{"id":13346,"date":"2025-09-30T18:44:05","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T00:44:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/guatecana.com\/regional-campaign-i-take-care-of-you-against-child-labor-concludes-successfully\/"},"modified":"2025-10-14T10:47:43","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T16:47:43","slug":"regional-campaign-i-take-care-of-you-against-child-labor-concludes-successfully","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.guatecana.com\/en\/regional-campaign-i-take-care-of-you-against-child-labor-concludes-successfully\/","title":{"rendered":"Regional Campaign “I Take Care of You!” Against Child Labor Concludes Successfully"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The 2025 edition of the regional campaign against child labor, \u201cI Take Care of You!\u201d, has concluded with the selection of the winning videos from Central American countries. The campaign was promoted by the Central American Sugar Association (AICA) and its member organizations in each country, with technical support from the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Integrarse Network, and FECAGRO.<\/p>\n\n

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Launched in July, the campaign invited sugarcane producers across Central America to conduct workshops, social media and in-person campaigns in communities and cities to raise awareness about saying \u201cNo\u201d to child labor. It also encouraged participation in a video contest, where community members from each country created videos to raise awareness on the issue.<\/p>\n\n

The videos, recorded on cell phones, had to include a positive message for preventing child labor in a creative way. The national winner would receive US$500 and qualify for the regional contest. In Guatemala, 77 entries were received. The national winning video was created by participants in the Mejores Familias program from the Nueva Cajol\u00e1 community in Champerico, Santa Rosa. The overall regional winner was a video from Honduras, submitted by Mrs. Reina Saavedra from the Emanuel School in El Progreso, Yoro.<\/p>\n\n

\u201cAt Guateca\u00f1a, we are committed every day to protecting children, so they can keep dreaming and have a better present and future,\u201d said Andrea Bola\u00f1os, Sustainability Manager at Guateca\u00f1a. She added that Guateca\u00f1a has a monitoring system in place to certify that child labor does not occur.<\/p>\n\n

She also noted that Guatemala\u2019s efforts included visits to 136 communities, 18 workshops with children and youth in schools, and 146 awareness events with community leaders and participants in the Mejores Familias program. These actions reached a total of 3,513 people, including 1,660 women, 160 men, 842 girls, and 851 boys. Additionally, campaign posts on social media reached 127,176 people.<\/p>\n\n

Internally, the campaign was shared through emails and materials for sugar mill employees, along with a monthly sustainability bulletin and other communications.<\/p>\n\n

Now in its fourth year of implementation, the campaign has received international recognition. In 2022, it was awarded the prestigious \u201cLeader of Change\u201d prize by the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), based in Geneva, Switzerland. \u201cThis is a permanent campaign that lives throughout the year at the mills. It has shown us that when we work with purpose, we go far and generate unwavering commitment to children,\u201d said Mario Amador, President of AICA.<\/p>\n\n

Pilar Rodr\u00edguez, representing the ILO, emphasized: \u201cThis initiative not only strengthens families and communities, but also enhances the sector\u2019s competitiveness. The \u2018I Take Care of You!\u2019 campaign shows that it\u2019s possible to join forces around a shared goal. Preventing child labor isn\u2019t just possible\u2014it\u2019s essential for building fairer societies and more sustainable sectors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

The 2025 \u201cI Take Care of You\u201d Child Labor Prevention Campaign is a coordinated effort by the Central American Sugar Association (AICA), together with its member organizations:<\/p>\n\n