LAHORE, Sept 10: A total of 102 children of brick kiln workers have been studying in four literacy schools set up by the ILO under a US State Department funded programme `Strengthening Law Enforcement Responses and Action against Internal Trafficking and Bonded Labour`.

The non-formal schools have been set up at Nankana Bricks, Abu Sulman Bricks, Haider Bricks and Rana Sjawal Bricks in Nankana Sahib district as a pilot project with the collaboration of the city district government and local body Association of Networl< for Community Empowerment (ANCE) and handed over to the Punjab Literacy Department, said a release on Tuesday.

Devolution of labour department as a result of 18th Amendment had necessitated capacity building of provinces and districts to take up the responsibility to improve the condition of working class.

The ILO also conducted health screening of 302 brick kiln labourers, prepared social security cards of 102 workers, birth certificate of 570 children and CNIC of 637 kiln workers.

Registration, health screening and social security cards have started improving the living standard of the brick kiln workers and their families.

Brick kiln labourer David Masih of Nankana Sahib has been the first worker who got Rs100,000 cheque from the Punjab Workers Welfare Board for the wedding of his daughter.

The programme is being run under the supervision of ILO National Project Coordinator Muhammad Benyameen and District Labour Officer Imran Haider Tipu through Raja Abbas Ali, president of the Association of Network for Community Empowerment.