ECLT Foundation engagement with the Government of Tanzania
A baseline assessment of the status of the implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) by the State and business enterprises is essential for creating a level playing field, identifying good practices, and closing legal, policy and implementation gaps. Pursuant to this goal, the ECLT Foundation partnered with the Ministry of State, Prime Minister’s Office – Labour, Youth, Employment and Persons with Disabilities (PMO-LYED) in Tanzania to conduct a baseline assessment of the child labour policies and practices in key agricultural value chains in Tanzania in 2023. Thirty-two major companies operating in the coffee, cotton, sisal, tea and tobacco industries in Tanzania were chosen to participate in the baseline assessment.
Fifteen companies responded to the baseline assessment questionnaire. The ECLT Foundation analysed the data and produced a report with recommendations for action by different sectors. The report was presented to the Government of Tanzania, trade unions and employers’ associations, crop boards, business, and civil society at a Tripartite Forum event. All recommendations were adopted. As a result, PMO-LYED requested ECLT’s technical assistance for their implementation.
In 2024, it is envisaged to finalize a memorandum of understanding between the ECLT Foundation and PMO-LYED. The MOU will aim to facilitate ECLT's provision of both technical expertise and financial support for the implementation of initiatives geared towards strengthening child labor policies and enhancing due diligence practices throughout the agricultural sector in Tanzania.
Collaborative solutions to end child labour in agriculture in Tanzania
ECLT’s vision is a world where is agriculture free of child labour. To achieve this vision requires ECLT Foundation advocacy efforts to be geared towards forging strategic partnerships across agriculture. In 2023, ECLT Foundation made progress towards this goal in Tanzania.
Following the adoption of recommendations of the baseline assessment of child labour policies and practices at the Tripartite Forum in 2023, the ECLT Foundation entered into discussion with three crop boards (i.e., the Tanzania Coffee Board (TCB), the Tanzania Tobacco Board (TTB), and the Tea Board of Tanzania, (TBT)) to formalize engagements through memoranda of understanding. Among other objectives, these agreements will aim at fostering collective efforts and pooling of resources to eliminate child labour and avoid displacement of child labour between crops, while addressing the specific gaps existing in the respective commodities.