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Child exploitation

    JOHANNESBURG

    The exploitation of children on farms is a "critical problem", the CEO of the South African Non-Governmental Organisation Coalition (Sangoco), Abie Dithlake said in a statement on Wednesday.

    He said that while there were no accurate statistics available, it was "fair to say that a majority of children of farm workers were denied basic human rights".

    Dithlake said there was an estimated 500,000 children in South Africa who were performing "adult work" and that some might never get the chance to obtain a formal education. Dithlake criticised the government saying that it seemed "reluctant" to classify the work done by children in rural areas as
    child labour.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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