Akçakoca Social Support Centre has added a new module to its training program to raise awareness on gender equality in early childhood stage within the scope of “Integrated Model for the Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour in Seasonal Agriculture in Hazelnut Harvesting in Turkey Project” . Module aims to dispose of prejudices on gender roles. It is implemented by Foundation for the Support of Women’s Work (FSWW) and supported by Progıda.


FSWW Preschool Education Coordinator Şükran Aytulun states that experts with the financial support of EU prepared the program and it is being implemented by FSWW for the last 2 years. “ Our objective with the training program is to prove that anyone can do any work depending on the skills not gender. We start with an exercise to enable children to understand that emotions do not have gender and follow up with the handcraft workshop where we change the gender roles on so called men work and women work. We also touch base to colour and toy choices made by gender roles. We have reached 161 children in 9 villages where seasonal agriculture workers settle including the social support centre.” said Aytulun.

Şükran Aytulun, KEDV

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The overall objective of this project is to contribute elimination of worst forms of child labour (WFCL) in seasonal agriculture in line with the Turkish Government’s strategy drawn by the National Employment Strategy 2014-2023. A model has been developed through the Dutch Government and CAOBISCO* funded “Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labour in Seasonal Commercial Agriculture in Hazelnut Harvesting in Ordu” project 2013 and 2014. The project aims contributing to the withdrawal of children from work and prevention of at-risk children to be engaged in seasonal hazelnut agriculture. It will bring added value through the replication of the strategic intervention model in the different regions and contribute to a sustainable child labour monitoring mechanism in seasonal agriculture. The project will step up efforts to attain the goal of contributing to the policy making and efficient implementation on the elimination of WFCL in seasonal agriculture.

*Contributing members of CAOBISCO to the ILO PPP Project: Ferrero, Nestlé, August Storck KG, Barry Callebaut, Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG, Mars incorporated, Chocosuisse, NATRA S.A., Griesson - de Beukelaer GmbH & Co., Cémoi chocolatier, Gebr. Jancke GmbH, Neuhaus NV, Stollwerck GmbH, Koenig Backmittel GmbH