30% of children aged between five and 14 are engaged in child labour

Children as young as 10 are forced to work for a miserable salary in Uganda on plantation land owned by the Catholic Church, a BBC investigation has uncovered.

A tea plantation in Kabale, a town in the hills of south-west Uganda, was found to employ up to 15 children, working along with adults from the local community for a daily wage fluctuating between 1,000 and 2,000 Ugandan shillings (20p to 40p).

The plantation is managed by Kigezi Highland Tea Limited through a deal with the Catholic Church, which owns the land.

A Church-owned tea plantation in Kabale, a town in the hills of south-west Uganda, was found to employ up to 15 children (stock photo)

A local Catholic Church official confirmed to the BBC that the company was in business with the local diocese since 2013 and that the decision to harvest tea came 'through the financial sustainability plan committee' of the Church.

Kigezi Highland Tea Limited and the local bishop refused to comment on the investigation.

The children's job entails collecting young tea plants piled at the bottom of a steep hill and transporting them to the location of the designed point of cultivation.

They are also responsible for weeding the rows of tea plants

Allegations that child labour was taking place on Church-owned land in Uganda were first made by a former child soldier, Alex Turyaritunga, who was forced to fight during the bloody Rwandan Civil War of the 1990s.

Turyaritunga, now 32, spoke with a heavy heart as members of the Catholic Church helped his mum pay for his education and that of his four siblings.

Allegations that child labour was taking place on Church-owned land in Uganda were first made by a former child soldier, Alex Turyaritunga (stock photo)

Reports that church land in Uganda is being used for child labour come after Pope Francis' historical tour of Africa last November.

During his visits in Kenya, Uganda and Central African Republic, the pontiff said the children were some of the greatest victims of Africa's historical exploitation by other powers.

In 2014, Francis appealed for an end to child labour with a strong message in St Peter's Square in Rome.

'Tens of millions of children are forced to work in degrading conditions, exposed to forms of slavery and exploitation, as well as to abuse, ill-treatment and discrimination,' said Pope Francis.

During his Africa tour, Pope Francis said the children were some of the greatest victims of Africa's historical exploitation by other powers

'I sincerely hope,' he continued, 'that the international community can offer social protection to minors to defeat this plague.' The Holy Father went on to say, 'Let us all renew our commitment, especially families, to ensure the tutelage of every boy's and girl's dignity and the chance to grow up healthy.'

'A serene childhood,' he concluded, 'allows children to look with confidence to the life and future.'