Effectiveness Review of Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems in the West African Cocoa Sector

A review of systems to prevent and address child labour in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana and their outcomes for children.

Executive Summary

This study provides an in-depth analysis of data from Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems (CLMRS) from cocoa-growing areas of West Africa. It aims to answer two questions: 1) How does the design and set-up of these systems affect their ability to identify cases of child labour? 2) How effective are these systems at protecting children from hazardous work?

Findings and recommendations

We analysed data from a total of 12 CLMRS projects, in order to understand how differences in their design, set-up, operation and management affect their functioning. We draw on these insights not in order to recommend a single approach or to propose a ‘gold standard’ for such monitoring systems, but rather to highlight the variety of approaches that have been adopted, as well as to compare, wherever possible, their effectiveness using a range of different criteria.

Introduction

What is a CLMRS?

Child Labour Monitoring and Remediation Systems (CLMRS) are a means of targeting prevention, mitigation and remediation assistance to children involved in or at risk of child labour, as well as to their families and communities.

Section Summary

Method

We compare the rates of hazardous child labour cases identified across various CLMRS projects in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. The rate of hazardous child labour identification is defined here as the number of children identified in hazardous child labour divided by the number of children interviewed during monitoring visits under a given CLMRS project.

What we find

We find huge differences between CLMRS projects in how likely it is that a monitoring visit results in identification of a child labour case (see figure 1). The rates of hazardous child labour identification in projects in Côte d’Ivoire range between 0.5% and 26.7%, while in projects in Ghana they range between 2.5% and 60.4%.

What we conclude

CLMRS data collection is guided by different objectives and different circumstances than samplebased survey research, which is designed to generate robust estimates of child labour prevalence. Under CLMRS, less time-consuming interviews with less elaborate questionnaires may be preferred because this allows more children to be monitored with a given budget.

In a nutshell

Visits to homes and on farms are highly complementary tools to monitor child labour use by cocoa farmers.
Farm visits are one option for capturing child labour cases which remain invisible when screening only direct members of the farming household (e.g. children working on their relatives’ or neighbours’ farm), but other less costly options could be tested.
Currently available data provides insufficient understanding of the profiles of children not registered during home visits but seen working on the farm. CLMRS should collect more detailed information on these children to allow their situation to be adequately addressed.

Section summary

Method

We examine the evolution of identified cases of child labour over a sequence of follow-up visits under ICI-implemented CLMRS in Côte d’Ivoire. Children identified in hazardous child labour under the ICI CLMRS typically receive one or more types of remediation support (assistance, goods or services) tailored to their needs shortly after their case has been identified, and are then visited again by the monitoring agent in intervals of typically 3 to 6 months.

What we find

Of the 16,869 children previously identified in hazardous child labour and followed up under ICI‑implemented CLMRS in Côte d’Ivoire, 38% reported no longer doing hazardous tasks during their first follow-up visit.

What we conclude

The sequences of visits to individual children provide a valuable data source to help understand the dynamics of child labour in the context of CLMRS in cocoa production. First of all, the data shows that children who appear to be out of child labour during one visit may again be found in child labour when visited a few months thereafter.

In a nutshell

More than one follow-up visit is needed to verify that a child has stopped hazardous work after having received remediation support.
Sequences of visits to individual children provide valuable insights into the dynamics of child labour in the context of CLMRS in cocoa production.
Under the ICI-implemented CLMRS in Côte d’Ivoire, among previous child labourers who no longer report doing hazardous work during two consecutive follow-up visits, the risk of falling back into hazardous child labour thereafter is around 21%.

Appendix contents

Appendix A: Overview of information shared about CLMRS design and set-up

Appendix B: Overview of data shared by CLMRS implementers

Appendix C: Characteristics of monitoring agents

Appendix D: Stopping children from engaging in hazardous child labour – additional results

Appendix E: Types of remediation provided and number of beneficiaries