Child Labor and Forced Labor Reports

South Africa

South Africa
2021 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor:

Moderate Advancement

In 2021, South Africa made moderate advancement in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labor. South Africa added an additional 484 labor inspectors, bringing its labor inspectorate staffing into alignment with International Labor Organization technical advice. In addition, Statistics South Africa published the results of its Survey of Activities of Young People, a household-level survey on children's economic activities, including child labor. Finally, South Africa began criminal prosecution of seven Chinese nationals who stand accused of forced child labor, human trafficking, and other related crimes. However, children in South Africa are subjected to the worst forms of child labor, including in commercial sexual exploitation, sometimes as a result of human trafficking, forced begging, and use in illicit activities. Social programs are not sufficient to address the scope of child labor, and free basic education is not guaranteed by law.

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