Labour Mobility: Financial Benefits Raise Issues Of Child Rights

Suva, Fiji, 11 September 2024 – Labour mobility schemes have attracted a large number of Pacific workers overseas over the last decade. While much is known about the economic benefits of these programmes, until now, less was known about the social and economic costs - including the impact on children.

A study released today by UNICEF looks at the impact of the Pacific labour mobility scheme on children left behind in Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The study warns that there is an urgent need to mitigate the risks of labour mobility to ensure that children left behind have access to the protection and services they need.

The study highlights that despite the financial benefits of remittances from labour mobility schemes, improper management of these funds often leads to insufficient family support and tensions. With children left behind, the study reveals several challenges, particularly concerning the social costs associated with labour mobility, including family breakdowns, exploitation, social isolation, and lack of care for families back home.

According to the study, the Pacific is already witnessing increased rates of family violence, child abuse and neglect in labour migration families. There has been increased demand for services, including shelters, for women and children who have experienced domestic as well as family violence. Social service and child health practitioners interviewed as part of the study commented on malnutrition and sexual violence for children left behind.

Where to from here?

The study strongly recommends that governments prioritize compulsory pre-departure training and checks that include communication strategies, caregiving arrangements, and financial management for families left behind, as well as including extended family and caregivers in the trainings. There are already positive signs that such steps are underway in some countries, which should be supported and expanded across the Pacific.

While training is to be prioritized, remittance gaps need to also be addressed by implementing more reliable transfer systems and establishing community-level monitoring to ensure families receive the intended financial support.

In addition, Pacific Governments and development partners should invest in monitoring and early intervention services for child protection and wellbeing. This includes working with faith-based organizations and the provision of counselling and psychosocial support for children in migrant worker families.

There needs to be a collective effort in developing programmes focusing on empowering women and providing skill development for the elderly, due to the absence of male family members.

Lastly, social protection initiatives need to be made available in an agile manner to respond to family breakdown and in circumstances where caregivers do not receive adequate remittances. Parenting and financial literacy training should be made available to caregivers.

The findings from the study provide UNICEF, together with governments and partners, an evidence base for social protection action plans and policies supporting children who are left behind in the Pacific through the labour mobility schemes.

There is an urgent need to adjust policy and programme settings to reflect the risks for children left behind through labour mobility. Development actors must invest in programmes that protect women and children at community level across the Pacific.

© Scoop Media