UNITED NATIONS, Oct 31, 1999 (IPS) - The struggle to abolish the worst forms of child labour should become a major global cause, said Juan Somavia, Director-General of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), on Friday as he received the 1999 IPS International Achievement Award. Somavia was given the IPS International Achievement Award for his ''deep commitment to social development and international cooperation,'' IPS Director-General Roberto Savio said.

In receiving the award, Somavia drew attention to the need to maintain the struggle for labour rights, both in the field of child labour and in the effort to counter some of the drawbacks of globalisation. ''What kind of world do we have, with 25 million children working?'' Somavia asked. He said that, following the June passage of the convention to prohibit the ''worst forms of child labour'' - including prostitution, pornography, hazardous mining and chemical work - the effort to prevent children from working in ''morally abhorrent situations'' could be achieved. ''There is no economic reason for those types of activities to continue,'' Somavia argued. ''They will disappear if we are capable of creating a global movement.''

He also urged governments to frame their economic policies by ''looking through the eyes'' of those disadvantaged by globalisation, such as the unemployed. Somavia, who served as Chile's UN ambassador before taking up his duties this year as head of the ILO, was praised at the Friday award ceremony for his commitment to social issues.

Kensaku Hogen, UN Under-Secretary-General for Communications, called him ''a vocal and persuasive advocate for the 1995 World Summit for Social Development, a conference proposed by Chile but made a reality by his untiring commitment.'' It was Somavia who led the negotiations that culminated in the World Summit, held in Copenhagen and attended by 117 heads of state and government, Hogen noted.

Guyanese Ambassador Samuel Insanally, chairman of the Group of 77 developing nations, praised the Copenhagen meeting as ''one of the most successful summits,'' and lauded Somavia as someone with ''a clear vision'' for the ILO. ''When we talk about globalisation and a new human order, labour...also has to find its proper place in the world agenda,'' Insanally said. Savio also praised Somavia for his pioneering role in trying to foster change through civil society, as well as for his ''commitment and passion for a different society.''

The IPS International Achievement Award, established in 1985, is given annually to individuals who distinguish themselves in the fields of journalism, democracy and human rights. Previous winners have included Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari and UN Secretary- General Boutros Boutros-Ghali.