G.C.M.Lieten (1946, Belgium) is the International Institute of Social History professor of Child Labour at the University of Amsterdam. Since 1997, he has been the chairman of IREWOC (Institute for Research on Working Children) where he now continues as the honorary director. He has done extensive fieldwork, particularly in South Asia, on various topics related to poverty, rural development and labour relations. He is in charge of development sociology at the University of Amsterdam. He is presently conducting research across the developing world on childhood, child labour unions and on the incidence of child labour.

Lieten studied languages in Antwerp (where he adopted the nickname Kristoffel), political science in Reading and history in New Delhi and obtained his PH.D. for a study on the triangular relationship between the colonial state, the Indian entrepreneurial class and the working class in Mumbay in 1928-29. He spent many years in South Asia where he was during the 1970s and at intervals during the 1980s radio correspondent for the Dutch and Belgian radio. He is the co-founder of the National India Committee in the Netherlands and has widely contributed academic articles and books and journalistic pieces on politics in South Asia. Recently he has extended his area expertise to Africa and Latin America.

He is now also at the International Institute of Social History in Amsterdam where he contributes  to the vast labour archives and where a child labour archive should come up in due course.
In recent years, professor Lieten has edited and authored many books and has been a member of the advisory/editiorial board of a number of journals. The publications related to child labour can be found under Publications on this website.

Contact >>