MOL promotes anti-child labour awareness, awards young artists
In recognition of the prominent fight against child labour, the Ministry of Labour hosted an award ceremony for the Child Labour Poster Art Competition.
The event, hosted at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre on Tuesday, featured a vibrant showcase of eight award-winning pieces and other entries.
Under the theme “Let’s Act on Our Commitment: End Child Labour”, the competition saw multiple entries from youths in two age categories, ages 8 to 12 and ages 13 to 16.
The participants were encouraged to “unleash their creativity” and submit one drawing or painting that imaginatively captured the theme, along with a brief 100-word explanation of their piece.
The art pieces and accompanying explanations creatively depicted and strengthened the need for a commitment to abolishing child labour by 2025.
Globally, there are over 160 million child labour cases with a significant presence in the agriculture sector.
As such the competition was launched to raise awareness of this significant threat to the future minds of Guyana and the welfare of the country as a whole.
The competition not only highlighted the graveness of the issue but also praised and brought immense joy to the talented Guyanese youth.
Under 16 category’s first runner-up, Akeela Welch detailed the feelings she felt upon recognition for her ‘inspirational’ piece.
“My heart was beating so fast when they called my name in 2nd place. I was really really happy and nervous but I’d like to say thank you and I appreciate it,” Welch said.
Fourth place Under 12 awardee, Zaneshia Narine also felt overwhelming happiness as her passion for drawing was applauded.
While addressing the ceremony, Minister of Labour Joseph Hamilton noted that the competition is only one example of the government’s initiatives geared at realising the International Labour Organization’s child labour mandate.
“When you look at government policies in a holistic way whether its healthcare…or other welfare programmes every day we do things that are positive so that Guyanese can develop themselves” the Minister explained.
Thus far, the government has distributed cash grants, constructed schools and offered textbooks and meal programmes to lower child labour rates through education promotion.
Moreover, by giving the children a voice through art, the Ministry reinforced the importance of allowing youth the freedom to express themselves and develop their minds.