On 28 June, the Observatory for the Prevention of Health Damage from Regular and Irregular Child Labour was set up in Rome (UNICEF's national headquarters), with the presence, among others, of Carmela Pace, president of UNICEF Italy, and Domenico Della Porta, extraordinary professor of occupational medicine and coordinator of the Observatory.

"In Italy – declared Carmela Pace – there is a poor perception of child labour and the risks associated with its exploitation, a high level of misinformation and underestimation of an issue that can create enormous harm to all children involved. This is why, as the Italian Committee for UNICEF, we have launched today the establishment of an Observatory for the prevention of health damages caused by child labour, both regular and irregular, starting from the analysis of the damage caused to the children's health, due to exposure to work-related risks and how to identify these risks and dangers in the workplace".

The following have so far joined the Observatory: the Italian Association of Paediatric Hospitals, the Foundation of Labour Consultant Studies and the Laboratory of "Public Health for the Analysis of Community Health Needs" at the University of Salerno. The International Labour Organisation was also invited to participate in the Observatory's work.

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