This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HARARE 001386 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR AF/S 
USDOC FOR AMANDA HILLIGAS 
TREASURY FOR OREN WYCHE-SHAW 
PASS USTR FLORIZELLE LISER 
STATE PASS USAID FOR MARJORIE COPSON 
STATE FOR DRL/IL 
STATE PASS USDOL/ILAB FOR TINA FAULKNER 
 
¶E. O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB ECON EIND ETRD PHUM SOCI ZI
SUBJECT: 2004 ZIMBABWE CHILD LABOR UPDATE 
 
Ref: A) SECSTATE 163982 
     B) 03 HARARE 01669 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  The continuing political, economic, 
and social crises in Zimbabwe overwhelm any attempt to 
eliminate child labor. With 1.1 to 2 million HIV/AIDS 
orphans, many children must work to survive. As in Ref B, 
increased enforcement of existing child labor laws awaits 
resources from GOZ, labor, employers, and NGOs. The pre- 
land reform 1999 child labor survey still serves as the 
statistical base. Thus, statistics on the current 
situation are scarce. But, civil society organizations 
are certain child labor is increasing. End Summary. 
 
SOCIAL PROGRAMS TO PREVENT THE ENGAGEMENT OF CHILDREN IN 
THE WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
¶2. (SBU) Private education costs continue to spiral out 
of reach of middle-class families, and some poorer 
families cannot pay even public school fees. Food 
security and healthcare continue to deteriorate, with 
children working to support families devastated by 
hunger, illness, and premature death. The HIV/AIDS 
pandemic leaves many child-headed households. Even with 
helpful relatives, the children must work to survive. 
 
¶3. (SBU) GOZ Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare touts 
its BEAM (Basic Education Assistance Module) and CDC 
(Children in Difficult Circumstances) programs. These 
programs were designed to pay for school fees (BEAM) and 
other items such as uniforms and books (CDC) for children 
who could not afford to go to school. GOZ sought to reach 
25% of affected children but never achieved more than 18% 
in 2000 with declining percentages each year since. The 
Central Statistics Office recently conducted a labor 
survey with results due out in December 2004. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Civil society labors on. Save the Children 
Norway Zimbabwe sponsored a series of workshops in 2003 
that culminated in the formation of a National Movement 
for Working Children and Youth. They started research 
into child domestic servants but lack of resources and 
survival needs have overtaken them. Associated Mine 
Workers of Zimbabwe plans to travel from mine to mine to 
educate employees and employers on child labor but 
currently lacks resources.  Zimbabwe Domestic and Allied 
Workers Union plans to provide basic reading and writing 
skills to child domestic workers. The project will start 
in Chinoyi, Bulawayo, Mutare, and Zvishane. 
 
COMPREHENSIVE POLICY AIMED AT ELIMINATION OF THE WORST 
FORMS OF CHILD LABOR 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
¶5. (SBU) There has been no comprehensive policy to 
eliminate the worst forms of child labor despite 
agreement between GOZ, labor, and employers about the 
need for such a policy. Zimbabwe also has no resources to 
implement a comprehensive policy. 
 
¶6. (SBU) According to GOZ Ministry of Labor, the ILO 
refused to fund a 2002 proposal for child labor 
mitigation programs and an in-depth study on the worst 
forms of child labor. The Ministry blamed Zimbabwe's 
continued international isolation. 
 
CONTINUAL PROGRESS TOWARDS ELIMINATING THE WORST FORMS OF 
CHILD LABOR 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
¶7. (SBU) GOZ has made no discernible progress in 
eliminating the worst forms of child labor. Due to the 
continuing economic collapse, as well as the increasing 
impact of HIV/AIDS-related deaths, increasingly more 
children must work to ensure their families' survival. 
 
¶8. (SBU) GOZ and civil society use the 1999 child labor 
survey as a statistical base due to a lack of reliable 
current information. Civil society recognizes that the 
post-land reform situation is significantly worse, but 
the GOZ continues to tout the 1999 numbers. 
 
¶9. (SBU) However, some things do remain true. Save the 
Children Norway Zimbabwe, Child Protection Society, 
UNICEF, ILO, Employers Confederation of Zimbabwe (EMCOZ), 
Associated Mine Workers of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Domestic 
and Allied Workers Union, GOZ Ministry of Labor and 
Social Welfare all agree that child labor exists mostly 
in agriculture, domestic work, and informal mining. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Child Protection Society asserts that new 
farmers use children as cheap labor that cannot complain 
about working conditions. UNICEF sees children working as 
independent contractors so employers can evade employing 
children. Zimbabwe Domestic and Allied Workers Union 
observes that employers often bring children from their 
rural homes to work as domestics with parental consent. 
 
¶11. (SBU) Save the Children Norway Zimbabwe cites two 
specific examples: Sugar businesses along the Mozambique 
border at Catiyo use children to sell sugar across the 
border. Often with the complicity of their parents, 
children are paid less than adults and do not attend 
school. The tea estates, however, send children to school 
in the morning and to work in the afternoon and evening. 
 
¶12. (SBU) Information on specific types of the worst 
forms of child labor is mainly anecdotal. Trafficking in 
children occurs only in isolated instances. Prostitution 
is on the increase with more female pimps and male 
prostitutes. Children often lack access to necessary 
safety equipment and training. Child domestic workers can 
work as much as 14 hours a day. 
 
¶13. (SBU) Non-Payment of wages occurs mostly in the 
domestic worker sphere where some employers believe they 
are doing a child from their rural home a favor. In 
addition, employers pay the parents for the child's work. 
Relatives often use AIDS-orphaned children as domestics 
without pay. There are also unconfirmed reports of police 
rounding up street kids and taking them to work on a farm 
without pay. However, these reports are dubious at best. 
 
COMMENT 
--------- 
¶14. (SBU) GOZ has made very little measurable progress on 
eliminating the worst forms of child labor. The crush of 
poverty and HIV/AIDS has forced many Zimbabweans to focus 
on survival by any means, including child labor. Until 
these root causes are resolved, there is little hope for 
effective efforts against the worst forms of child labor. 
 
Sullivan