VZCZCXRO6217
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHFN #0033/01 0271743
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 271743Z JAN 09
FM AMEMBASSY FREETOWN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2432
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 FREETOWN 000033 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/W (JHUNTER), DRL/ILCSR (TDANG) 
DEPT OF LABOR FOR ILAB (TMCCARTER) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB EIND ETRD PHUM SL
SUBJECT: SIERRA LEONE WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR REPORT 
 
REF: 08 STATE 127448 
 
¶1. Per reftel, Embassy Freetown provides the following 
updates to inform the 2008 TDA Report. 
 
¶2. In 2007, Sierra Leone passed the Child Rights Act aimed at 
protecting children under 18 from early marriage, 
conscription into the armed forces, trafficking, domestic 
violence and exploitation. It also severely limits child 
labor, allowing light work only at age 13, and full-time work 
at age 15. The law prohibits children under 13 from being 
employed in any capacity. Despite its passage, the President 
has not yet officially signed the Child Rights Act, and it 
does not have an official commencement date. 
 
¶3. In Sierra Leone, light work constitutes work which is not 
likely to be harmful to the health or development of the 
child and does not affect the child's attendance at school or 
the capacity of the child to benefit from school work. Though 
not specifically allowed under the law, work in the home and 
on family farms is generally considered a normal 
responsibility for children and is not considered work. 
 
¶4. The minimum age for hazardous work is 18. In the Child 
Rights Act hazardous work includes going to sea, mining and 
quarrying, porterage of heavy loads, manufacturing industries 
where chemicals are produced or used, work in places where 
machines are used, and work in places such as bars, hotels 
and entertainment where a child may be exposed to immoral 
behavior. The law stipulates that the Ministry of Mineral 
Resources should refuse licenses to minors and revoke the 
licenses of those in the sector using under-age labor, though 
the latter provision has never been used. The 2004 Education 
Act established free and compulsory primary education for all 
citizens, but it was only rhetorically enacted. The country 
still lacks the facilities, teachers and other resources 
necessary to provide free education for all. 
 
¶5. Most NGOs stated that no laws have been specifically 
promulgated on the worst forms of child labor; children 
currently are afforded the same protections under various 
laws as adults. Though prostitution is not illegal in Sierra 
Leone, commercial sexual exploitation of children is unlawful 
under the 2005 Anti-Human Trafficking Act. 
 
¶6. The country has not yet created a list of the worst forms 
of child labor. However, an individual violating the age 
restrictions within the Child Rights Act could face up to 2 
years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to 10 million Leones. 
An individual convicted of trafficking, whether the victim is 
an adult or a child, could face up to 10 years imprisonment 
and/or a fine of up to 30 million Leones. 
 
¶7. Sierra Leone's minimum age for military recruitment is 18. 
 
¶8. Sierra Leone has not ratified ILO Convention 182 or 
developed a list of the worst forms of child labor. 
 
¶9. The Child Rights Act stipulates that district labor 
officers are responsible for initial investigations and 
enforcement of child labor provisions within the formal 
sector. Once sufficient evidence is gathered, cases are 
referred to the police for further investigation and possible 
charges. District Councils are responsible for enforcement in 
the informal sector. They refer cases to the police and/or 
Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender, and Children's Affairs 
Officers, as appropriate. Although the labor officers and 
district councils have limited punitive powers, many local 
community leaders and chiefs have enacted bye-laws to punish 
and deter violations at the local level with varying success. 
Fines are sometimes levied against the worst offenders. The 
Freetown City Council, for example, created a city-wide 
initiative to combat child labor. Police are mandated to find 
and stop children found working in the street during school 
hours and at night. Found children are taken to their 
guardian, who must pay a fine of Le 100,000 ($33.00). 
However, as most parents cannot afford to pay the fine, the 
police usually just issue a warning. 
 
¶10. The government lacks monitors and the resources to 
effectively pursue investigations. There have been no known 
prosecutions for child labor violations; mediation is 
generally used instead at the time of the infraction. The 
government invests very few resources into investigating 
child labor cases. 
 
¶11. There are no inspectors employed specifically to address 
child labor. However, the Ministry of Mineral Resources has 
300-400 monitors in the field and the Ministry of Labor has 7 
 
FREETOWN 00000033  002 OF 003 
 
 
monitors. These monitors do sometimes mediate or intervene in 
child labor cases. The Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender, 
and Children's Affairs has social workers assigned to FSUs at 
the chiefdom level to also address the issue when it arises. 
Despite the lack of focus on child labor issues, most NGOs 
feel that, in the mining areas, government and local monitors 
have been effective in scaring the major mining operators 
into compliance. 
 
¶12. Police and law enforcement do not have a mandate to 
investigate child labor. However, all Family Support Unit 
(FSU) officers will play a role once the Child Rights Act is 
officially implemented. 
 
¶13. There were no official investigations into child labor 
violations, and therefore no resultant convictions. However, 
some local councils and/or civil society organizations have 
conducted investigations that resulted in fines. An accurate 
count of investigations is unavailable, as the process is 
highly informal. 
 
¶14. The Government of Sierra Leone lacks the resources to 
provide effective training for officials charged with 
enforcing child labor laws. However, they have encouraged 
several NGOs to fill the void. The IRC, with support from 
USDOL, has provided training to FSU and other Sierra Leone 
Police officers, the newly created Child Welfare Committees, 
schools administrators, and children on identification and 
intervention strategies. 
 
¶15. The government does not have the resources to financially 
support any initiatives, but they encouraged several NGOs to 
conduct scholarship programs and educational campaigns aimed 
at advocating the rights of children. The government also 
works to coordinate and organize efforts by NGOs. In 
partnership with UNICEF, the government funded a 
sensitization program using community radio stations and 
local languages. 
 
¶16. The Child Rights Act Implementation Plan was finalized in 
2008 and officially launched in November to coincide with the 
International Day of the Child. The plan will begin to be 
implemented next year, though government and NGO 
interlocutors are unsure if the Ministry of Social Welfare, 
Gender, and Children's Affairs will be allocated the 
appropriate budget to do so. The budget implications of the 
Act are unlikely to be built into the national budget until 
at least 2010. 
 
¶17. According to UNICEF and several local NGOs, the 
government does not specify child labor as an issue to be 
addressed in poverty reduction, development or education 
policies and programs. The Ministry of Social Welfare, 
Gender, and Children's Affairs sees child labor as a symptom 
of poverty, and call for increased educational opportunities 
and poverty alleviation programs to lessen the root cause of 
child labor. However, the government does identify child 
labor as an issue to be addressed within the mining sector, 
where the law prohibits the issuance of mining licenses to 
minors and revokes the licenses from those found using child 
labor. NGOs have pushed for more awareness of the issue, but 
the government has shied away from labeling child labor as a 
major issue largely due to its pervasiveness and cultural 
acceptance of child work. 
 
¶18. The Ministry of Mineral Resources, mandated to enforce 
regulatory prohibitions against the worst forms of child 
labor in the diamond mining areas, was minimally effective. 
Monitors did not have the resources to effectively enforce 
anti-child labor policies, but mediated and educated 
offenders when found. Enforcing the law was relatively easy 
in urban areas where registered mining occurred. Monitoring 
was more challenging in rural areas due to lack of 
transportation and a small number of monitors. Child labor is 
most pervasive in the artisanal mining sector or in illicit 
mining operations. 
 
¶19. Most NGOs and government officials have noted a decline 
in child labor overall. The passing of the Child Rights Act 
and various awareness campaigns have increased the 
understanding of child protection issues, and many people are 
afraid of the repercussions they might face for offenses. 
However, awareness has not always resulted in behavior 
change, especially in the more rural areas of the country, 
and many still do not fully understand the concepts within 
the Child Rights Act. Child labor is deeply ingrained in the 
culture and mindset of most Sierra Leoneans, and is not 
likely to disappear quickly. Most child protection advocates 
agree that sensitization activities will only go so far; 
 
FREETOWN 00000033  003 OF 003 
 
 
there needs to be an increased focus on economic development 
and income generating alternatives to make up for the lost 
wages that children bring home. 
 
¶20. The law stipulates that public education is free and 
compulsory until the age of 15. However, most schools require 
students to pay various fees for uniforms, books and other 
supplies, discouraging attendance by those who cannot afford 
them. Due to the high level of poverty and the lack of 
monitors, compulsory education is not enforced. 
 
¶21. Children are involved in mining, sand mining, 
agriculture, fishing, rock breaking, street trading, 
prostitution, and chores around the house. The incidence of 
these practices has not improved in the last year according 
to anecdotal reports, though rock breaking in the mining 
areas has increased due to an increase in the practice of 
blasting. Many children and women are now collecting and 
breaking down the large boulders which are unearthed by 
mining explosives. While boys are usually more involved in 
mining, rock breaking, fishing and agricultural activities, 
and while girls are more involved in prostitution and house 
chores, there is considerable overlap. Child labor in Sierra 
Leone cannot be characterized by gender, ethnic group, 
religion or age. Most children consider themselves willing 
workers to support themselves or their families. 
FEDZER