Political will creates new ground for indigenous peoples’ rights

On a recent mission to the Republic of Congo, Morse Flores, ILO staff member and officer for the UN Indigenous Peoples Partnership (UNIPP) recorded his impressions of a joint UN project to help raise awareness of indigenous peoples’ rights. The purpose of Morse’s mission was to meet with key partners of UNIPP and see first hand the reality on the ground with a view to developing the joint UN project further. In 2011, the government of the Republic of Congo adopted Law No. 5-2011 on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Indigenous Populations, becoming the first African country to adopt a specific law on indigenous peoples. Continue reading

‘I want to be President’ – Malawi’s little voices against child labour

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Programme and Operations Officer for eastern and southern Africa at the ILO’s International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC)

When you talk of Malawi, many people think: “Oh, yes the country where Madonna adopted two children.”

The south-eastern African country also made the news in April 2012 when Joyce Banda took office as president, becoming the second woman to lead a country in Africa.

To me, Malawi is a place of hope and the home of a frail 10-year-old girl with big black eyes with the stern look of a child who has grown up too quickly. I don’t even know her name but she made a huge impression on me.

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