The children attending the Second Children's World Congress on Child Labour and Education have tales to tell, and these stories tell us much about the problems faced by children in the world, today. They also show the hope of brighter futures.

Ajay Kumar, India
Ajay Kumar, 12, is the elected head of National Bal Mitra Mahapanchayat Executive Committee. Spending his early childhood as a slave labourer with the high caste landlord, later rescued by BBA and trained in the organisation's rehabilitation center, Bal Ashram, the firebird Ajay joined hands with the Bal Mitra Gram activists in the formation of Bal Mitra Gram, Child Friendly Village.

Today he symbolises the potential of children and youth in the change making. He alongwith his friends knocked each single door of the village Ramchandranagar in Rajasthan, India and succeeded in motivating a whole lot of parents particularly the mothers and created a sense of pride for education.

Amar Lal, India
Amar Lal Banjara is one among 6 brothers and sisters. He and his family were debt labourers bonded to a stone quarry contractor in Rajasthan, India. Amar Lal at the tender age of 6 was assigned the responsibility of looking after his younger siblings and later went on to assist his father in breaking stones, this task had to be done manually and was a backbreaking activity. Amarlal had to work with instruments that would have weighed as much as he did. Such extreme circumstances made education next to impossible for this young boy.

Initially Amar Lal's father would not consider sending his children to school due to his financial situation but after a lot of convincing by the BBA activists he finally relented, and so today Amar Lal and his brother Puran are attending formal schools.

Apart from this he is also part of the cultural team that performs folk theatre to generate awareness on social issues including child labour. He has transformed into an exuberant, confident and articulate boy with a passion to tackle the issue of child labour.

Alemtsehay Haile Wage, Ehtiopia
Alemtshay Haile is currently 16 years old. She was 9 years old when she first came to Addis Ababa. She was hired as domestic worker. She was exposed to hard labour and even physically abused. She was then rescued with the help of some neighbours and the police, and Alemtsehay was brought to OPRIFS, a local Child Rights organisation. After a long search, OPRIFS was able to contact her aunt in Selale. But her aunt was not able to raise Alemtshay by herself. So, Alemtshay aunt took her to a relative, where she is living now.

After undergoing intensive counselling at the child rights organisation, she has started attending school. Currently she is in 6th grade at the local school and takes a keen interest in child labour and works in the community towards elimination of child labour. Though Alemtsehay is doing well with her education she says that her home environment is not suitable. Her guardian is an old lady who is not interested in her education. The old lady expects Alemtsehay to do the housework after she comes from school.

Alireza Shams Lahidjani, Iran
Alireza is 15 years old. Alireza & his friends establish an association named "Iranian Association Advocating UN"(UNICHA). Within a year of its establishment, they had held many conferences and speeches. In 2000 they had organise a peace camp and raised money for African children and send it to the Secretary General of UN.

Alireza participated in United Nation's General Assembly Special Session on Children Rights. Alireza participated in the first Children's World Congress on Child Labour in Florence in 2004 and was selected as the Children's Reference Group member.

Bhagi Ram Chowdhary, Nepal
Bhagi Ram Chaudhary is 15 years and studying in class 8. Bhagi Ram's father Dubar Das Chaudhary was Kamaiya (bonded-labour). Bhagi Ram was a domestic labourer since the age of 5, at the local landlords place. He used to graze cows, clean utensils, cut grass and other do household works at his owner's house from early morning till dark night.

Bhagi Ram's family is belongs to an indigenous ethnic group "Tharu" of Nepal. This tribe is most underprivileged, illiterate and poverty ridden section of Nepalese society. Kamaiya or bonded labourers are prevalent among this tribe in Nepal. Bhagi Ram aims to work for the betterment of his society and abolition of child labour. According to Bhagi Ram, it needs education to abolish such system and remove the gap between rich and poor people from society totally.

Emily Oliver, USA
Emily Oliver is 15 years old. She lives in Newtown, Connecticut in the United States. She is a student activist against child labour. After researching child labour extensively for a class on political instability in Latin America, a fellow student activist and Emily decided to start a discussion/action group at her school called A Global Voice. The idea behind A Global Voice is to not only promote awareness on humanitarian issues, (specifically child labour and its ramifications) and talk about long term international political and social strategies, but also to raise money and organize with other groups to ease the plight of the current and former laborers.

Emily says she wants to take part in the Children's World Congress “because I have to fight this. My little sister is no different from a child laborer anywhere in the world, but if it were her in a sweatshop or on a plantation, I would walk through fire to get her out of harms way… I have to fight it, because I know so desperately that it is wrong but more importantly, I know it can be stopped. It can be stopped, but only with action. I have to act and act now because only in the present do we have the ability to affect change.” Emily is currently enrolled and is attending secondary school.

Habibullah, Pakistan
Habibullah is 15 years old. He worked as a camel jockey in Dubai for 6 years. Trafficked from Pakistan to UAE by unscrupulous agents, he spent 6 years of his childhood strapped on the back of a camel in the camel racing game. Today Habibullah is studying in 7th grade.

Jenifer Chavarría Jiménez, Costa Rica
Jenifer is 15 years old. She works selling fruits and vegetables in Community markets to supplement her family's meagre household income. She sold pencil and pens in the street of Costa Rican capital city of San Jose and she also made and sold cards.

Withdrawn for work she is now a student of 5th grade at School Juan Enrique Pestalozzi.

Kifayat Ullah, Pakistan
Kifayat Ullah is 15 years old. He used to work as a tailor with his father to support his family. He has six brothers who are still working with their father and not going to school.

Kifayat after being withdrawn from work is now studying in Pakistan Baitul Maals School in 5th Class. He started his schooloing in December 2002, and was pre-exempted from the primary classes. Kifayat is keen in studies and enjoys extracurricular activities.

Mesfin Mulle Kelbo, Ethiopia
Mesfin Mule is a 16 years old working child from a weaver household. Due to meager income the family makes out of the traditional weaving, Mesfin and his brothers were forced to supplement the family income toiling day and night in weaving. The working environment also affected Mesfin with serious physical damages. As the loom was installed in a big hole under the mud floor in the room, it was difficult working for him leading to physical deformity and eye problem. Today, he is one of the child leaders in the child participation structure in his community.

Mohamed Camara, Guinea Marie Madeleine Kolie, Guinea

Pauline Vachaudez, Belgium Laura Hernán Sánchez, Spain

Mirka Pozas Reintjes, Spain Vong Rotana, Cambodia

Romaric Zobo, Cameroon Gbadoe Akoko, Togo

Deborah T. Mbelu, Congo Christelle Mujanyi, Congo

Alemtsehay Haile Wage, Ethiopia Mesfin Mulle Kelbo, Ethiopia

Wakama Kimsa, Ethiopia Bhagi Ram chaudhari, Nepal

Parvati Tiwari, Nepal Saraswoti Gurung, Nepal

Pasang Tamang, Nepal Minu Thapa, Nepal

Raju Bhetwal, Nepal Pathum Navaratne Bandara, Sri Lanka

Jenifer Chavarría Jiménez, Costa Rica Carlos Adalid Solano Aragón, Mexico

Lilibeth C. Masamloc, Philippines Jeanette F. Ignacio, Philippines

Dely Gbalou Alice, Ivory Coast Guma Mary Beatrice, Malawi

Harawa Robert Bob, Malawi Sulaiman Bah, Sierra Leone

Momodu Koroma, Sierra Leone Reema Mishra, India

Pyari Kikita, India Premika, India

Anapurna, India Suriyalakshmi, India

B. Anjaneyulu, India K. Sarala, India

Bhagyashree Sahoo, India Md. Alamin Howlader, Bangladesh

Koli Akther, Bangladesh Md. Sojib Mia, Bangladesh

Mohammad Murad, Bangladesh Umair Shahzad, Pakistan

Rizwan Aslam, Pakistan Mamoona, Pakistan

Usman Bilal, Pakistan Usman Bilal, Pakistan

Zohaib Akhtar, Pakistan Bakhtiar, Pakistan

Kifayat Ullah, Pakistan Malik Ahad Shahzad, Pakistan

Zahida Bano, Pakistan