COTU Secretary general Francis Atwoli decried the lack of National Policy on child labour leading to the rampant violation of the rights of children in Kenya. Atwoli called on the government to expedite the enactment of the policy, which he said would act as a basis for action by all social partners fighting child labor in Kenya. He said child trafficking from the rural to urban centres had risen to alarming levels with many children being employed as house helps with little or no pay. The unionist said poverty and HIV/AIDs had exacerbated the tribulations of children forcing many of them to rush for employment since they were breadwinners for their younger siblings. He decried the increase in child-headed families and called on the governments to come up with a policy to address the unfolding scenario, which has led to exploitation of children as cheap laborers. Atwoli was speaking at the Tom Mboya labor College in Kisumu when he officially opened a workshop on the elimination of child labour organized by COTU and the International Labor organization (ILO). He said the quality of education in Kenya was being undermined by poverty and challenged the government to come up with policies to address the situation.