About Sahiti Kachroo

Sahiti Kachroo is an advocate-trained criminologist with a background in social work and over a decade of experience in litigation, training, and development. Her core expertise lies in Gender Inclusivity, Gender-Based Violence, Child Rights, Policy Research, and Social Procedural Compliance. She is passionate about creating safe, inclusive systems rooted in rights-based frameworks and community empowerment.

What are the key child protection, remediation, and mitigation measures that Fairtrade NAPP has put in place to support Producer Organizations in preventing child labour?

Fairtrade NAPP is firmly committed to protecting children's rights to safety, development, and well-being. Through its comprehensive Policy and Procedures for Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults, Fairtrade NAPP has institutionalized a robust system that prioritizes child protection and actively works toward eliminating child and forced labour, including related abuse and exploitation.

The policy is grounded in global human rights instruments, including the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and ILO Conventions. It outlines the obligations of all members to uphold children's rights and provides a structured framework for identifying and mitigating risks. Fairtrade also classifies child labour as a Tier-1 risk and integrates these standards across its operations, training, and monitoring systems.

How does NAPP’s reporting mechanism work—from identifying cases to ensuring resolution—with transparency and accountability?

Fairtrade NAPP employs a multi-layered, transparent, and confidential reporting mechanism to address any instance of child labour:

Duty to Report: All staff are obligated to report suspected or confirmed cases of child labour.

Safe and Respectful Reporting: Reporters must report in a truthful, comprehensive and respectful manner and employ their best efforts to ensure that by the mere form and content of their report no further harm to the person alleged to be in harm and strictly follow the procedures outlined in the policy.

Confidentiality: Protecting the privacy of affected individuals is paramount. All personal data is handled in compliance with strict applicable data protection laws and internal policies.

Responsible Transparency: This is a key principle for organisations that respect human rights. Transparency regarding the types and conditions of egregious human rights violations reported and remediation actions taken ensures accountability. However, transparency must be practiced in combination with confidentiality, rights to privacy, informed consent, subject to a strict “need to know and data minimization approach, and ‘do no further harm’ principles. 

Using evidence-based approaches: Carrying out qualitative and quantitative research and data collection to ensure that practical interventions are context-specific and effective.

What initiatives does Fairtrade NAPP run at the grassroots level to educate farmers, workers, and communities about child labour risks and rights? Why is a proactive approach essential?

Fairtrade NAPP believes prevention is the most powerful tool against child labour. Tackling root causes such as poverty and lack of education is central to our approach. This approach is more effective and sustainable, as it fosters strong understanding, agency, and ownership amongst members and workers for the issue.

This results in long-term resilience within communities and protects children's development by ensuring their well-being from the outset. Furthermore, proactive measures allow members to drive lasting change and build truly ethical supply chains, ultimately leading to greater economic stability for families and better future and opportunities for children.

Recognizing that Child Labour is a complex multi-dimensional issue rooted in poverty and lack of access to education, Fairtrade NAPP is deeply committed to combating it. Employing a multi-faceted approach at the grassroots level to educate farmers, workers, and farm managements about child labour risks and rights is a key focus of our proactive measures.

Through community-led initiatives, we work to instill awareness, responsibility, and resilience among farmers, workers, and producer organisations.

Some key initiatives include:

• Support for Compliance with Fairtrade Standards. Fairtrade NAPP plays a crucial role in supporting producer organizations to understand and comply with Fairtrade's rigorous standards, which strictly prohibit child labour and hazardous work for children. This support ensures them to establish mechanisms for preventing child labour in their supply chains.
• Tailored Capacity-Building Programs. Capacity-building programs tailored to the specific socio-cultural contexts and unique needs of the local communities across the Asia Pacific region. These programs build the capacities of farmers, workers, and management in understanding the harmful effects of child labour and the importance of child rights.
• Education-Focused Program Development. Developing programs that focus on creating pathways for children to receive an education instead of working, building long-term resilience, sustainability, and ethical practices.
• Advocacy and Community Sensitisation. Advocacy efforts that promote ethical consumerism and showcase community-led success stories to support child-friendly supply chains. Community sensitisation events, often in collaboration with local stakeholders like education and social welfare departments, are also conducted.
• Investment Through Fairtrade Premium. Through the Fairtrade Premium, an additional sum paid to producer organizations, communities can collectively decide to invest in projects that address the root causes of child labour. This often includes building schools, providing scholarships, distributing school supplies, and improving educational infrastructure, making it easier for children to attend school.

Can you share a specific Fairtrade NAPP project that addresses child labour and promotes a more responsible supply chain?

One notable initiative is the Youth-Inclusive Community-Based Monitoring and Remediation (YICBMR) project. It involves training and empowering the youth within producer communities to identify, monitor, and report instances of child labour and other labour rights violations. By involving young people, it not only strengthens local monitoring systems but also builds future leaders who are aware of ethical standards and can drive change.

In your view, what are the essential components of a sustainable supply chain that prioritizes child protection?

A sustainable supply chain for child protection hinges on several key components.

• Strong Policies and Due Diligence: Clear zero-tolerance policies and compliance mechanisms.
• Transparency and Traceability: Mapping the supply chain to identify and address issues early.
• Child-Centric Remediation: Systems that put the well-being of children at the forefront and provides safe grievance mechanisms.
• Root Cause Mitigation: Addressing root causes is fundamental. This includes poverty alleviation through improved incomes and fair wages, investment in education, etc, alongside community empowerment.
• Collaboration and Capacity Building: Finally, collaboration and capacity building are necessary through multi-stakeholder partnerships, and a commitment to continuous improvement to adapt strategies as needed.

Fairtrade NAPP reaffirms its unwavering commitment to child protection—not just through policy, but through meaningful, community-led action. On this World Day Against Child Labour, we stand together to ensure every child has the right to a safe, empowered, and hopeful future.