID-19 challenges, have worsened the situation.
PLA urges all stakeholders; government, parliament, development partners, private sector, and communities to:
“Child labour is not inevitable; it is preventable. It is a choice society makes, and today, we call upon all of us to choose differently.”
— Grace Mukwaya, Executive Director, PLA
Let’s act now. Let’s protect childhood. Let’s end child labour.
