Child labor: Facts, FAQs, and how to help

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Child Labor

Child labor is a pressing issue that violates child protection and human rights. It deprives children of their education, jeopardizes their well-being, and infringes upon their basic rights. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations aim to address this issue and create a better future for children worldwide.

SDG 4: Quality Education

One of the main goals of the SDGs is to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all children. Child labor often prevents children from attending school, hindering their educational development. By promoting access to education and eliminating child labor, SDG 4 aims to provide children with the opportunity to learn and grow.

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

SDG 8 focuses on promoting sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. By addressing the root causes of child labor, such as poverty and lack of economic opportunities, this goal aims to create a world where children are not forced into labor but can instead enjoy their childhood and pursue their dreams.

SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

SDG 16 aims to promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all, and build effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels. This goal is crucial in combating child labor as it seeks to establish legal frameworks and institutions that protect children’s rights and hold perpetrators accountable.

Facts and Figures on Child Labor

Fast facts: Child labor

• Nearly half of child laborers — 79 million children — were working under hazardous conditions in 2020.
• 1 in 3 children in child labor are out of school.
• Approximately 70% (112 million) of child laborers work in agriculture like farming and livestock herding.
• Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest number of child laborers at 86.6 million children, followed by Central and Southern Asia with 26.3 million.
• June 12 marks the United Nations–sanctioned World Day Against Child Labour, a time to reflect on young workers deprived of their childhood, education, and a rightful future.

What is Child Labor?

Child labor is the exploitation of children who are either too young to work or are engaged in work that compromises their physical, mental, social, or educational development. Children, especially vulnerable during their early developmental years, are at risk of injuries that may not be evident as physical and mental health problems until later stages of life.

Why is Child Labor a Problem?

Child labor affects millions of children around the globe by depriving them of their childhood, education, and fundamental human rights. Child labor poses risks of physical, emotional, and psychological harm to the children involved. It is prevalent in areas of insecurity and armed conflict, with sub-Saharan Africa having the highest number of child laborers.

The Worst Forms of Child Labor

The International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 182 demands that hazardous and morally damaging labor practices for children be immediately and completely eliminated. The worst forms of child labor include slavery or similar practices, child trafficking, forced recruitment into armed conflict, prostitution and pornography, drug production and trafficking or other illegal acts, debt bondage, and hazardous work that can cause injury or moral corruption.

The Primary Driver of Child Labor

Poverty is the primary reason children are forced to work, perpetuating a cycle that denies them education and a way out of poverty. Approximately 70% of child laborers work in agriculture, while others face exploitative forms of labor such as child soldiers or being exploited in the commercial sex trade.

Trends in Child Labor

According to a joint publication by UNICEF and ILO, child labor worldwide increased to 160 million in 2020, marking the first halt in global progress to end child labor in over two decades. Factors like population growth and extreme poverty contributed to the increase, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. The global impacts of COVID-19 and extreme weather events further threaten millions of additional children.

World Vision’s Efforts to End Child Labor

World Vision is actively working to end child labor and create long-term transformation in communities. Their initiatives focus on enhancing teaching quality and improving learning spaces, supporting parents to improve their incomes and food security, advocating for the enactment and enforcement of national child labor laws, promoting social accountability, equipping communities to monitor vulnerable children, and promoting decent work for youth through training and entrepreneurship.

How You Can Help End Child Labor

• Pray: Join us in praying for all children who are trapped in labor.
• Give: Support programs that work to protect kids from labor and other forms of exploitation, abuse, and violence.
• Sponsor a child: By investing in a child’s life, you’ll help equip them for brighter futures and create better job opportunities for them to pursue as adults.

Child Labor History

Throughout history, children have supported their families through farming and handicrafts. However, the Industrial Revolution brought about significant changes, leading to the exploitation of children in factories and farms. Laws were enacted to regulate working conditions for kids and mandate education. Key milestones in child labor history include the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act, the Minimum Age Convention, the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC), and the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention.

Conclusion

Child labor remains a global challenge that requires collective efforts to address. The Sustainable Development Goals provide a framework for tackling this issue and ensuring a better future for children. By supporting organizations like World Vision and taking individual actions, we can contribute to ending child labor and creating a world where every child can thrive.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Related to Child Labor

1. SDGs Addressed or Connected to the Issues Highlighted in the Article

• SDG 4: Quality Education
• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
• SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

2. Specific Targets Under Those SDGs Based on the Article’s Content

• SDG 4.4: By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs, and entrepreneurship.
• SDG 8.7: Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labor, end modern slavery and human trafficking, and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labor, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labor in all its forms.
• SDG 10.7: Facilitate orderly, safe, regular, and responsible migration and mobility of people, including through the implementation of planned and well-managed migration policies.
• SDG 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking, and all forms of violence against and torture of children.

3. Indicators Mentioned or Implied in the Article to Measure Progress towards the Identified Targets

• Indicator 4.4.1: Proportion of youth and adults with information and communications technology (ICT) skills, by type of skill.
• Indicator 8.7.1: Proportion and number of children aged 5-17 years engaged in child labor, by sex and age group.
• Indicator 10.7.1: Recruitment cost borne by employee as a proportion of yearly income earned in country of destination.
• Indicator 16.2.2: Number of victims of human trafficking per 100,000 population, by sex, age group, and form of exploitation.

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Note: The specific indicators mentioned in the article are based on the information provided and may not encompass all possible indicators related to the targets.

Source: worldvision.org