Nine out of every ten children aged between 1 and 14 years in Bangladesh face physical punishment or psychological abuse, often inflicted by parents, teachers or guardians, according to a report presented at a national seminar in the capital on Monday.
Citing data from UNICEF, the report also revealed that nearly 7 percent of children aged between 5 to17 are engaged in child labour, many in hazardous environments, said the speakers at a seminar titled ‘Community-Based Child Protection Mechanism for the Children of Garment Workers in Bangladesh’ held at a hotel in the capital.
Terre des Hommes Netherlands (TDH-NL) and Breaking the Silence (BTS) and Village Education Resource Centre (VERC) jointly organised the seminar.
Among the most vulnerable are the children of garment workers.
Nurul Kabir, programme coordinator of TDH-NL, presented the report, highlighting that millions of children in the country are deprived of their right to identity.
“Bangladesh has 102 child courts, over 23,000 cases involving children are still pending. Compared to last year, abuse against girl children has increased by 75 percent, and in the first seven months of 2025 alone, 306 children were victims of violence,” he said.
Kabir also raised concerns about the growing risks posed by the internet.
While online platforms provide children and adolescents with access to education and information, easy access to pornography and inappropriate content is having negative impacts on their mental and social development, he added.
The digital space, he said, is increasingly a source of temptation, harassment and danger, potentially causing long-term harm to young minds.
He further emphasised that children of garment workers face multiple vulnerabilities, as most are not covered by any formal or community-based child protection systems.
These children are often subjected to abuse, exploitation, and hazardous labour, are denied education, and may even be exposed to criminal activities such as theft, drug use, and sexual abuse, he said.
Government services for these children remain inadequate and local institutions, both public and private, often fail to prioritise their needs, leaving them deprived of basic rights, he observed.
The seminar concluded with several key recommendations including establishing a child-friendly protection framework for children in garment communities, creating specialised child protection units within law enforcement agencies, ensuring that rape cases are adjudicated within 90 days, and developing an integrated national child protection system.
Updates to laws and policies were also recommended to ensure a child-friendly justice system.
