Combating Exploitive Child Labor through Education in Madagascar (Kilonga)

Pact implemented the U.S. Department of Labor-funded Combating Exploitive Child Labor through Education in Madagascar (2008 – 2012) project, locally referred to as “Kilonga,” which means “children” in Malagasy. The goal of the project was to withdraw children working in the worst forms of child labor (WFCL) in Madagascar and prevent the adoption of children into working in WFCL, by providing educational services and income-generating activities to families, and through awareness-raising activities. Under this project, Pact helped establish 44 Local Committees to Combat Child Labor across its seven implementation regions, withdrew or prevented 9,036 children from the WFCL, and assisted them to return to school and provided comprehensive support, which included access to education, healthcare, psychosocial support, mentoring, and improved household income, particularly through Pact’s community banking WORTH program. These achievements demonstrate Pact’s context-sensitive project design and strategy, which has enabled the project to surpass objectives despite a challenging socio-economic and political environment.