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GENEVA, 26 May 2022: The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and UNICEF have launched a podcast on the critical role of responsible business conduct in the fight against child labor. Moderated by James Gomme, Director, Equity Action from WBCSD, with guests Alinde Melin, Global Human Rights and Child Rights Lead from IKEA, Fanny Freemont, Executive Director from Responsible Mica Initiative and Chris Kip, Child Rights & Business Specialist from UNICEF.

Highlighting the socioeconomic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on child labor, discussions centered around commitments that companies have made throughout the past year to tackle the issue as well as the various barriers to progress. The podcast also underlines the importance for businesses to focus on prevention as part of meaningful and collaborative approaches that tackle root causes. Other topics covered include the need for business efforts to align with local and national government efforts, and how mandatory human rights due diligence developments can support this.

This comes against the backdrop of the 5th Global Conference and the need for accelerated action to meet the goal of eradicating child labor by 2025, as this podcast aims to bring fresh attention on the role of business in addressing the root causes of child labor through holistic and sustainable approaches. 

This podcast is a follow-up to a joint resource developed by WBCSD and UNICEF titled Tackling Child Labor: An Introduction for Business Leaders which was released in English in December 2021 – during the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour. This report, also available in German, Spanish and French, builds on the latest data and insights emerging from the International Labour Organization (ILO) and UNICEF. It articulates tangible steps business leaders can take to ensure that their companies are leveraging their full potential to support the elimination of child labor in business operations and supply chains. Listen to it on:

iTunes

Spotify

For more information about the guidance, please contact:

WBCSD: James Gomme, Director Equity Action, WBCSD, gomme@wbcsd.org

UNICEF: Chris Kip, Child Rights & Business Specialist, UNICEF, ckip@unicef.org