Child Labour Remediation
The FCA is working with local cooperatives and civil society to build a scalable child labour referral system. The Child Rights Action Hub DRC is a child labour prevention and remediation network creating long term impact in the DRC. It was set up in 2022 by The Centre for Child Rights and Business with support from the FCA.
ASM and child labour
At the heart of the discussion around ASM cobalt stands the issue of child labour – brought to the public’s attention by The Centre and Save the Children’s 2021 report: Opportunities for Businesses to promote Child Rights in Cobalt ASM 2021. With the copper-cobalt belt characterised by widespread poverty, 44% of children find themselves working in order to contribute to household incomes or help cover school fees for both themselves and their siblings.
More recently, in 2024, The Centre conducted an in-depth household study across 907 households in a mining-dependent area where the population has grown several-fold since operations begun. With few viable livelihoods outside of mining, the study found that 19% of children were engaged in mining-related work, and 66% of those worked daily. Parents are aware these conditions are unsafe; they want their children in school and aspire to better futures beyond mining. Poverty, limited access to quality education, and a lack of meaningful after-school activities remain key drivers of child labour in this context.
Working towards child labour free artisanal mining operations
To prevent children from working inside artisanal cobalt mines and communities, the FCA works with local cooperatives and civil society to establish effective controls and monitoring mechanisms to identify cases of child labour and prevent children from working inside their operations.
In accordance with the OECD Due Diligence Guidance and children’s rights experts, we are, however, not promoting a mere ban of child labour from artisanal sites but advocate instead for the full remediation of child labour cases, placing the child’s physical and mental welfare at the centre of our efforts.
To prevent and mitigate the occurrence of child labour inside the artisanal mining sector in the long term, we need to address its root cause: widespread poverty. Consequently, the FCA focuses on 1) improving working conditions in artisanal mine sites and 2) promoting the economic diversification of the region, both with the goal of increasing household incomes. Understanding that next to economic development, a cultural change needs to occur, the FCA began supporting a long-term campaign to remediate child labour on mine sites and in the mining communities around them.
Supporting Children in Cobalt Mining Communities: A Collaborative Effort
At the heart of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s cobalt-rich Kolwezi area, children face the harrowing realities of working in artisanal mines. The Child Rights Action Hub DRC (Action Hub), developed and implemented by The Centre for Child Rights with support from the Fair Cobalt Alliance (FCA), is making impactful strides to protect, support and remediate these children.
The Action Hub provides a lifeline for children and their families through a holistic approach—combining access to education, healthcare and psychosocial support with living stipends that reduce the need to return to work. It also strengthens prevention through case management and long-term remediation, while connecting youth to apprenticeship opportunities, supporting siblings with education support, and helping build a safer, more secure future. The programme is already changing lives, helping children like Jean*, who faced unimaginable hardships in the mines, reintegrate into school and begin healing.
Established in 2022 as a local not-for-profit association, the Action Hub DRC addresses child labour risks in ASM and supports a just transition in the extraction of critical minerals. The Action Hub supports companies to identify, prevent and address child labour risks in line with the OECD Due Diligence Cycle and emerging regulatory expectations, including the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). Today, the Action Hub is directly supported by over two dozen companies and partners, in addition to small-scale funding contributions from FCA members as part of their FCA membership fee contributions.
Explore how The Centre for Child Rights and Business and its partners are advancing practical, sustainable solutions to address child labour and support vulnerable children. Through this work, companies are better equipped to identify, prevent and remediate risks in line with the OECD Due Diligence Cycle and evolving regulatory expectations.
Read more about the Child Rights Action Hub DRC and how businesses can play a role in protecting children’s rights in mining communities here.
Building a scalable and replicable child labour remediation mechanism
Led by FCA member The Centre for Child Rights and Business, we focus on building the capacity of local partner civil society organisations to co-develop and manage an integrated child labour remediation mechanism. This case-management system takes the individual circumstances of the child in question into account, enabling access to primary and secondary education as well as medical and psychological support. Understanding that youth, 15 years and older, are most likely to seek employment inside the mines, the FCA is aiming to increasingly provide access to vocational training, internships and job opportunities.
Enhancing school enrollment into primary and secondary education.
School Electrification Project
The Signify Foundation project with the objective to install solar panels and distribute solar libraries at schools, one marketplace and one soccer field in the Kolwezi neighbourhoods of Kasulu and Kapata, was kicked-off late 2020. In collaboration with the provincial minister of Energy, the Mayor of Kolwezi and the Division of Education, 10 public schools, concerning 6000 pupils were selected and approached for the project. After putting significant effort into discussing with local authorities, gathering information, and sorting through applications, we have officially selected the schools that will receive the panels. After some delays, equipment is currently being shipped to locations. The school electrification project is for the benefit of teachers, pupils and their families, primary and secondary schools Kasulu and Kapata.
“Witnessing the ongoing and profound suffering of children in the cobalt mining communities was a heartbreaking reality to accept. It is essential that we do not look away but instead find concrete ways to work with all partners from businesses, the government, and civil society to improve the lives of children in cobalt-sourcing communities. Right now, not enough is being done to support the children in the mining communities. The Child Labour Remediation Hub we are initiating with the support of FCA marks a small and humble, but hopefully crucial step towards building a better and stronger support system for children in the Kolwezi area.”