Projects
Our international grants support projects to combat some of the most abusive labor practices, including the use of child labor, forced labor, and human trafficking in global supply chains. ILAB-funded projects also promote trade partners’ compliance with the labor requirements of U.S. trade agreements and preference programs – helping to ensure a fair global playing field for workers in the United States and around the world.
Building Governments’ Capacity
ILAB works with governments to make them more effective in combating labor abuses, through efforts in areas such as data collection, monitoring, and enforcement. As a direct result of ILAB initiatives:
- More than 80 countries have strengthened their monitoring and enforcement of laws, regulations, policies, and programs to combat child labor, forced labor and human trafficking;
- More than 60,000 labor inspectors and law enforcement officials have been trained to more effectively enforce child labor, forced labor, and human trafficking laws and regulations; and
- Governments have adopted best practices to assist victims of child labor and forced labor. For example, ILAB worked in partnership with the Government of Paraguay to develop and pilot an electronic system that registers adolescent workers to ensure they are protected under the law and assist with enforcement of labor laws.
Assistance for Vulnerable Children and Families
ILAB projects adopt a holistic approach to promote sustainable efforts that address child labor’s underlying causes, including poverty and lack of access to education. Project strategies include linking vulnerable groups to existing government social programs, providing children with quality education or afterschool services, helping families improve their livelihoods to meet basic needs without relying on child labor, and raising awareness about risks of trafficking so that adults don’t end up in situations of forced labor.
ILAB at the Forefront of Rigorous Evaluation Research
ILAB continues to invest in impact evaluations of innovative interventions to broaden the global knowledge base on effective strategies for combating child labor and forced labor. ILAB’s randomized controlled trials, the gold standard for impact evaluations, allow governments and policymakers to make evidence-informed decisions about programs that affect child laborers and their families.
Find out what ILAB projects are doing in response to COVID-19.
Title | Amount | Grantee | Start Sort ascending | End |
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From Research to Action (R2A)The Research to Action (R2A) Project applies rigorous research methods in an effort to accelerate global action against child labor and forced labor. The project seeks to help policymakers and practitioners access relevant research and evaluation tools, identifies key knowledge gaps, and facilitates the development of a global research agenda to guide new policy-relevant research efforts. To that end, the project also seeks to broaden and diversify the researcher pool, increasing both the number and capacity of researchers working to shed light on these abusive labor practices. |
$3,360,000 | International Labor Organization (ILO) | 08/03/2018 | 08/02/2022 |
Pilares: Building the Capacity of Civil Society to Combat Child Labor and Improve Working Conditions in ColombiaThis project will build the capacity of civil society organizations to more effectively detect and combat child labor and unacceptable working conditions in artisanal and small-scale mines in Colombia. It will form networks of civil society organizations and empower local communities to build a grassroots movement to improve working conditions and reduce the risk that children will be used in this harmful work. |
$2,500,000 | PACT | 12/15/2017 | 12/15/2023 |
CLIMBThe Child Labor Improvements in Bangladesh (CLIMB) project will build the capacity of civil society to more effectively detect and combat forced child labor and other labor abuses in the dried fish sector in Bangladesh. It will leverage partnerships with academic and community based organizations to build a grassroots movement, empower vulnerable families, connect survivors to services and reduce the risk that children will be forced into this harmful work. |
$2,250,000 | Winrock International | 12/15/2017 | 05/31/2023 |
Addressing Child Labor and Forced Labor in the Coffee Supply Chain in HondurasThis project will help businesses establish systems to prevent, detect and eliminate child labor and other forms of labor exploitation from their supply chains, and will assemble a powerful coalition of coffee buyers to collectively incentivize compliance among suppliers. In doing so, the project will help promote supply chains free of exploitative labor and a fair playing field for workers in the U.S. and around the world. |
$2,000,000 | International Labor Organization (ILO) | 12/15/2017 | 03/31/2022 |
Promoting Better Understanding of Indicators to Address Forced Labor and Labor Trafficking in PeruThis project will help the Peruvian government and other labor stakeholders build their capacity to prevent, detect and eliminate forced labor and labor trafficking from workplaces in Peru. By bringing together the Ministry of Labor, regional and local governments, law enforcement officials and the judiciary branch, the project will encourage better enforcement through consultation and consensus-building. |
$2,000,000 | Capital Humano y Social Alternativo (CHS) | 12/08/2017 | 12/07/2023 |
Colombia AvanzaColombia Avanza will build the capacity of civil society to more effectively combat child labor and other labor abuses in Colombia’s coffee sector. By raising awareness and connecting survivors of labor exploitation to services in two of the largest coffee-producing areas of Colombia, the project helps promote supply chains free of exploitative labor and a fair playing field for workers in the U.S. and around the world. |
$2,300,000 | Partners of the Americas | 12/08/2017 | 12/31/2023 |
Project to Reduce Child Labor and Improve Working Conditions in Agriculture in the Dominican RepublicThis project will support the Dominican government’s efforts to combat child labor and strengthen labor law enforcement while helping businesses prevent, detect and eliminate labor abuses in the agriculture sector. Building off the commitment of the Ministry of Labor and of a growing number of businesses, the project will help promote supply chains free of exploitative labor and a fair playing field for workers in the U.S. and around the world. |
$5,000,000 | International Labor Organization (ILO) | 12/08/2017 | 12/31/2022 |
Implementing a Culture of Labor Compliance in Costa Rica's Agricultural Export SectorThis project will improve enforcement of minimum wage, hours of work and occupational safety and health laws in the agricultural export sector in Costa Rica. By strengthening legal and administrative mechanisms of enforcement while engaging employers and workers to improve compliance in the workplace, the project will help promote supply chains free of exploitative labor and a fair playing field for workers in the U.S. and around the world. |
$2,000,000 | Foundation for Peace and Democracy (FUNPADEM) | 12/01/2017 | 11/30/2023 |
Combating Forced Labor and Labor Trafficking of Adults and Children in Ghana and Côte d’IvoireThis project will build the capacity of the government and businesses to expand and better coordinate ongoing labor trafficking enforcement efforts in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. By putting the right tools in the hands of labor inspectors, business owners, organizations providing social services and workers, the project will help promote supply chains free of exploitative labor and a fair playing field for workers in the United States around the world. |
$3,490,318 | Verité | 12/01/2017 | 12/07/2023 |
RICHESThe RICHES project aims to integrate the issues of child labor alleviation and acceptable conditions of work into women’s economic empowerment initiatives. By putting a new toolkit directly in the hands of policy makers and service providers who work with women entrepreneurs, RICHES seeks to ensure women-led enterprises can improve livelihoods responsibly without resorting to child labor or other harmful labor practices. |
$1,634,000 | The Grameen Foundation | 12/01/2017 | 05/31/2023 |