Evaluation Learnings Search

Learning Description

If a systems-building project is headquartered outside the capital, a permanent staff member at national level is still needed. However, this does not need to be the Project Director but should be a well-recognized specialist.

Learning Description

The development of the awareness-raising song and short video sketch about child labor in cobalt mining, using known musicians and actors, is a promising practice. It can be promoted and shared in the media, in communities, and during capacity strengthening workshops and meetings. The content and style are culturally very appropriate to the local context. The catchy song and sketch style can be replicated and scaled up in other settings in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Learning Description

Conducting a substantial number of well targeted research studies is useful. Research is often seen as peripheral to projects or serving to measure progress. The studies supported by this project approach the subject of child labor in the cobalt mining value chain from different angles and, when linked together, can inform the ways forward. They provide a good basis for understanding the local realities, mapping actors, and developing strategies, suitable advocacy and communications methods. Additional research in related subjects would still be useful, while some research will need to be updated on a regular basis. In particular, this applies in the case of mapping of mining locations and actors working on the elimination of child labor in the cobalt supply chain.

Learning Description

Community participation is a fundamental component of the Secondary Tutorial program. The Semilla Project demonstrated the importance of engaging rural and indigenous organizations from the design stage and then progressively building their capacities to IMPAQ International, LLC Semilla Final Evaluation Report actively participate as liaisons who facilitate communication between MINEDU authorities and ST communities.

Learning Description

Effectively enforcing child labor laws in rural agricultural areas requires thinking “out of the box” from the common labor inspection/enforcement model. The Child Labor Free Seal model offers an effective alternative for agricultural producers to self-regulate the presence of child labor in rural agricultural zones that otherwise might not be regulated by the labor inspectorate.

Learning Description

Recognition as part of a national strategy was fundamental to Semilla’s success: Semilla’s recognition as a pilot project under the National Strategy for the Prevention and Eradication of Child Labor (ENPETI) was instrumental in achieving its public policy goals. Semilla was essentially an official laboratory of the State for testing interventions that could later be integrated into national public policy for the prevention and eradication of child labor.

Learning Description

Sustainability at the core of project design: It is important to integrate sustainability into all aspects of a project design. Semilla experienced an extraordinary level of success because it had the goal of long-term maintenance of changes at the very core of its comprehensive project design.

Learning Description

A multi-sectoral approach leads to comprehensive and effective public policy changes: Child labor concerns are often seen as the responsibility of the Ministry of Labor. It is important, however, to involve government sectors that have not traditionally participated in efforts to prevent and eradicate child labor, yet have the potential to play an important role. By implementing a multi-sectoral approach, comprehensive and effective public policies can be established among national, regional and local government stakeholders.

Learning Description

High rates of turnover create gaps in information: Frequent changes in staffing among government ministry officials should be expected in many developing countries. It is therefore critical to establish technical advisory bodies that can facilitate the transition to new counterparts and lessen the knowledge gap regarding project objectives and results to date.

Learning Description

A holistic approach and strong emphasis on working with local government to address exploitive child labor and associated child trafficking are useful to increase impact and the potential for sustainability.