WASHINGTON, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today announced nearly $59 million in grants awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor in fiscal year 2009 to combat exploitive child labor in 19 countries. The grants will help rescue more than 85,000 children from exploitive labor, and offer them hope for the future through education and training. The grants will also help improve collection and analysis of child labor data and support for the development and implementation of national action plans to address the problem.

"Protecting children from exploitation and ensuring that their education and healthy development is not compromised is our moral duty," said Secretary of Labor, Hilda L. Solis. "With these new funds, we are furthering our commitment to working with the international community to find effective and lasting solutions to this global challenge."

In Africa, the department awarded $20.4 million in grants to combat exploitive child labor in Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Zambia. Groups such as the International Labor Organization's International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor (ILO-IPEC), the International Rescue Committee, Winrock International and the Forum of African Women Educationalists will implement projects to address exploitive child labor in sectors such as cocoa, coffee, tea and sugar.

The department awarded $15.8 million for projects in Latin America. ILO-IPEC, Catholic Relief Services, Desarrollo y Autogestion and World Learning will implement projects in Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Paraguay. A regional South America project will eliminate forced labor and child labor through improved labor inspections, education and sharing of best practices, including many developed in Brazil.

In Asia, $15.3 million was awarded for projects in India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan and the Philippines. Implementing organizations include ILO-IPEC, Save the Children, Terre Des Hommes, World Education and World Vision. These projects will combat child labor, including in the production of bricks and embroidered textiles, mining, domestic service, plantation agriculture, portering and commercial sexual exploitation.

A final $7.4 million in grants will support policy and research projects. In addition, the department awarded a $500,000 contract to the Center for Reflection, Education, and Action (CREA) to assist the department in identifying and disseminating best practices to eliminate child labor and forced labor in supply chains. CREA will work with a variety of stakeholders to develop a framework for evaluating business practices.

Since 1995, Congress has appropriated approximately $720 million to the Labor Department to support efforts to combat exploitive child labor internationally. As a result of that funding, the department has rescued approximately 1.3 million children from exploitive child labor. For more information, visit the department's Bureau of International Labor Affairs Web pages at http://www.dol.gov/ilab.

Editor's Note: A chart with information about the individual grants follows this news release. U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of International Labor Affairs Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor and Human Trafficking FY 2009 Programming to Combat Exploitive Child Labor Internationally ------------------------------------------------------------------------- AFRICA ------------------------------------------------------------------------- COUNTRY FUNDING PROJECT FOCUS IMPLEMENTER LEVEL ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- West $7,950,000 Towards International Labor Africa-ECOWAS Elimination of Organization's (Direct the Worst Forms International Action in of Child Labor Program on the Cote (WFCL) in West Elimination of d'Ivoire and Africa: Child Labor Ghana) Supporting and (ILO-IPEC) monitoring implementation of national action plans in Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana, the development of a national action plan in Nigeria, and strengthening sub-regional cooperation through ECOWAS ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Kenya $4,600,000 Support for the ILO-IPEC implementation of the Kenyan National Action Plan for the Elimination of the WFCL with special focus on agriculture and older children ------- --------- ---------------- ------------------- Malawi $2,757,621 Project of Support ILO-IPEC to the National Action Plan to combat Child Labor in Malawi. ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Rwanda $4,499,988 Combating the WFCL Winrock in agriculture International in association with Forum of African Women Educationalists and SNV Netherlands Development Organization- Rwanda (SNV) ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Sierra Leone $300,000 Cost increase of International and Liberia project to combat Rescue Committee the WFCL ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Zambia $292,379 Cost increase of ILO-IPEC project to combat the WFCL ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Subtotal AFRICA $20,399,988 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mexico $4,750,000 "Stop Child Labor ILO-IPEC in Agriculture": Contribution to the prevention and elimination of child labor in Mexico, in particular the worst forms in the agricultural sector, with special focus on indigenous children and child labor as a result of internal migration ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Regional $6,750,000 Combating the WFCL ILO-IPEC South through America horizontal (Bolivia, cooperation in Brazil, South America Ecuador, (Brazil, Paraguay) Paraguay, Bolivia and Ecuador) ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Guatemala $4,199,601 Combating the WFCL Catholic Relief and creating Services child labor free zones ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Ecuador $150,000 Cost increase of World Learning in project to combat association with the WFCL among Desarrollo y indigenous Autogestion children ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Subtotal LAC $15,849,601 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ASIA, MIDDLE EAST, EUROPE AND NORTH AFRICA (ASIA/MENA) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Indonesia $5,500,000 Combating the WFCL Save the Children through an area Federation in based approach association with World Education ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Nepal $4,248,224 Combating the World Education in WFCL, with a association with focus on Forced Terres des Hommes Child Labor and Foundation Trafficking of Children into Commercial Sexual Exploitation ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Philippines $4,750,000 Towards a Child ILO-IPEC Labor-Free Philippines: Supporting the "Philippine Program Against Child Labor" in Building on Past Gains and Addressing Challenges ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Indonesia $200,000 Cost increase of ILO-IPEC project to combat the WFCL ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Pakistan $50,000 Cost increase of Save the Children- project to combat UK the WFCL ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Philippines $200,000 Cost increase of World Vision project to combat the WFCL South Asia $350,000 Cost increase for Macro International Regional South Asia (India, Carpets Research Nepal, Pakistan) ------- ---------- ---------------- -------------------Subtotal ASIA/MENA $15,298,224 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- GLOBAL/MULTI-REGION ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Global $3,000,000 Follow-up to the ILO-IPEC resolution on child labor statistics adopted at the 18th ICLS through methodological development and expansion of child labor data collection ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Global $1,500,000 Cooperation to ILO-IPEC Address the WFCL in Agriculture: Support to the International Agricultural Partnership ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Global $2,821,100 Support to the ILO-IPEC Global Action Plan, baseline surveys, evaluations, and project design and development ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Global $125,000 Cost increase for Verite research on forced labor in select countries ------- ---------- ---------------- ------------------- Subtotal Global $7,446,100 ------- ---------- GRAND TOTAL $58,993,913

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