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Stichting Terre des Hommes Nederland
Zoutmanstraat 42-44
2518 GS The Hague
Tel. (070) 3105000
E-mail: info@tdh.nl
Internet: www.terredeshommes.nl
Authors: Marianna Närhi, Lucien Stöpler
Fieldwork: Koosje van der Loo, Marianna Närhi, Imke van der Velde
Desk study: Jasper Wouda, Ikram Cakir
Cover: Sven Torfinn
Copyright: Terre des Hommes Nederland, March 2010
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction.
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The Future of Child Labour
Study of the worst forms of child labour in Bangladesh, Bolivia, India, Kenya, Peru,
Tanzania and Uganda
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................. 5
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 6
The research ......................................................................................................................................... 7
Legal analysis of child labour ............................................................................................................. 8
Bibliography ...................................................................................................................... 15
Bangladesh .......................................................................................................................................... 17
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation ................................................ 17
2. Law and policy .............................................................................................................. 18
3. Forms .............................................................................................................................. 19
4. Interventions .................................................................................................................. 27
5. Recommendations by respondents ............................................................................ 31
6. Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 32
7. List of respondents ........................................................................................................ 33
India ..................................................................................................................................................... 35
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation ................................................ 35
2. Law and policy .............................................................................................................. 36
3. Forms .............................................................................................................................. 38
4. Interventions .................................................................................................................. 44
5. Recommendations by respondents ............................................................................ 47
6. Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 48
7. List of respondents ........................................................................................................ 49
Bolivia .................................................................................................................................................. 51
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation ................................................ 51
2. Law and policy .............................................................................................................. 53
3. Forms .............................................................................................................................. 54
4. Interventions .................................................................................................................. 60
5. Recommendations by respondents ............................................................................ 63
6. Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 64
7. List of respondents ........................................................................................................ 65
Peru ...................................................................................................................................................... 67
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation ................................................ 67
2. Law and policy .............................................................................................................. 69
3. Forms .............................................................................................................................. 70
4. Interventions .................................................................................................................. 75
5. Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 78
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6. List of respondents ........................................................................................................ 79
Kenya ................................................................................................................................................... 81
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation ................................................ 81
2. Law and policy .............................................................................................................. 82
3. Forms .............................................................................................................................. 83
4. Interventions .................................................................................................................. 86
5. Recommendations by respondents ............................................................................ 88
6. Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 89
7. List of respondents ........................................................................................................ 90
Tanzania .............................................................................................................................................. 92
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation ................................................ 92
2. Law and policy .............................................................................................................. 93
3. Forms .............................................................................................................................. 95
4. Interventions .................................................................................................................. 97
5. Recommendations by respondents ............................................................................ 99
6. Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 99
7. List of respondents ...................................................................................................... 100
Uganda .............................................................................................................................................. 101
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation .............................................. 101
2. Law and policy ............................................................................................................ 102
3. Forms ............................................................................................................................ 103
4. Interventions ................................................................................................................ 106
5. Recommendations by respondents .......................................................................... 108
6. Bibliography ................................................................................................................ 109
7. List of respondents ...................................................................................................... 110
General conclusions ......................................................................................................................... 111
Recommendations ............................................................................................................................ 116
Annex ................................................................................................................................................. 118
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Acknowledgements
The researchers, authors and Terre des Hommes Netherlands would like to express our sincere
gratitude to all the people who provided a warm welcome and invaluable support to the researchers,
and those who took the time to explain their position, share information and advance discussions. In
particular we would like to thank:
Mr. Kabir, Mr. Ehsan, and all the staff at the Terre des Hommes office in Bangladesh, as well as Mr.
Latif (Society for Social Service) and all project partners in Bangladesh;
Kathia, Monica and all the staff at the Terre des Hommes office in Bolivia;
Mr. Miller, Mr. Ranjit and all the staff at the Terre des Hommes office in India, as well as Mr. Nagaraj
(Vidiyanikethan) and all project partners in India;
Petra, Eliab, Liz and all the staff at the Terre des Hommes office in Kenya;
Carmen, and all the staff at the Terre des Hommes office in Peru, as well as Asociación Mujer Familia
and El Instituto de Investigación y Capacitación Profesional in Peru;
Mr. Lei Brouns at the Terre des Hommes regional office in Sri Lanka;
Ank, Jamal and all the staff at the Terre des Hommes office in Tanzania, as well as Kivulini and
Centre for Widows and Children Assistance in Tanzania;
Platform for Labour Action and Jinja Network in Uganda.
Lastly, we would like to thank the children who participated in this research and inspired us with
their strength, endurance and brightness.
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Introduction
This report is based on fieldwork carried out in three of the regions where Terre des Hommes
Netherlands is active. The purpose of the research was to collect information on the worst forms of
child labour by talking to stakeholders on different levels; from children, parents and employers to
NGO’s, police and the government. What kind of work do children do, why are they doing it, and
why is it harmful to them What is being done to eliminate child labour, what has been achieved and
why does child labour prevail What are recent shifts in child labour in these countries, and how are
global trends affecting this Running up to The Hague Global Child Labour Conference being hosted
by the Dutch Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, in close collaboration with the ILO in May
2010, Terre des Hommes is presenting some of the current statistics, trends, opinions and
recommendations presiding amongst those involved with child labour in Bangladesh, Bolivia, India,
Kenya, Peru, Tanzania and Uganda.
Compiling this into one report makes it possible to draw parallels between regions and countries.
The prevalence of child domestic labour, and the abusive and slave-like conditions under which
much of it takes place, was apparent in all research areas. The connections between domestic labour
and unconditional worst forms of child labour such as trafficking and prostitution are unavoidable,
and add to the urgency of developing appropriate response s to the exploitation faced by millions of
children in this most common of employment sectors. The commercial sexual exploitation of children
remains widespread, and the role of boys is often not well understood. Urbanisation and large-scale
rural to urban migration are leading to growing slums and increasing populations of invisible,
unsupervised, vulnerable children. HIV/AIDS, climate change, and the global economic crisis are
pushing more and more children into exploitative situations. Children often do not receive sufficient
protection from their families, their communities and state protection mechanisms. Although school
enrolment rates are increasing across the researched regions, many children remain without viable
alternatives to working. Different cultural perspectives on child labour, and discrepancies in the
approaches taken by various local, national and international actors, affect the responses to child
labour and the impact these have. This report aims to contribute to the on-going discussion about
how best to protect children from exploitation by collating information and viewpoints from various
sources.
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The research
The research was carried out by Imke van der Velde in East Africa, Koosje van der Loo in South
America and Marianna Närhi in South Asia. The fieldwork took place between September and
December 2009. Initial points of contact in the field were the Terre des Hommes regional and country
offices. Here the preliminary research frameworks were discussed, and appointments were made to
visit project partners and organisations and people identified as relevant to the research. The
majority of interviews were semi-structured, based on the topics in the questionnaire (see annex),
adjusted according to the respondent. Translators were used for some interviews. With regards to
interviews with children, an adult familiar to the child (generally a counsellor or a teacher) was
always present. This report has been compiled from the interview notes and written reports collected
during this time.
The references to the interviews can be found in the footnotes; written sources are referred to in-text
and in the bibliographies.
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Legal analysis of child labour
The starting point for this research was a series of international legal agreements that define child
labour. These are the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and its two protocols, the
International Conventions on both Civil and Political as well as Economic Social and Cultural Rights,
several conventions by the International Labour Organisation, the UN Convention on Transnational
Organized Crime and its protocol and a series of Security Council Resolutions against the use of child
soldiers.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) states in article 32 the general principle that children
have the right to be: ‘protected from economic exploitation and from performing any work that is
likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child's education, or to be harmful to the child's health
or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development.’ Measures regulating working conditions
and a minimum age are to be established by a state, as well as penalties to enforce these measures. In
the subsequent articles 33-34, children’s rights to be protected against illicit activities, sexual
exploitation and trafficking, respectively, are laid down. The first optional protocol to the CRC (2000)
provides an age limit of 18 to involvement of children in armed conflict. The second optional protocol
to the CRC aims at the elimination of the sale and sexual exploitation of children. The Committee on
the Rights of the Child, which monitors the implementation of the CRC, has further made references
to other conventions and agreements that have similar aims as those of the CRC and its protocols,
calling attention to the norms therein professed by the signatory state (General Comment no. 4, para
18). Similar references are made in the concluding observations on Finland (1996), Gambia (2001),
Lebanon (2002), Oman (2001) (quoted by Fodella in Nesi, Nogler and Pertile, 2008).
The international Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) contains a general provision on the
protection of the child: ‘Every child shall have, without any discrimination < the right to such
measures of protection as are required by his status as a minor, on the part of his family, society and
the State,’ (article 24). This does not contain any specific mention of child labour, but the Human
Rights Commission has extended its mandate into this area by the commentaries it has made. 1 Special
about the ICCPR is both its monitoring system, which allows inter-state complaints, as well as
individual redress, which makes these justiciable and individual rights.
The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights names the protection against
economic and social exploitation in article 10. Furthermore, although the provisions of the ICESCR
are generally considered to be achieved progressively and to the maximum of a states available
resources, this article is identified as one by which the legal system can be achieved immediately.
Convention 182 of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) was accepted by the International
Labour Conference (ILC) in 1999 and it defines ‘the worst forms of child labour’. These worst forms
are: all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery; prostitution, pornography and pornographic
performances; the use of children in illicit activities; and hazardous work. These forms of child labour
have been identified as the forms that required immediate prohibition and elimination. For this
research, Convention 182 is used as the guiding convention, because it contains all the forms of child
labour that this research focuses on. This convention is not always the leading or most important
1
See among many examples (these are taken from Fodella in Nesi, Nogler and Pertile): HRC, Concluding
Observations on Uganda, A/59/40 vol. I (2004) 47: The State party should adopt measures to avoid the
exploitation of child labour and to ensure that children enjoy special protection, in accordance with article
24…’; Kyrgizstan (ICCPR, A/55/40 vol. I (200); Portugal (ICCPR, A/58/40 vol. I (2003); Uzbekistan (ICCPR,
A/60/40 vol. I (2005); Brazil, ICCPR, A/51/40 vol. I (1996): The State party should eforce laws prohibiting …
child labour and child prostitution and should implement programmes to prevent and combat such human rights
abuses’.
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convention on a particular subject, but it does contain all the important considerations in eliminating
child labour.
The C182 was preceded by at least two other related conventions by the ILO that shed light on its
interpretation and intention. Convention 138 (1973) on the minimum age of children for certain forms
of labour was the culmination of a long series of conventions on separate sectors (industry,
agriculture, sea, non-industrial, and so forth). As time went by, between 1919 and 1973, the minimum
age was progressively raised. Furthermore, a distinction was made between heavy and light work.
Thus, when C138 was designed, both the higher minimum age and the distinction between heavy and
light work were incorporated.
The importance of education was also included in C138. The rule that was laid down in Convention
60 on Industrial labour, which, however, did make it into C138 is that children that had not finished
primary school should not be employed, even if they were above the age of 15. Instead, C138 specifies
that the minimum age cannot be lower than that for completion of compulsory schooling, and, in any
case, may not be lower than 15 years. Although schooling is deemed to be important to a child’s
development, an absence of schooling in itself cannot constitute a violation of the ILO conventions
138 and 182.
A flexibility clause is inserted, allowing states ‘whose economy and educational facilities are
insufficiently developed’, to reduce the minimum age to 14 years. Flexibility in this convention, like
other conventions that are related to economic development, is an important issue and often a
prerequisite to signature by developing states.
Under the minimum age, ‘light work’ is permissible. The definition of light work is that it does not
harm the child’s health or development and that it does not reduce a child’s school attendance (article
7). This type of work can be done between the ages of 13 and 15 or 12 and 14 in countries that enact
the flexibility clause.
Sectors in which conventions apply
The conventions cover both people that are employed and people that are self-employed. Article 4
leaves states the possibility to exclude sectors from the minimum age requirement. An often-named
exception is domestic work. But this possibility to exclude can not include work considered
‘dangerous for the health, safety and morals of young persons’. Furthermore, sectors and types of
work can only be excluded from the minimum age requirement if this is argued to the ILO, under
article 2, sub 5, demonstrating that it is necessary, limited and connected to problems in the
application of the convention. Importantly, the conventions apply to all labour that is performed in a
state (or under its flag). The informal sector, where much child labour including the worst forms takes
place, is not excluded from the working of the convention, even though it is difficult to monitor and
control.
A principal question is whether these worst forms of child labour should be considered work or
labour. In earlier conventions, the denomination had always been: exploitation. A number of
delegates felt that by pulling these crimes into the realm of work, it would somehow lose its status as
purely unacceptable and become just another form of labour (ILC, Report IV, 87 th session, 1998 for
Spain and Bolivia; ILC, provisional record, 86 th session, para 45, 118, 132, 134). The ILC acknowledges
this point in its first report to the Conference in 1998 and stresses the need to criminalize and
eradicate the forms of child labour named in the Convention. The ILO maintains that while they are
crimes, they are also forms of economic exploitation and thus within the realm of the ILO to regulate
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(ILO, Targeting the Intolerable, 1998). The children that are involved in the activities that are named
in C182 are not considered employees, rather as victims of exploitation. Therefore, the ratification of
the convention requires not that employment conditions are adapted, but rather that exploiters are
penalized, as can be read in article 7 sub 1: States Parties shall take all necessary measures to ensure
the effective implementation and enforcement< including the provision and application of penal
sanctions.
A child is not considered to engage in these worst forms of child labour of its own free will. Even if it
is consensual, this is deemed to be the result of the child’s vulnerability (Kooijman in Nesi, Nogler,
Pertile, 2008: 134).
The worst forms of child labour
All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery
Article 3 sub a of C182 defines: ‘all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale
and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict’. This first of the worst forms
of child labour refer to activity that is induced by the use of force or power, or as is stated in its
defining Convention 29 on forced labour: ‘all work or service which is exacted from any person under
the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily’ (ILO,
Report of the Committe on Child Labour, ILC, 87th Session: para 136). Slavery has been previously
defined by the 1926 Slavery Convention to include a ‘servile status’ that comes with debt bondage
and certain forms of women’s and children’s exploitation (League of Nations, 1926; UN, 1953).
Serfdom or debt bondage
There still exist cases of slave relations, where the victims perform forced labour, have no juridical
capacity, are treated as objects and who live in depraved conditions. Not only in Africa, but also in
Latin America and Asia exist the practice of rural serfdom that is derived from the absolute
ownership of land by conquerors, who distribute it to peons in exchange for services and income
(ILO, Stopping Forced Labour, 2001). Although slavery and serfdom can be a condition that a child is
born into, children are made dependent in order to exploit them still. Trafficked children that were
forced into prostitution report the use of physical and emotional violence in order to perform without
complaints. 2
Debt bondage is another form of forced labour. It presupposes a debt on the part of the victim, or a
form of ‘rent’ for tenancy, and this is used to oblige the person to continue working until the debt has
been paid off. Children can be affected whey they are pledged by their parents to repay a hereditary
or other debt. On the other hand, a debt may amass because of the service of a trafficker, in order that
the labour that a child performs may be used as a way to repay the trafficker (Bureau of the Dutch
Rapporteur on Human Trafficking, 2009).
Both the ICESCR and the CRC address the issue of slavery and slavery like practices, though their
influence is not deemed to be very great (Fodella in Nesi, Nogler and Pertile: 213). This is in contrast
to the ICCPR, where the Human Rights Committee and currently, the Human Rights Council, has
issued concluding observations on slavery, the prohibition of which is absolute (article 4) and forced
labour (only allowed as a penalty). The monitoring mechanism of the ICCPR, mentioned above,
2 Nigerians being trafficked to The Netherlands have reported being threatened through the use of voodoo in
order to keep them in the prostitution. The use of violence is reported in other studies, for example, Tanzanian
organization Kivulini reporting on trafficking for sexual purposes in 2006.
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provides for individual redress as well as inter-state complaints, thereby strengthening the
application of the rights much.
Forced recruitment of children for use in armed conflict
Convention 182 as well as the Optional Protocol to the Convention for the Rights of the Child do not
make a distinction between a child being forcibly recruited for work as a child soldier and any other
(non-combatant) work. The previous Genevan Convention did make this distinction, but since it is
virtually impossible to control what activities soldiers perform in practice and due to the fact that
involving children in armed conflict was as a rule unacceptable, the wording became more general
and inclusive of all activities.
Voluntary recruitment is not ruled out in either of the conventions, and this is allowed from age 17
on, on the premise that children under 18 do not partake in combatant tasks. It stands to reason that
the obligation to prevent the underage children from entering the battle must be clearly demonstrated
through the policy that is in place to train and deploy soldiers.
The sale and trafficking of children
The sale and trafficking of children is currently receiving increased attention, and because of that, the
magnitude of the problem is becoming understood. It affects millions of children, who are trafficked
internationally, but it appears that a multiple of this amount is being trafficked internally. Trafficking
is a precursor to many forms of child exploitation, such as prostitution or child soldiers.
This research does not view trafficking as a separate occurrence, it has only taken note of trafficking
in relationship to other phenomena. This is because the research would have been expanded in scope
indefinitely, become involved with cross-border phenomena that would be difficult to oversee and
hence, make any conclusions on. Therefore, the situations that trafficking is named are limited, as is
the extent to which trafficking is described.
In this sense, the most important international legal instrument is the Palermo Protocol of 2000, or, the
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons Especially Women and Children,
supplementing the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime. This protocol
considers trafficking to consist of two elements: (1) the recruitment, transportation, transfer,
harboring or receipt of children with (2) the purpose of subjecting them to any form of exploitation,
including prostitution or sexual slavery and servitude or the removal of organs. A third element, the
use of coercion or deceit, is necessary to establish the crime with adults; this is not the case with
children.
Prostitution, Pornography and Pornographic Performances
The Convention for the Rights of the Child seeks to eradicate sexual exploitation of children. In
Convention 182, this economic exploitation is recognized as a worst form of child labour and defined
as follows: the ‘use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of
pornography or for pornographic performances’.
The sexual exploitation of children can take the form of local exploitation, likely to form the bulk of
the cases of exploitation, but sex tourists may visit a country in order to satisfy their sexual desires
with children. A related category to sex tourists is the traveling businessmen, who do not travel
primarily to satisfy their sexual desires but may use the opportunity that they have while traveling to
do so. Children may also be trafficked nationally or internationally to places where they can be
exploited. Circulating pornography with child content is also covered under the convention, even
though there is no direct contact between the ‘consumer’ and victim.
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Prohibiting prostitution is required for all children under 18, regardless of the legal age limit of
adulthood or maturity. Pimping, procuring or inducing children into prostitution also needs to be
penalized. These prohibitions only work in a system that regularly controls the age of persons who
work as a prostitute and that actively regulate prostitution including pimps. This is not always the
case, such as when police round up prostitutes but only to fine or imprison them, not to question
them regarding their pimp or their age (Stöpler, 2009b and 2007 on Tanzania and Cambodia).
Furthermore, laws can be designed that penalize indirect profiting and facilitating, such as operating
a bar or other establishment where child prostitution takes place (The example provided by
Kooijmans in Nesi, Nogler and Pertile, 2008 is of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 9231 (Act on the
Special Protection of Children Against Child Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination of 2003), art. 5).
The persons that sexually exploit children under 18 need to penalized. These legal provisions often
exist, albeit that the age of consent limit may be below 18 (in The Netherlands for example, it is 16)
but this does not affect the justiciability of those who perform transactionary sexual acts with a child.
A difficulty that needs to be considered is how much knowledge can be expected from a customer:
can a customer be expected to check identification papers or be able to guess the age of prostitutes
who are, for example 17 instead of 18 Different states deal with this issue differently, but it should be
clear that the enforcing of the age limit is challenging.
Child pornography or pornographic performances
The possession (including through cache memory of a downloaded image in one’s computer),
distribution, production or aid to any of these, of images of children involved in any sexual activity is
prohibited. Both the Optional Protocol to the Convention for the Rights of the Child and Convention
182 of the ILO prohibit the procurement or offering, that is the activity of pimps or middle men. The
pictures of children do not necessarily need to be real in order to fall under the prohibition. It is up to
states to decide how extensively they want to prohibit child pornography; many states have gone so
far as to criminalize any and all images of children, whether they are animated, manipulated or real
(For example, Greece, New Zealand and The Netherlands).
Pornographic performances with children are to be penalized, as well as advertising for them. Each
implementing state will need to consider whether it wants to forbid offering per se or whether it only
forbids it when real children are offered, such that a venue that advertises child pornography but
offers adults, would not be breaking the law on child pornography.
The use of children for illicit activities
The use, procuring or offering of children for illicit activities, in particular involving the production or
trafficking of drugs such as defined in relevant international agreements is defined as one of the
worst forms of child labour. The word illicit has been chosen instead of illegal and the reference to
international agreements made in order to avoid being dependent on national legislation regarding
the production and transport of drugs (Noguchi in Nesi, Nogler and Pertile: 153).
Under this article, it is not entirely clear which activities are meant, although it is clear that it is
broader than activities involving drugs, since the recommendation 190 also mention the carrying of
firearms. Another suggestion is to criminalize the use, offering or procuring children for illegal
activities. Forced begging has been brought to the attention of a number of states, while begging, nor
the activities of children are meant to be criminalized, but rather the exploitation of these children
(Belgium, Belarus, Fiji, Kazakhstan and Trinidad and Tobago received comments from the CEACR for
designing legislation against using children in begging).
Hazardous work
While the previous types of the worst forms of child labour are worst forms by definition, hazardous
work is work ‘which by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the
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health, safety or morals of children.’ This definition leaves much open to interpretation and lacks the
clarity of the other types of the worst forms of child labour. It is this type of child labour that the
worst forms of child labour are most often associated with however, encompassing activities like
mining, working with sharp objects, poisons and pesticides, long hours or night work, heavy loads
and extreme temperatures.
There are many types of work that fall under the present definition, and in the accompanying
recommendation, a number of sectors are named that are likely to lead to worst forms of child labour.
It is up to States Parties to make a choice in defining sectors and types of employment that they find
unacceptable for children to work in. At the same time, it is also possible for governments to exempt
the work done at home on farms, as long as parents are in control of the working conditions and able
to protect their children from harm (ILC, Report of the Committee on Child Labour, 87th Session).
The list that is established by the States Parties define which types of labour are hazardous and
therefore unacceptable for children under 18. To a certain extent, Convention 182 is a specification
and a complement to Convention 138, which raises the minimum age for labour. The above named
mechanism for grading labour and associating that with specific age limits returns in this particular
article that is reserved for the heaviest category of work. Work that is less heavy will fall under
Convention 138, but not under 182. Since there is not a standard of hours that defines heavy labour,
the ILO has been working with its own definition, which is 43 hours and above. In other words,
children from 15-17 can work up to 42 hours per week. It also uses standards from other agreements
to define hazardous work: night work, working as a trimmer or stoker, working as a fisherman under
certain conditions, manual transport of heavy loads, working with radiation, benzene, white lead in
paint, anthrax, white phosphorus, asbestos, specific chemicals and carcinogenic substances or agents
as well as air pollution, noise and vibration. 3
The obligation in article 4, to define the forms of hazardous work that are to be included in forms of
labour that are unacceptable, is a procedural one. The Committee of Experts on the Application of
Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR) cannot force a state to take up any type of work that is
not on the list that the States have devised; the Committee of Experts can and does make suggestions,
however (CEACR, Individual Direct Request concerning C182: Kuwait, 2004, Panama, 2004 and 2006;
Ireland, 2005).
As a result, different states come up with different lists. One aspect that is often missed in the list
regards the moral harm, whereas health and safety are most often seen. The moral hazards, the
Committee of Experts suggest, lie in the threat of violence, psychological abuse and sexual abuse
(Beqiraj in Nesi, Nogler and Pertile: 194-197).
Implementing the list leads to the difficulty of monitoring and control. It is not unusual to find that
the government does not consider itself to be responsible for all of the children: children working
without a contract, that are self-employed or in the ‘informal’ sector (Stöpler, 2009b; CEACR
Individual Direct Requests of Mongolia, Iran, Benin, Ethiopia, Cameroon, Algeria, Chad,
Switzerland). It appears that much of law is oriented not so much toward children, but toward the
contractual agreements. 4 The enforcement of these provisions, especially as they may not solely
3 Convention concerning the Night Work of Young Persons Employed in Industry, no. 6; Convention fixing the
Minimum Age for the Admission of Young Persons to Employment as Trimmers or Stokers, No. 15;
Convention concerning the Minimum Age for Admission to Employment as Fishermen, No. 112; Convention
concerning the Use of White Lead in Painting, No. 13. The other norms named such as radiation are understood
to be inherently hazardous.
4 Even Bequraj in Nesi, Nogler and Pertile states that the law does not reach into the informal sector, which is
certainly not true of human rights law, though it may be so for contract law.
13

depend on police force, but also on labour inspection, may be seriously understaffed (Stöpler, 2009b;
ILO, Targetting the Intolerable, 1998).
Requirements of international instruments
Convention 182 calls on governments to prohibit the worst forms of child labour and provide
penalties (article 7, sub 1). It also requires governments to monitor the implementation of policy and
law to eliminate the worst forms of child labour (article 5). The requirement that States design and
implement time-bound programs to ensure the reduction of the worst forms of child labour set it
apart from other conventions, namely the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).While the
content of article 34 of the CRC aims for the same goals as C182, the CRC does not make specific
requirements for the realization of these goals. That makes the threat of a symbolic ratification
greater. Since the CRC does not make clear how the goals are to be achieved, the rights and duties are
insufficiently concrete to be legally enforceable. This is not the case with C182. It is controllable
whether legal provisions have been made, monitoring systems developed.
There is less clarity on the requirements of international cooperation called for in article 8. It does give
concrete examples of programs, but it does not make any requirements on the outcome of these
programs, which is included in the national programs.
Obligations for States not Party to Convention 182 or Convention 138 are less stringent but not absent.
This is due to the fact that in 1998, the ILO accepted the Declaration on Principles and Rights at Work.
The fundamental principles are Freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to
collective bargaining, Elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour, Effective abolition of
child labour, the Elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation.
The Declaration makes it clear that these rights are universal, and that they apply to all people in all
States - regardless of the level of economic development. There is specific attention for migration and
other vulnerable groups. It further establishes that economic growth alone is not enough to ensure
equity, social progress and to eradicate poverty.
The reporting procedure under the Declaration is supported by a follow-up procedure. Member
States that have not ratified one or more of the core Conventions are asked each year to report on the
status of the relevant rights and principles within their borders, governments are extolled to clarify
their needs and opportunities for progress. These reports are reviewed by the Committee of
Independent Expert Advisers. In turn, their observations are considered by the ILO's Governing
Body.
A brief conclusion to the legal section can suffice to clarify that the international conventions
concerning child labour – notably conventions 138 and 182 are to be used for this study – have acted
as legal mileposts that have created considerable pressure for states to conform to the codified
provisions. These provisions have not been accompanied by enforcement measures and at times, the
provisions to be enforced are not well-understood by the governments that should comply to them.
Finally, governments that have not ratified conventions 138 and 182 are not free to allow child labour,
even legally, since they are bound by the principles of the ILO. This study is intended to demonstrate
how, in a few countries across the world, child labour affects children and how governments,
international organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) try to eradicate child
labour.
14

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Netherlands. The Hague.
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by General Assembly resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989. Entry into force 2 September
1990, in accordance with article 49.
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Hampshire, England.
15

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armed conflict, 25 May 2000, entry into force 12 February 2002.
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Stöpler, L. 2007. What We Don’t See, Isn’t There. Terre des Hommes, The Hague.
16

Bangladesh
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation
Seven to twenty million child labourers are estimated to be living in Bangladesh. According to the
National Sample Survey of Child Labour by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (2002-2003), there
were 7.4 million economically active children aged 5 to 17 years in Bangladesh. The real number is
thought to be higher, as the National Sample Survey took school enrolment but not drop-out rates
into consideration. The survey also did not include certain elements of the informal sector (BSAF,
State of Child Rights Bangladesh, 2008: 19). An estimated 90 - 95% of working children are active in
the informal sector 5 : 60% in agriculture, 6 77% in the rural informal sector and 16% in the urban
informal sector (BSAF 2008: 19). About 74% of working children are estimated to be boys (BSAF 2008:
19). Despite a number of efforts and successes, there are no employment sectors in Bangladesh that
can be accurately described as child labour free. 3
The overriding sentiment in Bangladesh is that child labour is increasing. 4 Factors such as rapid
population growth, increasing poverty and decreasing job opportunities, urbanization and climate
change are described as influential. Bangladesh is geographically vulnerable, facing increased river
erosion and other consequences of climate change; it is constantly on the brink of disaster. Villages are
more vulnerable to these changes, resulting in high levels of urban migration. The government lacks
the capacity to provide for the growing number of people concentrating into urban areas and so many
of them end up living in horrific slum conditions, with the whole family, including young children,
forced to work just in order to survive. Increasing funds from remittances and a growing economy
and informal sector, partly as a result of the global economic recession, are pull factors creating a
greater demand for cheap labour. Changes within the family structure, including the increasing
prevalence of child neglect are found throughout Bangladesh and are pushing some children to the
cities for reasons unrelated to economic necessity. There is a lack of viable alternatives for many of
Bangladesh’s children and a lack of awareness of the hazards of many types of work.
Children living and working in the streets of Bangladesh’s cities have been identified as a particularly
vulnerable group. There is estimated to be 600,000 street children living on the streets of Dhaka. 5 Both
boys and girls of an increasingly young age - seven is now common – can be found; the average age at
one shelter has gone down from 14 to 11 in recent years 6 . These children have come to Dhaka to
escape poverty or abuse, often after the death of a parent, remarriage leading to abuse or neglect by a
stepparent or simply in search for a means of livelihood and survival. Parents living in villages also
send their children to work in Dhaka, but they often have little knowledge about the conditions their
children end up living and working in. Street children face abuse from police and employers, are
isolated, have no support network and are vulnerable to exploitation and are active in many sectors
of hazardous work 7 . Although there are laws regulating the work done by children, limited
resources, corruption, and a lack of political commitment stand in the way of the effective
implementation of these laws. The low level of education predominant among parents, coupled with
the custom of passing one’s trade onto one’s children, places school well down the list of priorities.
1
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO), Mr. Hassan (SEEP), BSAF report
6
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
3
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
4
Raja Bhai (SEEP), Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh), Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO), Mr. Kafil Uddin (BSAF)
5
Mr. Kafil Uddin (BSAF)
6
Mr. Hassan (SEEP)
7
Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh), Mr. Shamsul Alam (Save the Children Sweden-Denmark)
17

It is still the norm culturally for children to be working, especially in the sectors of domestic work and
agriculture. In fact, the majority of child labour is found within the agricultural sector in Bangladesh,
but there are no statistics available indicating how many of these children are involved in hazardous
activities. In agricultural families, it is considered a normal part of the child’s development,
upbringing and household contribution to accompany their parents to work as soon as they are able.
Agricultural labour is not seen as inherently hazardous or harmful to the child’s development.
Domestic labour is another common type of child labour in Bangladesh. Because it takes place within
the home, it is widely thought of as appropriate work, including for young children; it is seen as less
strenuous or dangerous than other types of work. For parents, finding domestic work for their child is
a way of ensuring they have a roof over their heads and enough food to eat. Employers believe that
they are helping a poor family out by hiring a child. Many concerned organizations, including the
ILO, are calling for domestic work to be classified as hazardous labour, after all, the work being done
is often inherently dangerous and the working hours extremely long 7 .
Even though child labour is acknowledged and openly discussed as a problem in Bangladesh, and
despite the vast amounts of effort and money put into designing and implementing programmes to
address child labour over the years, the recent and rapid changes in population, the climate, society
and the economy are threatening to overshadow successes as the number of vulnerable and exploited
children continues to grow.
2. Law and policy
2006 Labour Act
The Government of Bangladesh, through the Ministry of Labour and Employment, has reviewed all
fragmented laws related to child labour with the aim of fixing a uniform age for admission to work
and to prohibit children’s engagement in hazardous occupations. According to the Labour Act of
2006, the minimum working age is 14 years, but rises to 18 years for hazardous work. Light work for
children between the ages of 12 and 14 is defined as non-hazardous work that does not impede
education. 8
There are a number of statutes, which stipulate the minimum age at which children can legally work
in certain sectors. These are:
Mines (Mines Act, 1923): 15 years (with medical certificate of fitness);
Shops and other commercial establishments (Shops and Establishments Act, 1965): 12 years;
Factories (Factories Act, 1965): 14 years (with medical certificate of fitness);
Railways and ports (Employment of Children Act, 1938): 15 years;
Workshops where hazardous work is performed (Employment of Children Act, 1938): 12
years;
Tea gardens (Tea Plantation Labour Ordinance, 1962): 15 years.
(ILO/IPEC: Child Labour and Responses, Overview Note Bangladesh (2004))
National child labour policy (draft)
NCLP (Final Draft), completed in 2008, recognizes that child labour deprives children of their basic
rights to enjoy a decent childhood, hampers their physical and mental growth and consequently
retards the desired national development. The short-term goals of NCLP include the:
• elimination of the worst forms of child labour within a specific time frame;
7
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
8
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
18

• development of an adequate legal framework for the protection of child labour; and
• protection of children from exploitation.
The long-term goals focus on the elimination of all types of child labour (Mondal, 2009).
Trafficking
The government prohibits the trafficking of women and children for the purpose of commercial
sexual exploitation or involuntary servitude under the Repression of Women and Children Act of
2000 (amended in 2003)
Forced labour
Article 374 of Bangladesh’s penal code prohibits forced labour, but the prescribed penalties of
imprisonment for up to one year or a fine are not sufficiently stringent to deter the offense.
Child prostitution
The Bangladeshi penal code prohibits the selling and buying of a minor, under the age 18 for
prostitution in Articles 372 and 373. Prescribed penalties for sex trafficking commensurate with those
for other grave crimes such as rape; conviction means either life imprisonment or the death penalty.
Hazardous sectors
In 1995, the Ministry of Labour and Manpower, together with UNICEF, did a study to identify the
hazardous activities involving children, as described below. This study did not culminate in a list of
hazardous work in which children under 18 are not allowed to work (IREWOC, 2009).
Code of conduct for informal sector
A code of conduct for employment in the informal sector has been developed and submitted to the
Ministry of Labour and Employment; approval is pending.
3. Forms
a. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking
of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict
Bonded-child labour exists in Bangladesh, but is not visible or generally acknowledged. The
government has a tendency to avoid the use of the term bonded, although this type of exploitation
occurs in shipyards, the dried-fish industry, tea gardens and agricultural and domestic work.
Bonded-child labourers work in isolation under miserable conditions and often without pay. 8
Domestic labour
According to studies supported by ILO and UNICEF in 2005 and 2006, there are more than 420,000
child domestic workers in Bangladesh; 148,000 in Dhaka alone. More than 75% of child domestic
workers are estimated to be girls (National Policy on Children (draft) and final report on National
Seminar on HCL in an Urban Informal Economy, ILO/ MoLE/ UNICEF (2007)). Child domestic
workers are thus extremely common in Bangladesh. It is part of the tradition and culture to have
domestic help. This type of work is not illegal, nor is it widely seen as inherently exploitative or
negative for a child. In fact, employers of child domestic workers often feel that they are helping a
poor family by taking in one of their children. Despite this, much of the domestic work done by
8
Ms. Wahida Banu (Aparajeyo Bangladesh), Ms. Gita (Ain O Salish Kendra)
19

children in Bangladesh can be described as a form of slavery, and at the very least as hazardous.
Child domestic work has been identified by many relevant organizations as a topic in need of greater
attention 9 .
Child domestic workers are usually from very poor families in rural areas. The youngest age for
workers in Dhaka is estimated to be six, but in northern Bangladesh children as young as four already
work 10 . Some of the youngest child workers are orphans or have lost one parent and many have
parents who started work at a young age themselves and, as a result, never attended school. Recruiters
travel to villages specifically in order to find rural children for employers in the cities 11 . Other
children arrive in the cities with sometimes very distant relatives who have found a house to employ
them. Parents do not always know where, or under what conditions, their children are employed. It is
typical for children to be living and working at their employer’s house. They are given time off once a
year during the Eid festival in order to visit their families. 12
Domestic work takes place behind closed doors and in isolation, leaving child domestic workers very
vulnerable and hard to reach, as well as making this kind of exploitation extremely difficult to
monitor or prevent. Child domestic workers handle dangerous equipment such as irons and sharp
knives, carry heavy loads, work on unsecured roofs or balconies and work very long hours,
sometimes from five in the morning until midnight 13 . Their salary ranges from room and board to
about 2000 taka or € 21 per month, with an estimated average around 500 to 1000 taka per month.
Typical tasks for child domestic workers include washing the dishes, doing the laundry, cleaning the
house, cooking, shopping, crushing spices and looking after younger children. The nature and
circumstances of the work leaves these children vulnerable to abuse; verbal, physical and even sexual
abuse of child domestic workers is common. A significant number of these children run away from
their abusive situations and end up living on the streets. 14
In addition to the hazardous and remote nature of domestic work, it often takes on the form of
bonded labour in Bangladesh 15 . It is common for the children themselves to be unpaid, as their
earnings are paid directly to their parents. Girls commonly work for many years receiving no
payment other than shelter and food. In return, the employers promise to cover her marriage
expenses when the time comes. Furthermore, child domestic workers have little or no freedom of
movement or free time.
Dried-fish industry
The fishing industry in the coastal areas of Bangladesh is known for its use of bonded child labour 16 .
All of the child labour in the dried-fish industry in these areas is said to be bonded or semi-bonded.
Children are recruited from villages for a small payment to their families or for the promise of full
payment after the completion of their task. The children are taken to remote islands around
Dublarchor where they work for approximately four months under harsh conditions and in complete
9
Mr. Kabir (Terre des Hommes Bangladesh), Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh), Ms. Wahida Banu (Aparajeyo
Bangladesh), Ms. Gita (Ain O Salish Kendra)
10
Ms. Husni Ara Quashen (Shoishab Bangladesh), interviews with domestic workers in Dhaka and Tangail
11
Ms. Husni Ara Quashen (Shoishab Bangladesh)
12
Interviews with domestic workers, parents of domestic workers, and employers of domestic workers in Dhaka
and Tangail
13
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO), Ms. Husni Ara Quashen (Shoishab Bangladesh), interviews with domestic workers
in Dhaka and Tangail
14
Interviews with domestic workers in Dhaka and Tangail, interviews with girls at street childrens centre SEEP
in Dhaka, Ms. Husni Ara Quashen (Shoishab Bangladesh), Ms. Gita (Ain O Salish Kendra)
15
Ms. Wahida Banu (Aparajeyo Bangladesh)
16
Mr. S.R. Chowdhury and Mr. M. Khorshed (Prodipan), Group interview BSAF, Ms. Gita (Ain O Salish Kendra),
Ms. Mahfuza Haque and Ms. Farhana Jesmine (Save the Children UK)
20

isolation. Children are paid less and are more willing to work under slave-like conditions than adults,
but generally the children never receive the full payment that was promised them. A large
proportion, about 80% of Bangladesh’s dried fish, is produced here. 17
The Forest Department and Officers have authority on these protected islands. Even though the
dried-fish industry is not allowed to employ children, it is difficult for anyone to gain access to these
isolated and protected areas in order to monitor the situation. The forest officers typically receive
some royalties from the fish sold and so have a vested interest in the production of dried fish. 18
The National Sample Survey of Child Labour reported in 2002 - 2003 that 14,868 children - 12,776 boys
and 2,093 girls - were employed in ocean and coastal fishing. In reality, this number is most likely
larger. (Blanchet, Biswas, and Dabu) estimated in 2006 that the number of workers below the age of
18, involved in the dried-fish industry alone, would surpass this number and, that even within the
dried-fish industry, this number was low. If shrimp production, which allegedly employs thousands
of children, is taken into account, the real number is likely to be a great deal higher.
Health hazards for these children are numerous. The lack of access to safe drinking water or even
fresh water causes excessive amounts of diarrhoea and skin diseases. Children are injured while
cutting trees to build camps, while walking on fish bones and while tying up the fish. Due to the poor
sanitation, small injuries can readily develop into more serious problems. The costly and inadequate
health care on these remote islands means that injured children often go untreated. The children work
long hours and are often under slept, adding to the prevalence of injuries. Moreover, children
frequently drown during cyclones. If they try to escape, they are usually beaten.
b. Involvement of children in prostitution, production of pornography or
pornographic performances
Child prostitution in Bangladesh occurs in organized brothels as well as on the streets. There are
children who have chosen this type of work due to poverty and the lack of alternatives, as well as
children that have been forced into prostitution. Child prostitution is connected to domestic work and
internal trafficking. The children of sex workers are a particularly vulnerable group. Sexual
exploitation remains a hidden topic due to the stigma attached to it. Very little is known about the
sexual exploitation of boys.
Scope
There are an estimated 150,000 women and girls involved in commercial sex work; there is however
no reliable data available and no data at all for certain groups, including boys (National Policy on
Children (draft)). The total population of Tangail brothel in northern Bangladesh is estimated at 1500,
including 800 active sex workers and a few hundred children 19 . The girls and women working at this
brothel were forced into sex work at as young an age as ten 20 . There are fourteen large-scale brothels
in Bangladesh, with an estimated total of 10,000 active sex workers and a total brothel population of
20,000 21 . There are approximately 1900 children living and working with their mothers in the brothels
of Bangladesh 22 .
17
Mr. S.R. Chowdhury and Mr. M. Khorshed (Prodipan)
18
Mr. S.R. Chowdhury and Mr. M. Khorshed (Prodipan)
19
Mr. Abdul Hamid Bhuiyan (Society for Social Service)
20
Interviews with sex workers at Tangail brothel
21
Mr. Abdul Hamid Bhuiyan (Society for Social Service)
22
Ms. Wahida Banu (Aparajeyo Bangladesh)
21

The road to sex work
In both floating and brothel-based sex work there are middlemen who recruit children into the
profession. These can be children found living on the streets of major cities or from remote rural
areas. These middlemen are often women, who prey on vulnerable children by earning their trust
through acts of kindness and the offer of security and hope. They will promise desperately poor
families an opportunity for employment or education for their child, offer lost children help to find
their way home and be kind to abused children. The recruited children then end up in brothels or
under the control of a pimp and are forced to work for, and even give up their earnings to, those who
now control them. These middlemen are a significant problem; they are hard to identify and often
well connected to the police. Even when caught, they are rarely prosecuted for their actions. 23
Peer pressure as well can play a role in leading children from the streets or otherwise into sex work.
They may hear about a way of earning more money from their peers as they struggle to survive on
the streets. They rarely have a full understanding of what the work entails beforehand and they are
all too easily persuaded to visit a sex club or to meet with a client. 24
In order to end up in Tangail brothel, for example, girls have been sold and trafficked from other
areas of Bangladesh by relatives, lovers or strangers. They will typically be bonded for the first few
years in order to work off their purchasing price and to cover living expenses. The bonded girls are
kept in the brothel by fear, which is instilled by regular beatings and other forms of physical,
emotional and sexual abuse; drugs; a security boundary around the perimeter of the brothel; and by
having their wages withheld. Usually during this time pregnancies are not allowed and forced
abortions are carried out. After the bonded period is over the girls are free to leave, but in most cases
the shame and social stigma attached to sex work, as well as the relatively high income that they have
become accustomed to, result in the girls staying on to work independently in the brothel. 25
Abuse
Sex work is illegal in Bangladesh, so the children working on the streets often face abuse by the
police. Brothels are also officially illegal, but the ones that date back a long time, such as Tangail
Brothel, are tolerated by the local government. As well as the abuse faced at the hands of the police,
middlemen and pimps – all of whom regularly take prostitute’s earnings or force them into sex - girls
face abuse and torture, such as beatings and gang rape by their clients. The clients are usually able to
bribe their way out of prosecution if caught by the police. Older sex workers are also known to abuse
the younger ones. 26
Born into brothels
The children of sex workers, especially of those working in brothels, face a great deal of physical,
mental and sexual abuse and are vulnerable to exploitation within the brothel environment. Both
boys and girls are physically and sexually abused by local boys, the managers and clients of the
brothel and even their own mothers. Stories of very young children chained to the leg of the bed, to
keep them from trouble while the mother is servicing a client, are not unheard of. Beatings by stick
are common and newer methods, such as hitting children with bottles filled with boiling water, so as
to avoid visible marks of abuse, are being devised. Boys are typically neglected; they tend to end up
involved in illicit activities, working as drug carriers within the brothel or as recruiters of new girls
for the brothel. Abuse and neglect is common and, according to the norms of the brothel
environment, are not reported to the police. Hypothetically, a report might lead to an arrest, but
23
Interviews with sex workers at Tangail brothel and at a street children’s centre in Dhaka, Ms. Rafeza (Society
for Social Service)
24
Interviews with sex workers at Tangail brothel and at a street children’s centre in Dhaka
25
Interviews with sex workers at Tangail brothel, Ms. Rafeza (Society for Social Service)
26
Group interview SEEP employees, Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh)
22

normally bribes are used to appease the situation. Daughters of sex workers are generally pushed into
their mother’s profession in order to earn money for both of them and to ensure the mother’s eventual
retirement. Some girls are raised by pseudo mothers, who have bought them from traffickers to raise
as sex workers and to take care of them once they get too old to work themselves. 27
Being born into a brothel has many consequences for the children of the sex workers. Their lives are
fairly isolated from the rest of society, they have no experiences outside of illegal activities and the
abusive environment of the brothel and they grow up unable to imagine a different life for
themselves. Due to the stigma on their mother’s profession, they face a lot of discrimination and are
not accepted into the wider community. Growing up without a father has further consequences in
Bangladesh, as it is necessary to use your father’s name on most official applications and certificates.
This social and structural discrimination makes it difficult for the children of sex workers to enrol into
schools and to find marriage partners. 28
A case study from a young sex workers in Tangail illustrates the abusive and bonded elements
children in prostitution are faced with at a young age. A 20 year old woman has been working at
Tangail brothel for 10 years, and tells the story of how she ended up there. As a young girl she was
living with her elder sister in Dhaka and one day got lost in the city. A bus driver found her
wandering around and promised to help her find her way home. Instead he brought her to Tangail
and sold her to one of the brothel managers. At the time the girl was young, did not understand what
was happening, and had no idea who to go to for help. She never contacted the police to help her. She
worked bonded under this pimp for 8 years; he provided her with food and clothes, but took all her
earnings and used to abuse her on a regular basis and in this way keep her in constant fear of him.
Eventually they had a disagreement during which he beat her up and then told her to go; since then
she has been working independently at the brothel. After she freed herself from the bonds of the
pimp, she returned to her home village for a while, but here she faced such abuse at the hands of her
step-mother that she decided to return to the brothel. Now she regularly sends some of her earnings
home to her father.
Boys
Little attention is played to the role of boys in the sexual exploitation of children 29 . They form a more
obscured and likely smaller group within the sex industry, but with increasing numbers of street
children in urban areas, and emerging reports on the prevalence of this type of exploitation, it is
important to focus on this group and to understand the scope and the nature of the sexual
exploitation of boys. Boys involved in sex work are more vulnerable to exploitation and abuse due to
a lack of formality, stability and support in their work. These factors can make them very hard to
reach. This group of children is particularly at risk for contracting and spreading HIV/AIDS. The
sexual exploitation of boys does not only occur in exchange for money, but also through control of
services and payment in kind. For example, in the area surrounding the bus station in Dhaka, adult
coolies control all the children working in this area by controlling their access to services 30 .
The commercial sexual exploitation of boys in Bangladesh, seen in the broader gender and sociosexual
cultural context of homosexuality, reveals that boys may not always be chosen as sex-partners
out of a preference for homosexual sex. Only once the context of homosexuality in the country is
properly understood, can the real position of boys within this complicated context be identified and
analyzed. According to Bondhu, an NGO focused on the population of men having sex with men, a
27
Ms. Rafeza (Society for Social Service), staff at Sonar Bangla Home for children of sex workers
28
Ms. Rafeza (Society for Social Service), staff at Sonar Bangla Home for children of sex workers
29
Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh)
30
Mr. A.K.M. Mustaque Ali (INCIDIN Bangladesh)
23

heterosexual man may also have sex with a boy in the cultural context of Bangladesh. Many of these
men are bisexual and have a wife and children. They choose male instead of female sex workers
because of the social barrier of having sex with female sex workers. Homosexual relations in
Bangladesh often refers to a paradigm that consists of Kothi, or passive ‘feminine’ man, and Panthi, or
active ‘real’ man; a bipolar relationship between males mimicking heterosexual relations. An
ECPAT/INCIDIN report in 2006, about the prostitution of boys, reveals an even more complicated
structure involving additional groups. Hizras are men, sometimes castrated, who are protected by
tradition and religion. They act as a third sex or as a combination of male and female genders. Kothis
are like hizras, but only during sexual interaction. Kothis and hizras are both active as sex workers.
Panthi appear only as the buyers of sex, while doparathas can act as both kothis and panthis.
The sexual exploitation of boys is not merely a moral and legal issue; it is inherently a multi-varied
phenomenon including sexuality, power relations between the sexes and the cultural understanding
of masculinity and the sexual development of boys. No credible estimation of the population of men
having sex with men or the number of sexually exploited boys exists in Bangladesh. However,
according to the Organization of Development Programme for the Underprivileged (ODPUP),
another men-having-sex-with-men-focused NGO, there are about 16,000 men having sex with other
men in Bangladesh; 10% are boys below the age of 18. This estimation could not be validated. The
INCIDIN study of 2008, found that boys engaged in commercial sexual exploitation were on average
younger than their female counterparts; boys were generally 14, while the girls were, on average, 16
years of age.
The development agenda of child rights-based NGOs presently prioritizes the sexual exploitation of
girls over that of boys. Without programmed facilitation, the sexually exploited boys may not be able
to break free of the exploitative network of male prostitution.
Child labour and commercial sexual exploitation
According to the 2008 INCIDIN study, which looked at 675 exploited children and adolescents, as
well as 128 adult stakeholders, 45% of the girls and 93% of the boys were initially involved in child
labour. The study revealed that factors such as the repeated exposure of working children to physical
abuse (45%), crude economic exploitation (42%) and sexual violence (1.4%) pushed them out of their
job and made them highly vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Based on these findings, the study
concluded that child labour may lead to a situation where a child can be easily pushed out of their
informal safety net and thereby exposed to steep survival pressure coupled with a higher level of
insecurity. The end result is often the entrapment of the child by the commercial sexual industry. The
study further concluded that exposure to abuse and exploitation in the workplace may stigmatize and
traumatize a child to the extent that the child may see no other option but sex work or they may
become an easy target for those who recruit child sex workers.
c. the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the
production and trafficking of drugs as defined in the relevant international treaties
The use of children for illicit activities is frequently connected to the many types of exploitation faced
by street children. Children are used for weapons transport within cities and for selling and
trafficking drugs 31 . ‚The use of children for begging‛ is an increasing problem 32 , and one that the
government is trying address with a new policy.
31
Mr. S.H. Milky (UNICEF), Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh)
32
Ms. Wahida Banu (Aparajeyo Bangladesh), Group interview BSAF
24

‚The Bangladeshi authorities will vigorously enforce a ban on begging so that it can
be eliminated within five years, the government says. Their announcement follows a
decision by parliament on Tuesday to grant metropolitan city status to the towns of
Sylhet and Barisal. The new classification means that begging is automatically
banned, as it is in Dhaka, Chittagong and Rajshahi.
ActionAid Bangladesh country director Farah Kabir said that while the
government's aim to eliminate begging was "laudable" it had given no indication yet
as to how it would achieve this objective. ‘If we could remove begging from our
streets obviously we would welcome it,’ she told the BBC, ‘but bearing in mind that
about 40% of the people of this country are below the UN-designated poverty line it
seems to be a somewhat over-ambitious target.’ A social welfare ministry spokesman
told the Associated Press news agency that detailed guidelines on how begging would
be banned were expected to be in place within a month. According to the proposals,
anyone caught begging in public places would face a maximum three months in
jail.‛ 33
d. Hazardous work: work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is
carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children
Children, especially in urban areas, are engaged in many types of extremely hazardous labour. The
magnitude of exploitation is higher and much of the hazardous work is said to occur in the urban
setting, where there is a concentration of industries providing work. Urban child labourers often live
in greater isolation and with less social control than in rural Bangladesh. 34
The Ministry of Labour and Employment and UNICEF study (1995) on child labour identified the
following economic activities as hazardous (Bangladesh Manobadhikar Sangbadik Forum, 2004):
*automobile workshop assistant
* manufacturing bedding
* brick or stone crushing
* prostitution
* construction worker
* electrical engineering assistant
* goldsmith’s assistant
* laundry boy
* printing press assistant
* blacksmith assistant
* painting cars or metal furniture
* spray painting
* dyeing
* engineering workshop assistant
* hotel or mess cook
* porter
* rickshaw or rickshaw van driver
* battery-recharging shop assistant
The workplaces and activities that were discovered to be most hazardous included:
* manufacturing bedding
* blacksmith assistant
* making bricks or stone chips
* printing press assistant
* welding
* scavenging
* work in plastic and rubber factories
* shrimp processing
* engineering workshop assistant
* work in bidi (cigarettes) factories
The most hazardous elements within a working environment are exposure to flame, gas, fume,
harmful chemical substances, electricity, sharp equipment, high-speed machinery, extreme heat or
cold, insufficient or dazzling light, heavy load, stressful working conditions and continuous work
with ice and water.
33
BBC News, 2 april 2009
34
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO), Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh), Mr. S.H. Milky (UNICEF)
25

The average hiring age in Dhaka’s leather tanneries is twelve, but many younger children can also be
found working in this industry. A majority of the children have come from villages looking for work
or escaping an abusive situation. Some are alone in Dhaka and so live and work at the tanneries. They
typically work more than eight hours per day, use chemicals and sharp knives, work in large turning
barrels used for dyeing the leather and on the unsecured roofs used for drying purposes. 35
In Fatullah, an industrial area found on the outskirts of Dhaka, children from the age of ten can be
found working in the metal and melamine works and in a steel mill. These children work without
protective gear, with large machines that have moving parts, with large ovens at high temperatures,
handling sharp metal and while breathing in chemicals and dust. Officially they work in eight-hour
shifts, but as pay is on an hourly basis and there is little monitoring, children work as much as they
need to or as much as they can. In Fatullah, children are also working at an extremely hazardous iron
re-rolling factory, where scrap iron from places such as the ship-breaking yards is cut down, melted
in huge kilns and rolled into usable rods. The conditions here are so intense that shifts are officially
two-and-a-half hours long and workers are given regular showers throughout to cool down. As well
as the hot kilns, workers handle saws, welding equipment and large machinery. Some wear
protective glasses and gloves. 36
Children can also be found in Fatullah working in welding workshops, cutting iron rods, doing heavy
lifting and welding, often without any proper protective glasses or equipment. In Rongpur, boys start
this type of work at age nine, often working more than twelve hours a day, and earning as little as 20
to 60 taka per week initially. After a few years of welding work they generally suffer from sore and
irritated eyes and chest pain. 37
There are an estimated 150,000 workers in Bangladesh's bidi industry, mostly focused around the
Rongpur area, in Northern Bangladesh. An estimated 60 - 70%, of the 800 to 900 employees, in one
such bidi factory in Rongpur are children. The employees sit on the floor in cramped and unhealthy
working conditions breathing in tobacco dust from 9am to 5pm each day. They earn 22 taka per 1000
completed bidis and average about 5000 bidis per person per day. The factory owners prefer
employing children as they apparently work faster than the adults. 38
Fisheries employ children from the age of eight to work at fish-processing and sales sites. Typically
work starts at 4am, stops for a few hours around noon, and then starts again after lunch. Children
unload boats, carrying baskets of up to 50 kg and wash the fish. Their wages of about 50 taka per
eight to ten hour shift are typically paid to their parents. In the Sundarbans mangrove forests,
children collect shrimp in particularly dangerous conditions; children tie themselves to trees by the
neck to avoid getting washed away by the strong current. Children are also tasked with separating
the head and legs of the shrimp, categorizing the shrimp by body size in preparation for export to
European, American and Middle-Eastern markets. There are an estimated three million workers in
Bangladesh's fish industry. 39
The vast majority of child labour in Bangladesh takes place within the agricultural sector 40 . Work in
agriculture is not seen as inherently hazardous, but nevertheless, often is, depending on the
35
Visit to tanneries and interviews with tannery owners and employees
36
Visit to Fatullah and interviews with workshop owners and employees
37
Visit to welding workshops in Fatullah and Rongpur, interviews with owners and employees
38
Visit to bidi factory in Rongpur, interviews with owner and employees
39
Mr. S.R. Chowdhury and Mr. M. Khorshed (Prodipan)
40
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
26

conditions of the work and the work being done 41 . Tasks can include ploughing and planting and
spraying pesticides and fertilizers. Without proper protective equipment, about 30% of the sprayed
chemicals are inhaled. Agricultural work is done from sunrise until sunset all year round. Work in
agriculture begins early in life; from the age of eight young children go to school and work during
holidays to supplement income and somewhat older children work full time. There are different
forms of employment within agriculture; contract-based workers get paid for completing a certain
task, whereas day labourers receive a daily salary. 42
4. Interventions
a. Government initiatives
The National Time Bound Programme is a combined Government of Bangladesh and ILO initiative to
address child labour. ILO has been working on child labour in Bangladesh since 1995. Initially they
ran small projects, but in 2000 larger projects targeting specific sectors - domestic, bidi, trafficking and
the urban informal economy - were launched. The decision was made to move away from this sectorconstrained
project-focused approach in 2004 and to design a more comprehensive approach. The
Time Bound Programme (TBP) was developed to address the root causes of child labour and to focus
on specific areas of impact, including advocacy, education, legal reform, poverty alleviation, and the
rural and urban informal economies. The TBP preparatory phase was completed in 2006 and the first
programme focusing on the urban informal economy has been running since 2007. The urbaninformal-economy
programme targets 10,000 children involved in hazardous labour in Dhaka. Under
the management of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the TBP is being carried out by the
Dhaka City Corporation and numerous NGOs to provide skills development, non-formal education
and social and economic support in the form of micro-credit loans. 43
The Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper – II (PRSP-II) 44 recognises child labour both as a social and an
economic issue. One goal of PRSP-II is the preparation for a code of conduct; a regulation regarding
minimum wage and protective standards for health, leisure, and education for working children.
Another goal is to provide working children with access to learning opportunities in formal and nonformal
facilities. It sets out explicit targets and actions for children who are abused physically,
sexually, through trafficking and who remain socially stigmatized and ostracized. The interventions
are meant to include community-support development for working children. The government has
recently stated its commitment to the consideration of the ratification of ILO Convention 138, which
establishes a minimum working age. Convention 138 was designed to ensure the effective abolition of
child labour. This convention unambiguously links the minimum age of work to the compulsory age
of education (Mondal, 2009).
There are a number of other stakeholders involved in child labour in Bangladesh. The Department of
the Inspectorate is responsible for the monitoring of child labour laws within the formal sector. They
are however seriously understaffed, with only thirty inspectors for the whole country 45 . The
government, with the cooperation of 76 implementing partner NGOs, is targeting another 50,000
children engaged in hazardous labour in 18 districts around the country, providing them
rehabilitation, non-formal education and skills training 46 . Some progress regarding the sexual
41
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO), Ms. Gita (Ain O Salish Kendra),
42
Interviews with children in Tangail and Rongpur
43
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO), Mr. Asgar Ali (Ministry of Labour and Employment)
44
FY 2009-11
45
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
46
Mr. Asgar Ali (Ministry of Labour and Employment)
27

exploitation of children also appears to have been made with the adoption of the National Plan of
Action against the Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children including Trafficking, for a period of
five years in 2002, by the government of Bangladesh. However, the five years has already expired
without any implementation initiatives occurring. Many more effective interventions are necessary to
tackle the problem of child labour and exploitation in Bangladesh.
b. The police and government children’s homes
Juvenile justice
According to the concluding observations of UNICEF’s Committee on the Rights of the Child in 2003,
there was ‘limited progress achieved in establishing a functioning juvenile justice system throughout
the country’. In the absence of a properly-functioning juvenile justice system, no accurate statistical
information is available on the actual number of children in conflict with the law in Bangladesh.
Furthermore, no separate juvenile justice law exists. The 1974 Children Act is the main law
concerning children in Bangladesh, but it deals with both children in need of protection and care as
well as children in conflict with the law. Other laws, such as the Penal Code, the Code of Criminal
Procedure, the Suppression of Violence against Women and Children Act, also contain provisions
regarding children in conflict with the law.
In 2004, the age of criminal responsibility was raised from seven to nine years. In a country where
levels of birth registration are about 10 - 15 percent, children in conflict with the law are often
deprived of age-appropriate protection. In addition, children over 16 are treated as adults because,
according to the Children Act, both child and youthful offender are defined as a person under the age of
16.
At present, there are three specialized juvenile courts in the country and the creation of another four
such courts is being considered. However most children are dealt with through the regular criminal
courts, where they are often tried jointly with adults and without legal representation. There are also
three specialized institutions for the detention of child offenders which have been renamed as Child
Development Centres. The two centres for boys are located in Tongi and Jessore and the girls' centre is
in Konabari. In practise, many children however are sent to ordinary prisons, where they are confined
with adults. 47
One of the main gaps in child protection is that those who are supposed to be providing protection,
such as the police and the staff of government-run children's homes, are also a source of abuse and
even exploitation. Street children and children involved in sex work are still criminalized by society,
police and the staff that takes care of them while they are incarcerated. The conditions at the so-called
child development centres are basic at best, and many NGOs try to rescue as many children as
possible from these government-run homes. The problem is a lack of facilities and capable staff,
resulting partly from a lack of financial resources for the training of personnel. There is a need to raise
awareness about children's rights among police and the staff of these homes, in order to make them
more sensitive to the needs of children. There is also a need to create more openness and awareness
within communities, to reduce the stifling social stigmas attached to sexual exploitation. Save the
Children is currently working on a child rights programme, which is to be included into the standard
police training curriculum, to help fight the abuse of children by police. 48
47
UNICEF, from www.unicef.org/bangladesh
48
Mr. S.H. Milky (UNICEF), Ms. Zinnat Afroze (Plan Bangladesh), Mr. Shamsul Alam (Save the Children
Sweden-Denmark)
28

c. Non-governmental initiatives
Non-governmental initiatives to tackle child labour in Bangladesh focus on the protection and
rehabilitation of working children and on the prevention of child labour. The protection and
rehabilitation programmes are often in the form of shelters or children’s homes; these provide
support, such as a place to sleep, regular meals, basic education and skills training and counselling
and family reintegration services. Children are sometimes removed from their jobs and placed into an
NGO-run protection programme. However, realising that the forceful removal of children from a
paid activity is not in itself a sustainable solution, other interventions must be in place to provide
education for working children within the workplace and to increase the protection of children at
work. Prevention programmes work on different levels from advocacy on policy and legislative
issues to raising awareness in the community.
Prostitution
Interventions for children involved in prostitution take the form of shelters, basic education and
health care. There are separate projects aimed at rescuing the children of sex workers from their
abusive situations. Family reintegration for child sex workers is problematic due to the social stigmas
attached to the work 49 . Many girls have come from remote rural areas and, though some still have
contact with their families, many do not tell their family what type of work they do and fear going
home. Girls will sometimes stop sex work if they find a husband or different employment. Providing
viable alternatives to sex work is the most successful way of removing girls from sex work and these
programmes should therefore be supported. There are criticisms that time-bound programmes and
shelters that restrict children's freedom too much do not work for this group of children that require
long-term support and a different approach 50 .
There is the lack of a strong national NGO network of stakeholders working with sexually-abused
children. There is no formal platform in place for this sector to share good practices, lessons and
experiences. Home-grown approaches are dominated and undermined by the prevalence of
externally-designed approaches. 51
According to an INCIDIN report in 2008, commercial sexual exploitation of children is not a priority
for most government and NGO interventions in Bangladesh. In general, child labour is the primary
focus for about 60% of all governmental and non-governmental organisations. Child abuse is a
secondary priority for 55% of all governmental and non-governmental organisations. The study also
notes that 85% of NGOs have a strong focus on gender, whereas a quarter of governmental
organisations focus on gender. The commercial sexual exploitation of children is primarily addressed
either in relation to, or under, the ambit of child trafficking. The same INCIDIN (2008) study
concludes that the present capacity, priority and strategy of governmental and non-governmental
organisations interventions are not adequately addressing the needs and concerns of children
suffering from commercial sexual exploitation
Several NGOs regularly hold discussions with journalists to sensitize them about issues surrounding
child rights, sexual abuse, exploitation and trafficking. A pioneering role regarding module-based
replicable and systematic training for the greater coverage of psychosocial care, during the recovery
period of child survivors of child sexual abuse and commercial sexual exploitation, has been played
by ARISE, ASK and INCIDIN Bangladesh, with the support of UNDP, ILO, and UNESCA. Three
other organizations, Action against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children (ATSEC), Girl
49
Group interview SEEP employees
50
Mr. A.K.M. Mustaque Ali (INCIDIN Bangladesh)
51
Mr. A.K.M. Mustaque Ali (INCIDIN Bangladesh)
29

Child Advocacy Forum and Bangladesh National Women’s Lawyers Association (BNWLA), are
engaged in awareness-raising activities on child abuse, child sexual abuse and child prostitution.
About thirty-five NGOs, under the banner of Girl Child Advocacy Forum, celebrate 30 September as
National Girl Child Day. INCIDIN Bangladesh develops, trains and provides a token remuneration
for male and female peer educators in order to disseminate information to and mobilize children
exploited by street-based sex work. Two-hundred-and-thirty-five organizations, under the umbrella
forum Bangladesh Shishu Adikar Forum (BSAF), have been regularly implementing short- and longterm
programmes aimed at developing awareness about various child participation issues
throughout the country. PIACT Bangladesh provides the children of sex workers with shelter,
education and health facilities and also enrols the children of the sex workers into the mainstream
school system.
The journalists’ Forum on Human Trafficking, a group of Dhaka-based journalists reporting on issues
of sexual exploitation and trafficking of children and women, is also raising awareness about the
issues of, and legal provisions relating to, disclosure of information. At the district level, NGOs in
traffic-prone districts of Bangladesh are working against child prostitution and child trafficking.
There are NGOs organizing relevant district level workshops, parent and teacher meetings,
orientation for students, meetings with the media, campaign rallies and so on. A group of NGOs
drafted a Protocol on the Minimum Standard of Care for Children and will soon present it to the
government for enactment. Other NGOs, at present, are advocating towards making the Vagrant
Homes and other custodial facilities safer for children. Many NGOs are facilitating citizen’s factfinding
missions on child sexual abuse and commercial sexual exploitation.
Many NGOs in Bangladesh work with local INGOs and UN agency offices to address the factors that
are contributing to the rise of commercial sexual exploitation of children. There are many examples:
Save the Children is working with partner NGOs against the commercial sexual exploitation of
children to prevent trafficking, child sexual abuse and exploitation; UNICEF is supporting partner
NGOs on strategies to combat prostitution; different UN agencies, like UNDP, UNICEF and
UNIFEM, have extended their support by supplying information and data through sharing good
practices; and various other collaborative initiatives between the government and NGOs are being
implemented.
UNICEF is the main international body helping to protect child rights and address related concerns.
The government of the Netherlands, Germany, and the UK continue their support for the prevention
of crimes against children and the protection of children’s rights. National UNICEF committees are
also providing significant support for the implementation of various programmes by the State Party.
Different INGOs, NGOs and community-based organizations have extended partnerships with other
donors to ensure that adopted legislation and policy, referring to the rights of the child, are in line
with articles no. 1, 11, 21, 32, 34, 35, and 36 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. For example,
USAID, UMFPA, UNICEF and BRAC are working together to implement the provisions of the second
optional protocol to the CRC on sexual exploitation.
The government of Bangladesh, through partner NGOs, is providing training for adolescents who are
engaged in floating- and hotel-based prostitution in rural areas, so that they can promote safe sex
practices and life skills among their peers. This training also aims to empower adolescents against
sexual exploitation, abuse and discrimination, as well as to make them aware of children’s and
women’s rights and to teach them interpersonal communication skills, including negotiation skills.
The government and various NGOs regularly collect information about children who have been
trafficked and returned. The Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs has undertaken a project,
with the technical assistance of IOM and ADB, to develop a national strategy that ensures
30

coordination among government ministries, and government and non-governmental organisations on
issues related to trafficking in women and children. Action against Trafficking and Sexual
Exploitation in Children (ATSEC) Bangladesh is a network of NGOs working in twenty high-risk
districts. The network uses a participatory process that involves children, community members,
NGOs and governmental agencies to develop its campaign strategy and tools. The government is
currently looking to ATSEC to recommend qualified NGOs to work for the government’s antitrafficking
initiatives.
UNDP and the Department of Social Services run a joint project for sex-workers and their children.
Four of its seven shelters, all in Dhaka, are for the children of street-based sex workers. These shelters
accommodate infants to 18-year olds, but cannot accommodate more than 157 children at any one
time (INCIDIN 2008).
Domestic
There is no legislation covering child domestic work. Most interventions try to give the children some
basic education, remove some of the hazards from their work environment and educate the generally
middle-class employers about the exploitative nature of child domestic work. A code of conduct has
been developed by a group of NGOs outlining basic guidelines regarding salary, the treatment of
children, breaks during the day, family contact, etc. This has been submitted to the Ministry of Labour
and Employment and is awaiting government approval.
There is a real necessity to uncover the roots of child exploitation, which typically starts in rural areas,
and to educate parents about the risks involved in sending their child into domestic labour. Internal
trafficking occurs in areas where it is easy for traffickers to take advantage of a parent’s low level of
education and lack of knowledge about the harsh working conditions found in cities.
5. Recommendations by respondents
One criticism of current child labour initiatives, is that the offered alternatives to working are too
short term, and hence unsuccessful at permanently removing children from hazardous work 52 . In the
past the government has improved the child labour situation in certain sectors, but as soon as the
government reduced its attention to this issue, industries returned to old employment policies 53 .
Furthermore, in programmes that provide socio-economic support for the families of child labourers,
there is a need to provide skills training along with micro-credit loans, to improve the likelihood that
the loan can make a meaningful change 54 . The trades taught in skills-training programmes need to be
updated and diversified, as there is a tendency to provide training in the same few traditional
trades 55 . The lack of coordination among initiatives by different players within the international
community and NGOs is a problem, as is the lack of proper and consistent government monitoring of
projects 56 . International donors should put more pressure on their implementing partners to achieve
some level of genuine impact.
It is important to focus educational campaigns regarding children's rights on families, to prevent so
many children from leaving home at a young age. With regards to protection of children on the
streets, there is a need for more full service facilities so children don't have to work to sustain
52
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
53
Mr. S.H. Milky (UNICEF)
54
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
55
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
56
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
31

themselves 57 . Policy changes at the government level regarding education, the creation of practical
alternatives for working children and the completion of a list of hazardous sectors including
agriculture and domestic work are necessary 58 . It is still culturally acceptable for children to work in
agriculture and domestic labour, adding these to a list of hazardous processes would help to shift
thinking on these issues. Initiatives should address the root causes of child labour, such as poverty,
lack of awareness of long term negative impact of child labour, relevance and perceived value of
education, and focus on causes other than poverty (e.g. some families in slums send their children to
work due to lack of security in the slums) 59 . Educational reform to make school more interesting and
relevant for children is needed, as are more livelihood opportunities and poverty reduction schemes
for parents in rural areas. Community level interventions that address the needs of the community
rather than political agendas should be given priority 60 . A combination of advocacy as well as direct
support is necessary to ensure the sustainability of initiatives and their impacts 61 .
It is important to focus educational campaigns regarding children's rights on families, to prevent so
many children from leaving home at a young age. With regards to protection of children on the
streets, there is a need for more full service facilities so children don't have to work to sustain
themselves. Policy changes at the government level regarding education, the creation of practical
alternatives for working children and the completion of a list of hazardous sectors including
agriculture and domestic work are necessary. It is still culturally acceptable for children to work in
agriculture and domestic labour, adding these to a list of hazardous processes would help to shift
thinking on these issues. Initiatives should address the root causes of child labour, such as poverty,
lack of awareness of long term negative impact of child labour, relevance and perceived value of
education, and focus on causes other than poverty (e.g. some families in slums send their children to
work due to lack of security in the slums.) Educational reform to make school more interesting and
relevant for children is needed, as are more livelihood opportunities and poverty reduction schemes
for parents in rural areas. Community level interventions that address the needs of the community
rather than political agendas should be given priority. A combination of advocacy as well as direct
support is necessary to ensure the sustainability of initiatives and their impacts.
6. Bibliography
Bangladesh Manobadhikar Sangbadik Forum. Child labour in Bangladesh As retrieved from
http://bmsf-bd.org/Child_Labour_in_Bangladesh.pdf
Blanchet, T., Biswas, H., Dabu, M.H., 2006. Slaves for a season. Bonded child labour in the dry fish industry.
Save the Children, Sweden-Denmark. ISBN 984-32-3615-7
Committe on the Rights of the Child. 2003. Concluding Observations to Bangladesh.
ECPAT/INCIDIN, 2006. The boys and the bullies, a situational analysis report on prostitution of boys in
Bangladesh. As retrieved from:
http://www.humantrafficking.org/uploads/publications/Bangladesh_Part1.pdf on 09-03-2010
INCIDIN Bangladesh (for UNICEF) (2008). Rapid Assessment: Commercial Sexual Exploitation of
Children and Adolescents in Bangladesh.
57
Mr. Hassan (SEEP)
58
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
59
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan (ILO)
60
Mr. Shamsul Alam (Save the Children Sweden-Denmark)
61
Mr. Shamsul Alam (Save the Children Sweden-Denmark)
32

Kabir, A.H.M. 2001. The State of Violence against Children in Bangladesh. The 2001 World congress on
Family Law and the Rights of Children, Bath, England.
Mondal, A. H. 2009. Elimination of worst forms of child labour in Bangladesh. Paper presented at
national seminar about World Day Against Child Labour on 11 June 2009.
7. List of respondents
Mr. Kabir and Mr. Ehsan, Country Director and Project Officer Terre des Hommes Netherlands,
Bangladesh, in Dhaka, 1. October
Mr. Raja Bhai, SEEP, Dhaka, 2. October
Mr. Hassan, Project Co-ordinator, SEEP, 3. and 4. October
Mr. Anil Chanra Mitra, Centre-in-charge SEEP Sadarghat centre, Dhaka, 3. October
Ms. Salma Khan, Educator, SEEP, Dhaka, 4. October
Ms. Rosina Afroza, Educator, SEEP, Dhaka, 4. October
Ms. Moscuda, Counsellor, SEEP, Dhaka, 4. October
Mr. M. Asgar Ali, Programme Specialist, Eradication of Hazardous Child Labour in Bangladesh,
Ministry of Labour and Employment, Dhaka, 5. October
Mr. S. H. Milky, Programme Communication Specialist, Education Section, UNICEF, Dhaka, 6.
October
Ms. Husni Ara Quashen, Shoishab Bangladesh, Dhaka, 6. October
Ms. Zinnat Afroze, Social Development Advisor, Plan Bangladesh, Dhaka, 8. October
Mr. Sharfuddin Khan, Programme Officer, Social Mobilisation & Economic Development, ILO,
Dhaka, 8. October
Mr. Shamsul Alam, Deputy Country Representative, Save the Children Sweden-Denmark, Dhaka, 11.
October
Mr. A. K. M. Mustaque Ali, Executive Director, INCIDIN Bangladesh, 13. October
Mr. Nahid Jahan, Project Co-ordinator Surovi Plan Domestic Children, Dhaka, 13. October
Mr. Kafil Uddin, Director, BSAF, Dhaka, 14. October
Interviews with owners and employees at leather tanneries in Hazaribagh, Dhaka, 14. October
Interviews with owners and employees at industrial area Fatullah, Dhaka., Dhaka, 15. October
Ms. Wahida Banu, Executive Director, Aparajeyo Bangladesh, Dhaka, 15. October
Mr. A.S. Mahmud, Project Co-ordinator, TdH Project, BSAF, Dhaka, 17. October
Ms. Halima, Project Officer Advocacy, BSAF, Dhaka, 17. October
Mr. Saiful Azam, Project Officer Monitoring and Evaluation, BSAF, Dhaka, 17. October
Ms. Gita, Senior Deputy Director, (in charge of Children’s Unit), Ain O Salish Kendra, Dhaka, 18.
October
Mr. Abdus Sabur, Headmaster IDEAL school, Tangail, 20. October
33

Interviews with members of the Horijon community and (former) students of IDEAL school, Tangail,
20. October
Interviews with child domestic workers and their employers, Society for Social Service (SSS) Child
Domestic Worker school, Tangail, 20. October
Ms. Rafeza, ECD teacher, SSS day care centre, Tangail, 21. October
Interviews with commercial sex workers from Tangail brothel, 21. October
Interviews with staff and children at Sonar Bangla Home for children of commercial sex workers,
Tangail, 21. October
Interviews with beneficiaries of Hazardous Child Labour Project, Rongpur. 22. October
Interviews with owner and employees of Bidi factory, Rongpur, 22. October
Interviews with parents of child domestic workers, Tangail, 23. October
Meetings with boys and girls children’s rights club (SSS CARD project), Tangail district, 23. October
Mr. Abdul Hamid Bhuiyan, Executive Director, SSS, Tangail, 24. October
Ms. Mahfuza Haque, Senior Pragramme Manager- Protection, Save the Children UK, Dhaka, 26.
October
Ms. Farhana Jesmine, Programme Manager- Protection, Save the Children UK, Dhaka, 26. October
Mr. Aftab Uddin Ahmad, Executive Director, UCEP Bangladesh, Dhaka, 29. October
Mr. Mohd Abdul Mannan, Manager Technical Education, UCEP Bangladesh, Dhaka, 29. October
Mr. S. R. Chowdhury, Executive Director, Prodipan, Dhaka, 29. October
Mr. M. Khorshed, Project Co-ordinator SCMCP Project, Prodipan, Dhaka, 29. October
34

India
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation
Child exploitation in India is undergoing changes that are influenced by various global and national
processes. Although the southern Indian states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Goa are wealthier than
much of northern India, poverty is still widespread across these states. Poverty is commonly named
as the main cause of child labour, but in a search for ways to end the exploitation of children, it is
important to consider and address other factors as well. There is very little current and reliable data
about child exploitation in India available, leading to disparate opinions about whether child labour
is increasing or decreasing. According to the 2005 -2006 survey carried out by the Indian National
Labour Project, there were 1731 children in the city of Bangalore involved in hazardous labour;
however 5000 would represent a more realistic estimate 62 .
Child labour is said to be decreasing in Tamil Nadu 63 , Karnataka 64 and its surrounding rural areas 65 ,
quarries 66 , domestic work 67 , match factories in Kalugumalai, and amongst Goan children in Goa 68 .
This opinion is partially backed by the Global March Against Child Labour and International Centre
on Child Labour and Education report (2006). This report noted that decreases in child labour
between 1991 and 2001 were already occurring in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The general reasons for
this decrease are listed as: better awareness about the importance of education, the negative impact of
child labour and child labour laws; the wide-scale educational initiatives by the Indian government;
and, for the employees, a fear of consequences following the stricter implementation of child labour
laws in certain sectors and areas.
According to other relevant voices and organizations however, child labour is said to be increasing in
and around Madurai 69 , in Karnataka 70 , in the city of Bangalore 71 and in other towns and cities of
Karnataka 72 . Child labour is rampant among migrant workers in Tamil Nadu 73 and Goa 74 . According
to the GMACL and ICCLE (2006) report, child labour was increasing between 1991 and 2001 in the
northern Indian states of West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana,
Bihar, and Assam. The official government statistics also indicated an increase in the total number of
child labourers between 1991, at 11.28 million and 2001, at 12.66 million. The reasons given for the
deterioration of circumstances surrounding child labour are increasing poverty, urbanization and
migration; the lack of access to education in the slums; and increasing unemployment and job
insecurity due to the industrialization of agricultural areas.
62
Mr. Chavan (National Child Labour Project)
63
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
64
Dr. Rajasekhar and Ms. Manjula (Institute for Social and Economic Change), Fr. George Mathew (BOSCO), Mr.
Chavan (National Child Labour Project)
65
Ms. Suchatra (consultant for UNICEF Karnataka), group discussion Society for Integrated Community
Development (SNEHA) staff
66
Interviews with Katharina Kasper Social Service Society (KKSSS)/ Ashalaya staff
67
Fr. George Mathew (BOSCO)
68
Child Welfare Council Chairperson Goa
69
Group discussion with Society for Human Education staff
70
Mr. N.G. Rao (Child Rights Trust)
71
Interviews with APSA/ Childline staff Bangalore, Mr. Chavan (National Child Labour Project)
72
Ms. Suchatra (consultant for UNICEF Karnataka)
73
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
74
Chairperson Child Welfare Council Goa
35

Various social trends and their subsequent consequences remain largely undisputed. Family
structures and values are shifting, the nuclear family is gaining importance and divorce and
remarriage are becoming more common. This can mean a breakdown of support networks that
children depend upon to protect themselves from exploitation. Climate change and a focus on urban
development are leading to high rates of rural-to-urban migration. Children often come to the cities
alone and end up living on the streets in hopes of finding work. This can happen due to family breakups,
caused by the death of a parent, the separation of parents and remarriage. Further common
push-factors are neglect and abuse by parents and step-parents, and a lack of interest in school. Other
children arrive in the cities with their families in search of work; this migration is often associated
with India’s present large-scale focus on urban development and its neglect of rural areas, as well as
climate change, which is making it increasingly difficult to earn a living from agriculture. Rural
children struggling for survival are susceptible to traffickers and organized schemes, looking for
sources of cheap labour, for various industries all over the country. To what extent these trends
outweigh the positive effects of education initiatives and increased awareness on child labour rates
remains unclear.
Migrant children are a particularly vulnerable, and growing, group of children. Some families also
migrate seasonally to supplement the shrinking income they can earn from agriculture at home and
to look for work in the booming industries, such as construction, quarry and brick-making,
supporting the urban development projects. As the nuclear family is becoming more important, it is
becoming more common for children to accompany their parents on their seasonal migration routes,
rather than remain in villages with extended family. In practice, it is difficult for children to enrol in
school after the commencement of the academic year, resulting in high rates of school drop-outs
amongst seasonally-migrating children. Discrimination is another obstacle faced by migrant children.
For example, in the richer state of Goa child exploitation is viewed as a foreign problem, not affecting
Goan children, that is only perpetrated by foreigners; making it difficult for migrant families to access
health care and education.
A recent trend found within both government bodies and NGOs, in India, is emphasis on the strong
link between education and child labour. However, there is still a need to create a greater demand for
education 75 by establishing widespread acceptance of its benefits. The low level of education among
parents, especially in rural areas, hinders children’s attendance levels in school, as they are often kept
home to work. The government’s focus on education initiatives has raised levels of enrolment, and
according to some, has brought with it a reduction in child labour and a shift in the average age child
labourers tend to start work to the above-twelve age group 76 . This older group is not well protected
by labour or education laws, as legislation for both compulsory education and prohibition of
employment in harmful labour stops at the age of fourteen. It is thus extremely common for children
aged 14 to 18 to be working fulltime, even in the worst forms of labour, such as child prostitution.
2. Law and policy
ILO Conventions 182 and 138
The ILO conventions regarding the worst forms of child labour and minimum age have not been
ratified by India. These conventions have not therefore been incorporated into national legislation.
75
Dr. Rajasekhar and Ms. Manjula (Institute for Social and Economic Change)
76
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
36

However, as noted in the chapter on international obligations, India is obligated by its membership to
the International Labour Organization, to adhere to the Declaration of the Principles and Rights at
Work, which includes the effective abolition of child labour (ILO, Declaration, 1998).
The Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE) coordinates the enforcement of laws against
bonded labour and child labour, while primary responsibility is carried by state and local
governments (MoLE, 2003). Inspections and even raids have uncovered thousands of cases of child
and bonded labour, but on the whole, the enforcement of these laws is widely perceived as
inadequate due to undertrained and underpaid staff, as well as light penalties that do not deter
transgressors (US Department of Labour, 2006).
Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act ( 1986)
The 1986 Child Labour Act bans the employment of children in 15 occupations and 57 processes.
Domestic work and work at roadside eateries (dhabas) were included in the list of banned
occupations in 2006. This list is reviewed by an expert committee from time to time. The Act also
regulates the work of children in other industries. Children and adolescents from 14 to 18 may work
for a limited amount of hours in factories during daytime only if they have been granted a certificate
of fitness. Child labour at any age in certain other non-hazardous industries is legally permissible In
occupations and processes where child labour is permitted, work by children is permissible for six
hours a day between the hours of 8 am and 7 pm, with one day's rest required weekly.
Employers who fail to abide by the law are subject to penalties specified in the Child Labour –
Regulation and Prohibition Act.
The penalty for people employing children in hazardous industries is set at 20,000 rupees
(approximately $430) per child employed; this money is used to establish a welfare fund for formerlyemployed
children. Furthermore, the government is required to find employment for an adult
member of the child's family or pay 5,000 rupees ($108) to the family (US Bureau of Democracy,
Human Rights, and Labour, 2009).
The Factories Act (1948)
The Factories Act prohibits the employment of children below the age of fourteen years. An
adolescent from 15 to 18 years can be employed by a factory only by obtaining a certificate of fitness
from an authorised medical doctor. Children aged 14 to 18 years are allowed to work 4.5 hours a day,
and are prohibited from working at night (ILO/ IPEC Child Labour and Responses, overview note
India: 2).
Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act (1976)
The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act purports to abolish all debt agreements and obligations
arising out of India's longstanding bonded-labour system. It frees all bonded labourers, cancels any
outstanding debts against them, prohibits the creation of new bondage agreements and orders the
economic rehabilitation of bonded labourers who have been freed by the state.
Supreme Court directive ( 1996)
The Supreme Court issued a directive in 1996 demanding the immediate identification of children in
hazardous occupations and their subsequent rehabilitation, including providing appropriate
education.
The Juvenile Justice (Protection and Care of Children) Act (2000)
Whoever employs or uses a juvenile or child for the purpose of begging, or causes any juvenile to beg,
shall be liable to imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to a
37

fine. Whoever ostensibly procures a juvenile or child for the purpose of any hazardous employment,
keeps him in bondage, withholds his earnings or uses such earning for his own purposes, shall be
liable to imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall be liable to a fine.
The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act (1956)
This act prohibits the commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking of children for prostitution.
‘Penalties include imprisonment of 7 to 14 years for procuring, inducing, or taking a minor 16 to 18
years from one place to another for prostitution.’ (US Department of Labour, 2006). More recently, the
Government has drafted the National Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking and Commercial Sexual
Exploitation of Women and Children (1998).
3. Forms
a. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of
children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict
There are still instances of individual children and whole families being bonded and working under
slave-like conditions in contemporary India. Bonded labour is often connected to trafficking.
Bonded labour in mines, quarries, brick kilns and the puffed-rice industry
Often whole families are bonded in order to work off loans. They work long hours, typically more
than twelve hours per day, live in poor conditions, have no freedom of movement and no access to
education or health care. Bonded labour occurs most frequently when parents in rural areas borrow
money, often for traditional ceremonies such as weddings or funerals, and then are bonded for years
to pay off the loan. Sometimes these debts are passed on to the next generation. There is bonded
labour in mines, quarries, brick kilns, rice mills and the puffed-rice industry and, although less than
before, in bidi (cigarette) production. 77
There was a recent case of bonded labour in Bangalore, in which thirteen families - 65 people in all,
half of them children - were rescued from a brick-making factory on the outskirts of the city. The
families had been brought over from tribal villages in northern India. They were living and working
under very poor conditions; confined to factory premises, enduring mental, verbal and physical abuse
and given very little food by the owner. Eventually one of the men got sick and was refused access to
medical care, resulting in his death. After the factory owner prohibited his family from taking him
home to give him a traditional funeral, one of the relatives of the man ran away disguised in his
wife’s sari. After his escape, the children were locked in a small room to stop the women from
running away. He reached his home town in Orissa after fifteen days of travel, where he contacted a
NGO that in turn contacted the Association for Promoting Social Action (APSA) in Bangalore. APSA,
together with the Department of Labour, arranged the rescue of the rest of the bonded labourers. It
has been estimated, extrapolating from the statistics of this district in Orissa, that 30,000 people live
under bonded-labour conditions in Bangalore. There are hundreds of bonded girls working as
domestic labourers; there has also been a recent case of bonded child labourers from West Bengal
77
Interview with BOSCO staff Bangalore, Dr. Rajasekhar and Ms. Manjula (Institute for Social and Economic
Change), Fr. George Mathew (BOSCO), Society for Human Education (SHE) staff, Service Initiative for Voluntary
Action (SIVA) Trust staff, Society for Integrated Community Development (SNEHA) staff, Mr. Ramamurthy
(UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
38

found working in a jewellery shop in Bangalore. 78
Semi-bonded system in the silk-spinning and textile industry
The Sumangali scheme officially recruits young unmarried women – 18 to 21 year olds - to work in
the textile factories and spinning mills for a number of years. The employer retains a part of the
monthly wages, which are to be given as a lump sum for marriage expenses at the end of the contract.
Agents for these factories recruit girls from villages in districts outside of the local area. However, the
age of these girls is not strictly monitored, so girls as young as twelve have been found working in
this scheme. These girls often live in sub-standard conditions, receive very low wages and are
exposed to many types of abuse. 79
This particular scheme has come to the attention of the general public. On 7 October 2009, the Indian
newspaper The Hindu reported on a public hearing that had been held on the Sumangali scheme the
day before. The Hindi reported that,
‚The six-member jury took up her [Shanti, a girl that lost her hand working
a spinning machine] case and instructed the mill owners to pay up within a
week the amount due. For the relatives of young girls who died while
working in the mills, compensation was worked out and notices issued to the
owners.
Focussing primarily on granting compensation and paying salary and
contract amounts to women who were allegedly defrauded by the spinning
mills under the Sumangali Thittam, the public hearing may have just solved
the compensation issues of about 40 people.
But, this is only the tip of the iceberg. According to information received by
the Campaign for the Rights of the Unorganised Workers, there are over
37,000 girls and women working in 913 cotton mills in Tamil Nadu.‛
According to another estimate, there are 50,000 – 60,000 girls involved in this type of semi-bonded
labour. Similar semi-bonded schemes exist, for example, in large shops in Chennai. Low earnings
from agriculture give rise to these schemes. 80
Child domestic labour
Child domestic labour occurs mainly in urban areas, and is less common than in Bangladesh. There
are however cases of groups of children, mainly girls, being trafficked from northern India to work as
domestic helpers in the cities of the South. Child domestic workers in Bangalore face a lot of abuse,
many of them run away to escape the abuse and end up living on the streets. In Goa, it is still
common for well-established and well-off households to take in a poor child, often a migrant, as a
live-in domestic worker under the guise of helping the child. Child domestic work is said to be
increasing in Goa, as girls are becoming more easily available due to trafficking from states with high
levels of poverty, such as Orissa 81 . Childline, in Goa, recently received a call from a suspicious
neighbour about an eight–year-old girl from Orissa who had been sold by her parents into domestic
work to a well-off Goan household. Another recent case about a rescued child domestic worker from
Orissa involved monthly wages being paid to a girl’s trafficker; he pretended to be taking this money
back to her family. Child help-lines receive frequent calls from community members reporting
78
Interviews with APSA/ Childline staff Bangalore
79
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala), Service Initiative for Voluntary Action (SIVA) Trust staff
80
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
81
Jan Ugahi staff
39

households with child domestic labourers, indicating that this type of exploitation persists, but also
that there is a growing collective awareness that it is unacceptable. After all, as mentioned above,
domestic labour has been added to the list of sectors where child labour is prohibited.
A nationwide study on child abuse in India, prepared by the Ministry of Women and Child
Development (MWCD, 2007), found that 23.2% of working children were child domestic workers.
Due to the study’s research methodology that required a certain number of children from specific
groups: children in family environment, not attending school; children in schools; children in
institutional care; working children; and street children, these findings cannot be taken as a precise
reflection of the real situation, but rather indicative of the extremely widespread nature of child
domestic labour. Among child domestic workers, an overwhelming majority of 81.6% were girls.
Trafficking for labour in various sectors
The government’s recent focus on urban development and its subsequent neglect of agricultural
areas, coupled with increasing rural poverty, is resulting in high levels of rural-to-urban migration.
This movement towards the cities includes children being trafficked from rural areas to work in
various employment sectors, such as the construction and domestic sectors, as well as in restaurants.
More than 400 children were rescued from domestic work in Bangalore from 2004 to 2008; 70% were
from distant districts and states and many had been trafficked for the purpose of labour. Some
examples of recent cases, dealing with vulnerable and exploited children, reported by NGOs are:
BOSCO, an organization working with street children, recently rescued a group of twelve-year-old
girls that had been trafficked from outside districts into Bangalore to work in factories and brothels;
Jagruthi, an organisation working with sexually exploited children in Bangalore, has been in contact
with children trafficked into Bangalore for commercial sex work; Society for Human Education (SHE)
tells of children sold and trafficked from the Madurai area to northern India as bonded labourers;
and, according to UNICEF, there are high trafficking rates both into Villupuram in Tamil Nadu and
from Tamil Nadu, especially from the southern part of the state around Madurai, where boys are
trafficked to other states as child labourers.
North-to-south trafficking is apparently on the rise in India. The United Nations Office on Drugs and
Crime (UNODC) has reported that, over the last five years, 700 girls have been reported missing from
northern states. These girls are believed to be sold to brothel owners in towns and cities like New
Delhi, Pune, Mumbai and Kolkata. Police estimate that around twenty percent of the girls in India's
big city brothels come from the northeast (humantrafficking.org, 2006). The MWCD (2007) report
affirms that Andhra Pradesh is the state with the highest incidence of trafficking for commercial
sexual exploitation of children.
b. Involvement of children in prostitution, production of pornography or pornographic
performances
Child sex workers in urban areas
The commercial sexual exploitation of children is more of an urban problem in southern India.
Children will travel to the cities for greater employment opportunities or as runaways from abusive
situations, but they often end up in sex work. Other children have been trafficked to the cities
precisely for this purpose. 82
82
Ms. Renu Appachu (Jagruthi)
40

The commercial sexual exploitation of children is not a recognized problem in the more rural areas of
Tamil Nadu, but it does occur in the cities Madurai and Chennai 83 . According to a female pimp in
Chennai 84 , fifteen and sixteen are usual ages to be active in commercial sex work, and she hires girls
from the age of fourteen. She rents out the rooms and finds customers in exchange for a percentage of
the girls’ earnings. The girls are often migrants, orphans or from very poor families that have
approached her for work. Apparently the police do come around regularly and ask the girls their
ages, but the girls do not have to produce any documentation as proof.
Urbanization has lead to an increased number of street children and increased numbers of children
involved in sex work in Bangalore. There are children as young as ten involved in sex work. Girl sex
workers face abuse from their clients, including cigarette burns, whip lashes, cuts and beatings. There
is no significant brothel-based work, although there are some houses run by former sex workers or
groups of sex workers and, in one case, by a politician in Bangalore. Most child sex workers operate
on the streets. There are typically older women, former sex workers, organizing the floating-sex
workers. These women have been known to force their own daughters into this profession. However
infants born into this environment do not generally remain with their mothers, as they are sold, sent
away or taken care of by others. 85
There are also boys involved in sex work, but there is very little data available to confirm the details.
The act of men having sex with boys is often considered to be a matter of sexual orientation, rather
than one of abuse and exploitation. To some extent, the patriarchal system, with its stigmas on early
pregnancy and pre-marital sex, protects girls far better than boys. Boys working in hotels are known
to face sexual abuse by their older co-workers who usually work and live with them in close
proximity. 86
Commercial sex work is illegal for under-18’s, but adults are allowed to solicit on their own premises.
The sex workers form a close-knit group and protect each other to avoid arrests. When children are
caught, they claim to be 18 so as to avoid going into police custody and a rehabilitation home. It is
difficult to pinpoint the female pimps; furthermore, if they are caught they can often pay their way
out with a bribe or fine. Rehabilitation becomes harder the longer children have been working and
exacerbated by widespread substance abuse. The majority of child prostitution cases in Bangalore are
found in the lowest socio-economic classes. 87
Sex tourism in Goa
Despite aggressive campaigning, sex tourism persists in Goa, but in a more obscured form. Whereas
paedophiles would previously interact with children out in the open, on beaches, in shops or even set
up children’s homes, they are now taking the children away from the public eye to private homes in
villages away from the beach. The exploiters are foreign and local tourists, both men and women. The
children are Goan and migrant boys and girls, though the majority are migrant children. Parents
often do not know enough about the risks of sending their children to work on the beach, and do not
imagine that even young children are at risk to sexual abuse and exploitation. Mothers of the children
often believe that the foreigner is interested in her or interested in helping her family and she does not
suspect that her children are the target. Parents tend to be less worried about boys being sexually
83 Service Initiative for Voluntary Action (SIVA) Trust staff in Tirunelveli, Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil
Nadu and Kerala), Society for Human Education (SHE)staff in Madurai, Marga Susi staff in Krishnagiri
84
Interviewed at the Brother Siga Social Service Guild offices and centre in Chennai
85 Ms. Renu Appachu (Jagruthi)
86 Ms. Renu Appachu (Jagruthi)
87 Ms. Renu Appachu (Jagruthi)
41

exploited, as there is no fear of pregnancy or social stigma attached to premarital sex for boys. 88
The number of reports of the sexual exploitation of children has increased with the heightened
awareness of the issue. There are about ten cases currently active against foreign paedophiles in Goa,
but it is impossible to say how many children have been victimized. Even reported cases rarely lead
to convictions, as there is a lack of will to bring these cases to an end on many levels and loopholes
exist in the stipulated child-protection measures of the Juvenile Justice Act. Sexual abuse cases still
bring shame to a family, so there is a reluctance to bring the facts of abuse out into the public. 89
There is a need for the stricter implementation of child protection laws, including: stricter
punishments for violators, such as life imprisonment rather than fines; better protection of children
during the duration of a case, in order to stop bribes and the pressure often placed on families to drop
the case or withdraw their statement; better implementation of measures to assure a child-friendly
atmosphere in court; and professionally-trained counsellors in children’s shelters. Perpetrators are
often not first-time offenders, justifying the need for more information sharing on convicted
paedophiles globally. To some extent, sex tourism is both lucrative and big business and the power
imbalance between a rich foreigner and a poor Indian migrant child makes child protection
complicated; bribes are often paid to police to keep them away and politicians are reluctant to take
action against large hotels which support their election campaigns. There are organized networks
behind sex tourism involving people in various parts of the process, from drivers to the middlemen
who recruit the children. 90
Not much is known about the sexual exploitation of children at other tourist sites in India, but
research by Equations and ECPAT International (2008) provides evidence for the existence of the
commercial sexual exploitation of boys, related to tourism, outside of Goa. The study covered three
case studies in the pilgrimage destinations of Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh), Puri (Orissa), and
Guruvayoor (Kerala). It sketches an image of boys being abused as young as six. Once they turn to
sex, with foreign as well as domestic tourists, in order to earn a living, they no longer see a way back
into their old life. In Guruvayoor, although there was evidence suggesting instances of child sex
tourism, it was less visible than in the other two case studies, due to a ban on child labour that is
being actively enforced by officials in Kerala.
The Devadasi system in northern Karnataka 91
The Devadasi system, where young girls are married to local temple deities as a symbolic gesture,
came into being as a religious practice in India. Such a marriage usually occurs prior to puberty. After
the dedication, the girls are officially used as dancers at temple festivals and functions, but when she
grows older, the girl is required to become a sexual partner to upper-caste community members.
However, the Devadasi system is more accurately described as an exploitative religious practice, as
the priests and village chiefs use the girls for sex. Factors, like religious beliefs, the caste system, male
domination and economic stress are the stimulants behind the perpetuation of this phenomenon. A
majority of families involved in Devadasi belong to a scheduled tribe or scheduled caste. The
dedication of a girl means that she will not be able to get married in the future, even though she may
be free to earn her income another way. This means that, at a very young age, a girl’s future is already
88
Ms. Audrey Pinto (Stop Child Abuse Now India), Ms. Nishtha Desai (Children’s Rights in Goa), Jan Ugahi
staff, Chairperson Child Welfare Committee Goa
89
Ms. Audrey Pinto (Stop Child Abuse Now India), Jan Ugahi staff
90
Ms. Samira Kazi (Goa State Commission for Protection of Child Rights), Ms. Albertina Almeida, Jan Ugahi staff
91
This section is based on material from Project Renewal Application for the project Education and Health care for
children, youth and women from Devadasi Community and other poor families by Society for Integrated Community
Development (2010) and interviews with its staff.
42

limited, as marriage is still very much the norm in the rural areas of India and a future without it is
often an insecure one.
Although the practice of dedicating girls as Devadasi is banned and punishable under the Karnataka
Devadasi Prohibition Act of 1982, it still prevails in about ten districts in Karnataka. In reality, there
has been little or no reduction in the number of girls dedicated over the years. There have however
been some changes in the causes and consequences of dedications for girls. These girls now tend to
act as prostitutes for the wider community, rather than being exclusively reserved for the holy men of
the temples. Pressure from higher-caste men who want to pay for the services of the girls is
developing as a prominent push-factor into the system. Other dedications happen because a girl’s
mother is in the system; the family believes the dedication will bring them the protection of the
goddess; or for economic benefits, as the income of a Devadasi can be tempting. Furthermore, police
are reluctant to stop dedications, as they believe this will bring bad luck on them.
c. Hazardous work: work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried
out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children
Children are involved in many different forms of hazardous labour in India. The Child Labour
(Prohibition and Regulation) Act contains a list of occupations and processes where the employment
of children is prohibited. Despite these legislative provisions, children are currently involved in
various types of work that are both hazardous and harmful to the development of the child.
It is very common for children to be employed as helpers in small restaurants, where their tasks
involve washing dishes and cleaning; they often work up to eighteen hours and earn as little as ten
rupees per day. Garages often employ boys; traditionally this was work done by Muslim boys, who
are not allowed to serve food to Hindus. From as young as eight, street children are put to use in ragpicking,
exposing them to toxic materials, sharp objects and unhygienic conditions. Children are
employed in construction work in the rapidly-growing urban areas, involving heavy loads, unsafe
locations and dangerous machinery. Children are also used for begging in urban areas, where they
are exposed to dangerous traffic and often work unsupervised for long hours. 92
The puffed-rice industry employs a lot of children and is extremely hazardous. In the conversion
process, rice is dipped into boiling water, exposing the children to high temperatures and toxins.
These toxins are released when burning tyres instead of wood to keep costs down. There have been
instances of children falling into the drums of boiling water while working. 93
Agriculture remains the sector with the greatest amount of child labour. Children often work
alongside their parents, from dawn until dusk, under conditions of both high heat and heavy rain 94 .
Tasks can involve handling heavy or dangerous machinery and exposure to chemicals such as
pesticides and fertilisers. There is some gender discrimination within agricultural work; as boys get
92
Mr. N.G. Rao (Child Rights Trust), BOSCO staff, Fr. George Mathew (BOSCO), Dr. Rajasekhar and Ms. Manjula
(Institute for Social and Economic Change), Ms. Suchatra (consultant for UNICEF Karnataka), Ashalaya staff,
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala), Service Initiative for Voluntary Action (SIVA) Trust staff ,
Ms. Audrey Pinto (Stop Child Abuse Now India), Don Bosco Child Labour Mission Karnataka report: A Decade
of Restoring the Lost Childhood, 1994-2004
93
Fr. George Mathew (BOSCO), Don Bosco Child Labour Mission Karnataka report: A Decade of Restoring the Lost
Childhood, 1994-2004
94
Service Initiative for Voluntary Action (SIVA) Trust staff, Society for Integrated Community Development
(SNEHA) staff, Don Bosco Child Labour Mission Karnataka report: A Decade of Restoring the Lost Childhood, 1994-
2004
43

older they move on to better paying jobs where they have the opportunity to improve their skills,
while girls continue in low-paid, unskilled tasks 95 . In rural areas, child labour is also used in cottonseed
production and various kinds of plantation work 96 .
An example of a more formal industry employing children, in a relatively rural area, is a towel
factory in Tirunelveli, located in southern Tamil Nadu. About 90% of the 1000 employees are
estimated to be children aged 12 to 18. The working hours here are 8 am to 5:30 pm, and the pay is
about 35 rupees per day for children and double that for adults. In this particular factory, power
looms weave the towels, after which the children fold, pack and store the towels. Due to the dust
inhaled during the course of this work, it is common for the children to develop respiratory problems.
There are visits by government monitors to this factory every six months, but the owners are usually
warned ahead of time and send the children away. It matters little; bribes can always be used to settle
the situation. In this same area, there are numerous factories that produce cardboard cones for the
silk-weaving industry. About 90% of workers in these factories are also estimated to be children. 97
The number of children working in quarries and mines seems to be decreasing, but this type of child
labour does still occur. Workers in quarries and mines are generally paid per completed task,
encouraging all members of the family to contribute what they can, regardless of age. Quarry work
exposes children to sharp pieces of rock flying around and to granite dust which causes respiratory
problems. They work outside in the hot sun all day carrying heavy loads. In rural Karnataka, children
are involved in mining from the age of twelve, performing tasks such as ore separation and the
carrying of heavy loads. A majority of mine workers also develop respiratory, and other such health
problems, due to the unhealthy working conditions. 98
The match-making industry employs less people now than before, as many of the processes are
currently being mechanized. Much of the work is being shifted to home-based production 99 , with
tasks such as the folding of matchboxes and the sorting of matches being done at home, while the
handling of chemicals is still carried out in factories. In the town of Kalugumalai, practically every
household is somehow involved in match production. Younger children are typically employed
either in home-based production or in smaller factories to avoid being caught in violation of child
labour laws. Most child workers will attend school for a few hours a day and spend the rest of the day
working. Those working in the factories work between eight and twelve hours per day. 100
4. Interventions
a. Government initiatives
India has child labour laws that regulate employment. Even though, in many areas, there is no
regular monitoring of these laws, there is increased awareness of the existence of these laws among
95
Dr. Rajasekhar and Ms. Manjula (Institute for Social and Economic Change)
96
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala), Ms. Suchatra (consultant for UNICEF Karnataka), Mr.
N.G. Rao (Child Rights Trust), Don Bosco Child Labour Mission Karnataka report: A Decade of Restoring the Lost
Childhood, 1994-2004
97
Service Initiative for Voluntary Action (SIVA) Trust staff
98
Katharina Kasper Social Service Society (KKSSS)/ Ashalaya staff and children living at quarry sites in
Bangalore, Society for Integrated Community Development (SNEHA) staff, SNEHA children’s rights club and
women’s self-help group
99
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
100
Interviews with children, match-factory owners and employees, and staff of the Society of Mother of Sorrows
Servants of Mary child labour prevention project in Kalugumalai, Tamil Nadu.
44

employees and, at least the occasional raid that seems to have had some impact. Certain sectors, such
as match and bidi production, have seen a shift to home-based production, which is much more
difficult to regulate, in response to the child labour laws. In the factories that still employ children, a
common story is one where the owner receives a warning from a community member about an
upcoming inspection, leaving him enough time to send the children home and thus avoid any
consequences of violating the labour laws.
Due to the fact that many children’s births are not officially registered, the age of children who work
in contravention of the labour laws needs to be proven by a medical procedure, which amounts to
checking the development of the collarbone, as it closes around this age. There are many pending
cases of violations of child labour laws where the authorities are having difficulties proving that a
child is under the age of fourteen.
The Goa Children’s Act has introduced greater protection measures for children; taking an unrelated
child into a hotel is no longer allowed, so everyone must show ID when checking-in and background
checks are done on people who want to set up children’s homes or charities 101 . Reasons for the weak
implementation of the comprehensive children’s act were identified as a lack of awareness about the
act’s provisions and a lack of political will 102 .
Education
In addressing child labour, the government of India has initiated a number of programmes focused
on education. The National Child Labour Project (NCLP) runs special non-residential schools for
children removed from work. These children are provided formal and non-formal education along
with vocational training, a stipend, nutritional supplements and regular health check-ups, so as to
prepare them to join regular mainstream schools (From: NCLP website
labour.nic.in/cwl/ChildLabour.htm). These schools are generally run by NGOs active in
corresponding districts. This initiative has been criticized for the low participation rates of girls and,
due to its non-residential nature, for only being able to service children who live close to the school.
The government has been criticized for not taking this initiative seriously and for a lack of proper
supervision or careful selection of the NGOs chosen to manage the schools; this is leading to a low
quality of education in NCLP schools.
The State Child Labour Programmes identify child labourers and admit them into residential bridge
schools, aimed at mainstreaming the children into the formal education system. These programmes
have also targeted the families of potential child labourers, aiming to improve their socio-economic
position. Compared to the NCLP, this is a capital-intensive programme, with a high-monetary output
per child. It has been criticized for not focusing exclusively on child labourers, but rather on all outof-school
children and hence overlooking regions where child labour is a pressing issue. Again, the
low participation of girls is a problem.
The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (Education for All) programme is a major initiative, started by the
government of India in 2000, which aims to achieve universal primary education for six- to fourteenyear
olds nationally by 2010. It is being implemented in partnership with the state governments and
aims to strengthen the capacities and infrastructure of existing schools, as well as to open new
schools, improving access to education (From: Education for All websites (ssa.nic.in,
www.educationforallinindia.com/ssa.htm).
101
Ms. Audrey Pinto (Stop Child Abuse Now India)
102
Ms. Albertina Almeida, Ms. Nishtha Desai (Children’s Rights in Goa)
45

The Indian government's focus on education has lead to higher enrolment rates and decreased child
labour rates in certain regions and among younger children. However, the low quality of education,
lack of access to education and lack of sufficient infrastructure in schools are all factors preventing
many of India's children from receiving a basic education. 103
Migrant children and girl children have been identified as two groups that are not being sufficiently
addressed by the above educational initiatives, leaving them open to exploitation 104 . It remains
difficult for children to enrol in schools after the commencement of the academic year, resulting in
high drop-out rates among the children of seasonal-migrant families. Language can be a barrier to
education for children migrating across state borders. The development of boys is still often given
priority within a family, as they are seen to be the ones who will take care of the family after the girls
have been married off and the parents are no longer working 105 . Parents are reluctant to let girls that
have reached puberty stray far from the house, so when the nearest school is located beyond a certain
distance away, a girl is often forced to drop out and remain home. In addition to these cultural
factors, the lack of infrastructure - many schools even lack toilets - remains a barrier for girls. The
vastness of the geographical area and population of India is a challenge when designing any
programme that addresses issues of child labour and education; even national or state-wide
programmes struggle to reach certain remote areas and employment sectors.
The downside to the focus on education in India is that it actually overshadows child labour issues.
There is very little real data about working children, partly because a child who is not attending
school is automatically categorised a child labourer. Increased enrolment rates in recent years are
generally considered proof that child labour is decreasing; overlooking the factors that make
enrolment records an inaccurate indicator of the scope of child labour. Migration is one factor
skewing drop-out rates, as many children of migrant families enrol in school, but do not attend for
most of the year. 106 Many children combine school with labour, or are neither working nor in school.
Child labour interventions that identify any child not in school, rather than a working child, as a
beneficiary, risk not reaching the children with the most urgent need for support. Furthermore,
enrolment says nothing about the quality of education or learning outcomes.
b. Other initiatives
Non-governmental organizations
NGOs provide rescue and rehabilitation services for street children in urban areas, making a range of
education and training facilities available, as well as the possibility of returning children to their
families. Interventions in rural areas often take the form of holistic community-development
programmes, aimed at the general improvement of levels in health, education and income for the
whole community. NGOs are actively involved in the government’s education and child labour
initiatives.
Current interventions regarding children and families involved in the Devadasi system aim at raising
the level of skills and education within the scheduled tribe, scheduled caste and other poor segments
of these communities, in order to empower them, give them a wider range of opportunities and to
increase their level of knowledge about human rights.
103
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala), Dr. Rajasekhar and Ms. Manjula (Institute for Social and
Economic Change), Mr. N.G. Rao (Child’s Rights Trust)
104
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala), Mr. N.G. Rao (Child Rights Trust), Jan Ugahi staff, Dr.
Rajasekhar and Ms. Manjula (Institute for Social and Economic Change)
105
Society for Integrated Community Development (SNEHA) staff, Katharina Kasper Social Service Society
(KKSSS)/ Ashalaya staff
106
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
46

NGO interventions combating sex tourism in Goa have focused on awareness-raising campaigns
targeting every segment of society: children, parents, teachers, tourists, hotels, restaurants and police.
The aim is to build a sense of shared responsibility for the protection of children in the community.
ILO
According to the GMACL and ICCLE (2006) report, ILO has taken a significant number of initiatives
under the ILO’s programme against child exploitation, IPEC, by supporting as many as 175 major
projects against child labour. Currently, ILO is targeting 80,000 children at risk of hazardous
employment in brick manufacturing, stone quarrying, bidi manufacturing, footwear manufacturing,
fireworks manufacturing, manufacturing of matches, silk manufacturing, lock making and brassware
and glassware production through the INDUS Child Labour Project, jointly funded by the
government of India and the United States Department of Labour. This project also addresses the
employment-generation and skills-development needs of 10,000 parents. It seeks to work with two
major governmental programmes: NCLP and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.
5. Recommendations by respondents
Though some civil servants claim that there is a political will to improve the child labour situation,
child labour no longer has the focus it once enjoyed from the Department of Labour in the late
1990s. 107 The general feeling, is that the government is trying hard to show progress and is working
towards being able to declare states child labour free, but that a genuine commitment to the issue is
still lacking. Increased budget allocation for children’s issues would help to even out the current
discrepancy and lack of investment. 108 The Department of Labour, responsible for labour inspections,
also needs to be strengthened by increasing personnel and financial capital. 109 The minimum working
age needs to be revised, but in the meanwhile, child labour initiatives should also target older
children that are currently not protected under the education and labour laws. 110
The recommendations found within the Ministry of Women and Child Development 2007 report,
advocate for the revision of the present National Policy on Children (1974) and indicate a clear and
established need for a separate National Child Protection Policy. In addition, every state should set
up a State Commission for the Protection of the Rights of the Child and formulate Plans of Action for
Child Protection at the district and state levels.
Other stakeholders are of the opinion that, since the majority of child labour takes place in the
informal sector, the stricter monitoring of child labour and education laws would make no significant
difference to the current situation. This group believes that it is more important to improve the
quality of schools; making them more child-friendly and relevant and making education universally
accessible, regardless of income level. 111 The stricter monitoring of NGOs and schools involved in the
government’s education programmes is necessary to ensure quality, attendance and achievement, as
opposed to just enrolment records. 112
107
Mr. G. Manjunath (Department of Labour Karnataka)
108
Mr. N. G. Rao (Child Rights Trust)
109
Mr. C. L. Chavan (National Child Labour Project Bangalore)
110
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
111
Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala)
112
Interviews with SIVA Trust staff, Ms. Gita (ILO/IPEC Karnataka), Mr. Ramamurthy (UNICEF Tamil Nadu and
Kerala)
47

The government needs to disseminate information on the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act to the
police and wider community, as knowledge about the specific provisions that differ from the Indian
Penal Code is often lacking. 113 The Goa Children’s Act has been praised for its comprehensive
protective measures for children and is seen as an extremely positive development benefiting the
children of this state. Other Indian states should be encouraged to develop a similar act.
In order to ensure the sustainability of other interventions, there is a general need to raise awareness
about children’s rights, the importance of education and the harmful effects of child labour.
Information dissemination needs to happen among parents, teachers, employers, police, health-care
workers and the children themselves. Children’s rights should therefore be included in the school
curriculum. A focus on poverty alleviation schemes for the families of working children is also
necessary for the sustainability of child labour prevention projects (MWCD, 2007).
With regards to the commercial sexual exploitation of children, there is a need for the stricter
implementation of child protection laws, including: stricter punishments for violators, such as life
imprisonment rather than fines; better protection of children during the duration of a case, in order to
stop bribes and the pressure often placed on families to drop the case or withdraw their statement;
better implementation of measures to assure a child-friendly atmosphere in court; and professionallytrained
counsellors in children’s shelters. Perpetrators are often not first-time offenders, justifying the
need for more information sharing on convicted paedophiles globally. A national policy on sex
tourism should be developed. Children should be given sufficient information about sex in order to
equip them to recognise and stand up against unwanted advances and the vulnerability of boys
should not be overlooked. 114
Migrants have been identified as a group that is particularly vulnerable to exploitation in many areas
of this research. Invisible in many ways, they face discrimination and specific challenges that require
more focus. One of the main recommendations therefore is to develop policies that target India’s large
migrant population. Migrant children have specific protection and education needs that must be met
if India is to tackle its child labour problem.
In order to address the hidden problem of child domestic workers, state level guidelines and
protocols should be formulated for the rescue, repatriation and rehabilitation of child domestic
workers (MWCD, 2007).
6. Bibliography
Adenwalla, M. 2008. Child protection and juvenile justice system for juveniles in conflict with law. As
retrieved on http://www.childlineindia.org.in/pdf/CP-JJ-CNCP.pdf on 07-03-2010
Equations and ECPAT International. 2008. Unholy nexus, male child sexual exploitation in pilgrim tourism
sites in India: Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Orissa. As retrieved from:
http://www.ecpat.net/EI/Publications/South_Asia/Unholy_Nexus-
MCSE_Research_Report.pdf on 07-03-2010
Forum for Child Rights. (2004). The violence of paedophilia in Goa. South Asia Consultation on Overcoming
Violence against Children. As retrieved from:
http://www.crin.org/docs/FCR_Violence_of_Paedophilia_Goa.doc on 11-03-2010
113
Mr. N. G. Rao (Child Rights Trust)
114
Ms. Renu Appachu (Jagruthi)
48

GMACL and ICCLE. 2006. Review of Child Labour, Education and Poverty Agenda. As retrieved from:
http://www.globalmarch.org/images/india-report.pdf on 09-03-2010
Human Trafficking. 2005. Traffickers Turn to Northeast India to Supply the Sex Trade.
http://www.humantrafficking.org/updates/449, on 05-04- 2010.
ILO. 1998. Declaration of the Principles and Rights at Work. As retrieved from:
http://www.ilo.org/declaration/thedeclaration/lang--en/index.htm
ILO/ IPEC Child Labour and Responses, overview note India
Ministry of Labour and Employment, Annual Report of the Ministry of Labour, 2003.
Ministry of Women and Child Development India(MWCD). National Plan of Action for Children, 2005.
As retrieved from: http://wcd.nic.in/NAPAug16A.pdf on 08-03-2010
Ministry of Women and Child Development, India (MWCD). 2007. Study on child abuse: India 2007. As
retrieved from: http://wcd.nic.in/childabuse.pdf on 08-03-2010
National Child Labour Project (NCLP), as retrieved from: http://labour.nic.in/cwl/ChildLabour.htm
US Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour, (2009). 2008 Human Rights Reports: India. As
found on http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2008/sca/119134.htm on 10-03-2010
United States Department of Labour. 2006. Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour - India,
31 August 2007, as retrieved from: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/48d7493a15.html,
on 31-03-2010
United States Department of Labour, 2006 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour - India, 31
August 2007, as retrieved from: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/48d7493a15.html, on
05-04-2010
7. List of respondents
Vidyanikethan and Marga Susi home, interviews with staff and children. House visit to two
beneficiaries, Hosur, 9. November
Mr. V.P. Niranjanaradhya, Senior Research Officer, Centre for Child and the Law, National Law
School of India University, 10. November
BOSCO, interview with staff, Bangalore, 11. November
Dr. D. Rajasekhar, professor and head, and Ms. R. Manjula, researcher, at the Institute for Social and
Economic Change, Bangalore, 12. November
Brothers of Holy Cross, Abhayadama Human Development Centre, interviews with staff and
(former) street boys, Karnataka, 13. November
Katharina Kasper Social Service Society and Ashalaya, interviews with staff and (former) child
labourers at quarry site, Vidyanagar, 16. November
Father George Mathew, provincial economer, Don Bosco Provincial House, Bangalore, 17. November
Brother Siga Social Service Guild, group discussion with staff, Chennai, 24. November
Interview with the leader of a group of female sex workers, Chennai, 24. November
Society of Mother of Sorrows Servants of Mary, interviews with staff and children at child labour
prevention school and visit to match factories, Kalugumalai, 25. November
Society for Human Education (SHE), group discussion with staff, Madurai, 27. November
49

Interviews with children and families involved in silk-weaving, Madurai, 27. November
Service Initiative for Voluntary Action (SIVA) Trust, Group discussion with staff, Tirunelveli, 28.
November
Interviews with (former) child labourers, Tirunelveli, 28. November
Ms. Renu Appachu, Jagruthi, Bangalore, 30. November
Mr. Nagasimha G. Rao, Associate Director, Child Rights Trust (CRT), Bangalore, 30. November
Mr. C. L. Chavan, Project Director, National Child Labour Project, Bangalore, 1. December
Interview and visit to APSA and Childline, interviews with staff, Bangalore, 1. December
Ms. Gita, ILO-IPEC, Bangalore, 2. December
Mr. G. Manjunath, Department of Labour Karnataka, Bangalore, 2. December
Xavier Centre of Historical Research, Goa, 4. December
Ms. Audrey Pinto, SCAN, Goa, 7. December
Ms. Anita Edgar, co-founder/ director of El Shaddai, Goa, 7. December
Ms. Samira Kazi, Chairperson Goa State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, 8. December
Ms. Albertina Almeida, advocate on children’s rights issues in Goa, 8. December
Ms. Nishtha Desai, Director, Children’s Rights in Goa (CRG), 8. December
Jan Ugahi, group discussion with employees, Goa, 9. December
Mrs. Inez Cotta Carvalho, Chairperson, Child Welfare Committee, Goa, 9. December
Society for Integrated Community Development (SNEHA), meeting with children’s rights club and
women’s self help group, Bellary, 11. December
Society for Integrated Community Development (SNEHA), Group discussion with employees (coordinator,
teachers, health-workers, community organisers), Bellary, 11. December
Mr. Vidyasagas Ramamurthy, Child Protection Specialist for UNICEF Tamil Nadu and Kerala,
Chennai, 15. December
Ms. Suchatra, consultant UNICEF Karnataka, Bangalore, 17. December
50

Bolivia
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation
There were 800,000 children estimated to be working in Bolivia in 2001 (UNICEF in Terre des
Hommes 2008: 35-36 ), but many believe this figure to be even higher. The Instituto Nacional de
Estadística or National Statistics Institute (INE), together with UNICEF, estimated in 2004 that there
were 493,553 children working in rural areas, 116,000 children aged seven to thirteen active in the
goods and services sector and 729,000 adolescents from fourteen to seventeen performing some type
of economic activity in Bolivia ( INE-UNICEF in Terre des Hommes 2008: 35-36). Child labour is also
prevalent in the urban areas; 14% of children in Sucre are working according to Defensoría de la Niñez
y Adolescencia (Local Ombudsperson for Children and Youth). Some of Bolivia’s working children are
able to combine work and school, but many drop out of school in order to earn money. At the main
cemetery in Cochabamba, for example, a large majority (91%) of the working children are also
attending school 115 while only about 50% of the working children in Potosí are attending school. 116
The conceptualizations of certain notions within Bolivian culture have implications for how child
labour is viewed and dealt with in society. There is much debate around child labour going on in
Bolivia and the interviewees to this report were split on varying aspects of the issue. Cecilia Erostegui
from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explains that in Bolivia there is no real concept of childhood as a
separate stage of life, but that children are considered full members of the family, with a
responsibility to contribute what they can to the household. Working alongside the family and
contributing to the household income is seen as part of the child’s education and socialization
process, especially in the rural areas. 117 Others, such as Silvia Escobar dne Pabon from the research
centre CEDLA argue that child labour is not a cultural issue and that the majority of Bolivians in both
rural and urban areas believe, at least in principle that children should be in school rather than
working. 118 There is also a policy debate going on about children’s right to work versus their right to
protection and hence about whether to regulate working conditions or to abolish child labour
altogether. Defining which types of labour are exploitative is seen by some as central to judging
which types of work children should have a right to do and what should be prohibited. Those on the
abolitionist side of the debate feel that this distinction is arbitrary, and that children should not be
involved in any type of work.
Some of the background necessary to understanding child labour in Bolivia can be found by looking
at family structures. It is common for men to migrate great distances for work; temporarily or
permanently abandoning their families. There are many broken families and remarriages and it is
common for children to face abuse and neglect at the hands of stepfathers. Often children do not form
an emotional bond with their parents or siblings and in combination with the great amount of
responsibility they take on at a young age, lead very independent lives from early on.
Violence against children is a large-scale problem in Bolivia. According to a different study by INE
and UNICEF (2007), half of Bolivia’s child population - about two million children - have been
physically and psychologically abused at some point in their life (INFANTE 2009: 3). Although this
abuse takes place in schools, in shelters, on the streets or at the hands of law enforcement agents, 83%
of physical abuse happens within the family. Other data, by Ipas Bolivia and Marie Stopes
115
Mr. Cristóbel Gonzales Ugalda (Audiovisuales Educativos (AVE))
116
Ana Maria Janco (Care Potosí)
117
Cecilia Erostegui (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores)
118
Silvia Escobar dne Pabon (El Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario(CEDLA))
51

International, indicates that 60% of girls aged 13 to 16 suffer from sexual violence, but only about 20%
ever report the crime. (Terre des Hommes 2008: 33-35) During a survey by Youth Meeting (Ministry
of Sustainable Development), about 50% of a group of children aged 10 to 18 claimed that throwing
children out of the house was one of the most common psychological mechanisms used by parents to
control their children. Overall 4.2% of children and young adults, aged 13 to 24, taking part in the
same survey stated that their first sexual encounter was forced, whereas certain districts reported
percentages as high as 42% for girls and young women. (Terre des Hommes 2008: 33-35)
The perpetrator of sexual violence against children is generally the father, stepfather or some other
male relative. Violence in the home is identified as a predisposing factor for other forms of
exploitation. Attempting to escape the abusive situations at home and in search of affection, these
victims of mental, physical and sexual abuse often end up on the streets and become susceptible to
commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking. Sexual violence is often carefully planned by the
perpetrators and follows a process of intimidation and control. Furthermore, children with
experiences of abuse are at risk of becoming aggressors themselves. 119
Next to the arguably culturally and socially ingrained nature of child labour in Bolivia, another
important factor behind the perpetuation of child labour is the economic conditions. Together with
Haiti and Nicaragua, Bolivia belongs on the list of South America’s poorest countries. 120 Families
living in extreme poverty need the extra income from children to cover the costs of basic needs and
the children’s education. Although education is officially obligatory and free, the additional costs of
school materials and transportation can be a burden for low-income families and many children work
in order to be able to go to school. 121
Another cause of child labour lies in the way that the salary structure is set up in Bolivia; in many
employment sectors it is common to get paid per completed task, encouraging adult workers to bring
along their children in order to increase the families daily earnings. Each person a company hires
directly tends to bring a few more people along with them to work, resulting in high productivity at
low costs. This form of payment is used as a mechanism to control the workers, as well as a tool to
incorporate the cheap labour of family members without taking responsibility for any violations of
child labour laws. This practice also results in unknown amounts of invisible child labour across
various sectors. One significant reason for child labour is therefore the continuation of an economic
system that arose from the workers’ need for additional income, due to the instability of employment
and lack of alternatives; this system takes advantage of the absence of labour law monitoring and the
weakness of unions. 122
As well as abused and impoverished children, the children of migrants, urban children lacking
education or legal documents and children from disintegrated families have also been identified as
particularly vulnerable to exploitation. Rural children are at a disadvantage since their access to
education, basic services and child protection services is limited. The Defensoría de la Niñez y
Adolescencia for example are only based in the cities. 123
Some of the general trends visible in Bolivia are population growth, urbanization, increasing poverty
and rising crime rates. 124 Prostitution, youth gangs and the use of alcohol and drugs are said to be on
119
Mrs. Maria Leonor Quiedo Bellot, (CUBE)
120
Erán Nagán (Dutch Embassy Bolivia)
121
Mr. Cristóbel Gonzales Ugalda (Audiovisuales Educativos (AVE))
122
Silvia Escobar dne Pabon (El Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario(CEDLA))
123
Monica Beltrán Sánchez (SOS Bolivia)
124
Mr. Nestor Villca Conde (Policía Boliviana)
52

the rise. 125 Effects of the global economic crisis are also visible in Bolivia and are compounding the
existing poor economic situation and high unemployment rates. It is also unfortunately leading to a
rise in child labour rates in the informal sectors. 126 Furthermore, natural gas is a significant source of
income for the Bolivian government and the recent decreasing demand has had an effect on sectors
like education and health care; sectors that normally benefit directly from these revenues. 127
There have been some advances made with regards to child labour. The issue is gaining more
visibility and the new constitution contains an article on child exploitation. There is increased
cooperation between international/ non-governmental organisations focusing on child labour and
communities of workers at various plantations, work camps and factories, as well as pressure from
other countries to produce child-labour-free export products. Even though children’s rights are not
widely recognized within the family context, there is a growing awareness that violence against
children is a violation of these basic rights. This awareness is translating into an increased number of
cases being reported to the police. 128 Over the last decade, school enrolment rates have been
increasing and there have been noteworthy advances in the number of girls in primary education
(UDAPE 2008). Overall however, the improvements made for the protection of children on paper still
need to be translated into practical actions and visible results. Increased budget allocation and a shift
in people’s mindsets will need to take place in order to break through the many deep-rooted causes of
child labour.
2. Law and policy
Bolivian law sets the minimum age for employment at fourteen years, except in the case of
apprenticeships (Government of Bolivia, 1999). Children from 14 to 18 years must have the
permission from their parents or from government authorities in order to work (Ley del Trabajo, art.
8). The law also requires employers to grant time off to workers who have not completed their
primary or secondary education so that they may attend school during normal school hours (Ley del
Codigo del Niño art. 134, 146, 147).
Plan for Progressive Eradication of Child Labour, 2000 - 2010
The initial focus for this plan has been on regions and industries with the highest incidences of child
exploitation, such as the sugarcane, gum, Brazil-nut and mining industries, in coordination with state
institutions, NGOs and international corporations (Ministry of Labour, Employment and Welfare,
2009).
Code of Boys, Girls and Adolescents, 1999 (CNNA)
This code is based on the principles of the CRC and acts as the essential legal framework for the
protection of the rights of children in Bolivia. The CNNA is currently being revised. Children under
eleven are only allowed to perform light tasks, while the Code establishes a minimum working age of
fourteen years old and prohibits hazardous labour (work that is harmful to their development, health,
security or morals) for children from 14-18. The Code also recognizes unpaid work as labour.
The Political Constitution of the State
125
Felix Muruchi Guzmán (Caritas Potosí)
126
Silvia Escobar dne Pabon (El Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario(CEDLA))
127
Erán Nagán (Dutch Embassy Bolivia)
128
Monica Beltrán Sánchez (SOS Bolivia)
53

The new constitution (2007) prohibits forced work and the exploitation of children, as well as a child’s
right to physical, psychological and sexual integrity. Any work that is done must be done with
consent and for a just compensation. Commercial sexual violence – Bolivia was the first country to
use this term instead of commercial sexual exploitation - is a crime. 129
Anti-trafficking Law No. 3325
This law (Government of Bolivia, 2006) prohibits slavery, trafficking, smuggling in people and all
crimes related to these actions. It prescribes penalties of eight to twelve years imprisonment for
violators of this law. It has increased penalties further for offenses involving minors, organized
criminal groups and public employees responsible for protecting children.
The same law prohibits the prostitution of minors, pornography and obscene performances involving
children or soliciting children for these activities. The sentences imposed range from 4 to 9 years of
imprisonment if the victim is under 18 years of age.
The above offenses have been included in the Criminal Code of Bolivia. The following criminal acts
have been added to the criminal code: slavery and trafficking in human beings; pornography and
obscene performances involving children; and soliciting children and adolescents.
Hazardous work
The law prohibits children from 14 to 17 from taking part in hazardous activities including carrying
heavy loads, working underground, working with toxins, or working at night. There is a list of
prohibited occupations included in the Children and Adolescent Act (Government of Bolivia, art.
133-135)
According to the NGO Anti-Slavery International, the sugar cane harvest is hazardous, while the
Brazil-nut industry is heavy work and therefore unacceptable for children under 14. Many of the
activities in mining, such as carrying heavy loads, working underground, handling toxic chemical
substances, explosives and inflammables, exposure to toxic gases, working in high temperatures and
without adequate ventilations, are dangerous and therefore prohibited for anyone under the age of
eighteen (Anti-Slavery 2006).
Regulations to Remunerated Agricultural Labour decree that children below the age of fourteen are
prohibited from working and children younger than eighteen are not allowed to handle heavy
machinery, tractors, steam engines, harvesters, heavy or dangerous machines or machines that can
endanger the physical or psychological integrity of the child.
3. Forms
a. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of
children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict
Trafficking
Bolivia is a country of origin, transit and destination for the national, regional and international
trafficking of men, women and children. People are trafficked for the purposes of bonded labour,
commercial sexual exploitation, sale of organs, smuggling and adoption. Santa Cruz, Cochabamba
129
Ruth Montano Suárez (Lawyer for victims of trafficking)
54

and La Paz are regions experiencing a high incidence of trafficking, often related to the sexual
exploitation of children and women. 130
Argentina is the principal destination for trafficking in migrants. Bolivians are also being trafficked to
Brazil, Chile, Peru, Spain and the United States for forced labour in sweatshops, factories and
agriculture. 131 Girls are trafficked to Peru for commercial sexual exploitation and trafficked from Chile
and Argentina to Bolivia for the same purpose. 132
The most vulnerable groups to trafficking are children and adolescents. Within this group, children
from broken families - single parent families, abandoned or neglected children, children fostered out
to relatives, etc. - are even more vulnerable as they are more likely to have already experienced other
kinds of violence and exploitation and to live on the streets. Other groups vulnerable to trafficking
include people in isolated rural areas, living and working in miserable conditions and who dream of a
better life in the cities. 133
Most victims of trafficking in Bolivia range from eight to eighteen years old 134 and have had some
education; from primary up to the secondary level. The main reason for becoming a victim of
trafficking is economic necessity and most victims of trafficking are living in poverty. This does not
however mean that there is a direct causal relationship between poverty and trafficking. The primary
contributing factors in Bolivia are experiences of interfamilial violence or dissatisfaction with family
life. 135
Traffickers often recruit their victims from rural areas, luring parents in with false promises of an
education, food, stability – in short, a better future for their children. Sometimes the family is actively
involved in the process of victimizing their own children by sending them to work in unsupervised
conditions, or even by selling them. Children are also enticed, abducted and voluntarily accompany
recruiters 136 into devastating situations of exploitation and bonded labour.
One of the difficulties involved in eradicating trafficking and related forms of exploitation is that
work, in the most general sense of the word, does not have negative connotations. Children do not
consider themselves to be victims and have no knowledge of the law or human rights and so do not
speak up. Other children do not report exploitation out of fear of consequences to themselves or their
families. 137
Domestic labour
Domestic labour is often an invisible form of exploitation. Children engaged in domestic labour live
in isolation at the homes where they work and are generally paid in kind, for example, clothes, food,
and in the best scenarios, access to education. Their tasks include cleaning, cooking, laundry, taking
care of younger children, caring for livestock and collecting wood. Mental, physical and sexual abuse
is common. Domestic workers generally work eight hours per day and are mostly girls between 12
and 17 years old, but there are domestic labourers entering into service as young as six. Many
children come from rural areas to work in the cities, leaving them cut off from their families and
130
Ruth Montano Suárez (Lawyer for victims of trafficking), Lic. Adolfo Cardenas Machicado (Policía Nacional
La Paz)
131
Ruth Montano Suárez (Lawyer for victims of trafficking)
132
Lic. Adolfo Cardenas Machicado (Policía Nacional La Paz)
133
Ruth Montano Suárez (Lawyer for victims of trafficking)
134
Lic. Adolfo Cardenas Machicado (Policía Nacional La Paz)
135
Mr. Nestor Villca Conde (Policía Boliviana)
136
Mr. Nestor Villca Conde (Policía Boliviana)
137
Mr. Nestor Villca Conde (Policía Boliviana)
55

stranded in an unknown environment. Children in Bolivia enter domestic work for a variety of
reasons. The combination of poverty and the promise of a better future sometimes compels parents to
send their children into domestic work. Other children decide to enter it of their own accord and
many have been trafficked into domestic service. Child domestic workers are often excluded from
education, worsening their sense of isolation. There are no laws regulating the working conditions of
child domestic workers. 138
b. Involvement of children in prostitution, production of pornography or pornographic
performances
Commercial sexual exploitation is a crime in Bolivia; it is considered a form of sexual violence that
must be penalized. There is currently a worldwide debate about whether this type of exploitation
should be referred to as commercial sexual violence and Bolivia is at the forefront in using this new
terminology.
Commercial and non-commercial sexual violence is a large and escalating problem in Bolivia. 139 There
are children as young as five involved in prostitution. 140 The youngest children generally bring in the
most money, as some clients will pay $100 for a sexual experience with a five-year old. Girls are often
victimized at a younger age than boys and by the age of eighteen are already considered old for this
type of work. Even though 90% of child prostitutes are girls, boys from the age of twelve are also
often exposed to sexual exploitation. Their clients are often rich women or gay men. Many children
involved in commercial sex work do not earn money, as their fee goes directly to their pimp.
Commercial sexual exploitation occurs overall in Bolivia; it can be found in all neighbourhoods, not
only within brothels, discos and bars, but also within offices and homes. El Alto, located just outside
of La Paz, is an area particularly known for commercial sexual exploitation. 141
Children living in poverty are especially vulnerable to sexual exploitation, as are street children,
runaways and abandoned and abused children. However neglected children in search of the affection
lacking at home are also highly vulnerable. As a result, the commercial sexual exploitation of children
in Bolivia is usually not attributed directly to poverty, but rather to numerous social factors whose
impact may be compounded by poverty. Lack of adult supervision also contributes to high levels of
sexual exploitation, as parents are not aware of what their children are doing while they are at work.
Children often fear that if they did report the sexual abuse there would be repercussions to
themselves or their families; children are also blackmailed and intimidated by their exploiters to keep
quiet. If children are too young to understand what is happening to them, they cannot identify
themselves as victims, and later, when they do understand, they experience the devastating emotions
of shame and humiliation. In reality, all Bolivian children should be considered as vulnerable to
sexual exploitation.
Commercial sexual exploitation of children is only now starting to come out of the shadows and the
legislation around it is very new, so there is a necessity to raise awareness among the police and the
judiciary about what commercial sexual exploitation actually is and how to deal with it. It can be
difficult to bring cases to a close, as a lot of weight is placed on the testimony of the victim and
children are often unwilling to speak up. Corrupt police and lawyers also hamper these cases. 142 A
138
Monica Beltrán Sánchez (SOS Bolivia), Susana Ayllon (Jiska Pankarita), Marco Antonio Santillan (Centro
Educativo Nanta)
139
Lic. Lidia Rodriguez (Defensor del Pueblo La Paz)
140
Susana Ayllon (Jiska Pankarita)
141
Cecilia Erostegui (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
142
Susana Ayllon (Jiska Pankarita)
56

special and inter-disciplinary committee has recently been formed to give protection and legal
support to victims of sexual violence.
c. Hazardous work: work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried
out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children
It is common for children living in cities, either alone or with their families, to take to the streets to
earn a living. They shine shoes; carry luggage at airports and bus terminals; wash and guard cars; sell
newspapers, plastic bags, fruit and drinks on the streets and in the markets; are voceadores (people
who ride busses and shout out the destinations), and handle garbage. Children often work in
unhygienic and dangerous environments with no supervision. Some children start working on the
streets as young as six but, for example in Sucre, most are between ten and thirteen years old and the
majority are boys. 143 Much of the remaining hazardous child labour in Bolivia takes place in the mines
and during the sugarcane and Brazil-nut harvests. In the above cases, children accompany their
parents from a young age and live in substandard conditions, with inadequate access to education
and health care.
Cemetery
There are about 300 children working at the main cemetery of Cochabamba, all are at risk of abuse,
exploitation and trafficking. Almost all of the cemetery workers are children; 9% are younger than
ten, 43% are aged 11 to 13, 21% are aged 14 to 17, and 27% are 18 years old and above. These children
carry out a variety of tasks: fetching water for flowers, praying, cleaning the gravestones, shining
shoes, selling flowers, guarding and washing cars, selling sweets and cigarettes, and simple
construction work. The majority of these children live with both parents, but many live only with
their mother. They are generally from low-income families, defined as earning around $100 per
month, but 91% of the children working at the cemetery are attending school. 144
Brazil-nut industry
The North Amazonian region is almost entirely dependent on the Brazil-nut harvest and industry. It
is an isolated area lacking basic services such as water and electricity and receives a low level of
public investment. About half of the population living in the Brazil-nut industry areas are children.
Typically, an adult is hired to collect nuts in the forest, but as they receive a piece-work payment, the
rest of the family is usually included in the labour process in order to increase the amount of units
completed, and hence the amount of money earned in a day. Whole families move to barracks during
the harvesting season, which runs from December until March. Each person directly hired usually
brings two or more family members along for the harvest. Since the children are not formally
contracted, it is difficult to say how many children are actually working for the Brazil-nut industry.
Children involved in the brazil-nut harvest live and work in sub-standard conditions. There is a little
opportunity for an education and difficult access to education facilities where they do exist; a 10km
walk to school would not be unusual. Children also face various risks on their way to school and
discrimination at school. Moreover, there is no formal recreation, a lack of adequate housing and
limited access to basic services; 80% of families in the Amazonian region sleep in one room, 4% have
no formal shelter, 88.6% lack electricity and 52% have no toilet facilities. During the harvest, children
are active in the picking and accumulation of the fruit, extraction and selection of the nut and
transportation to primary collection centres (Ministry of Labour, Employment and Welfare, 2009).
143
Marco Antonio Santillan (Centro Educativo Nanta)
144
Mr. Cristóbel Gonzales Ugalda (Audiovisuales Educativos (AVE))
57

They work with machetes, exposing them to a high risk of injury and receive blows and fractures
from falling fruit, which can be fatal. They are also exposed to insect, snake and scorpion bites and
attacks by wild animals. 145
The CNNA explicitly forbids the use of children for the harvesting of Brazil nuts, as it considers the
activities involved to be dangerous and unhealthy. However, a study by the Ministry of Labour,
Employment and Welfare, in collaboration with UNICEF and HIVOS (2009), indicates that 49% of all
children from seven years onwards were involved in some kind of activity related to the collection of
Brazil nuts. Seventy-three percent of adolescents and 60.9% of children between 10 and 13 years old
were engaged in this labour. Furthermore, this study states that 4600 children who accompany their
parents to the barracks end up working during the harvest. Ninety-eight percent of the Brazil-nut
harvest is exported, making this industry heavily dependent on shifts in international demand and
prices.
Mining
Mining takes place in the least developed areas of the country: northern Amazonia, Oruro and
Potosí. 146 Children make up almost 50% of population living in these areas and about 10% of the
38,600 people currently working in the mines. 147 Children younger than twelve are often paid in kind;
in exchange for a percentage of the load or the remainder of the extracted minerals. Adolescents can
earn Bs200, or roughly €20 per month, constituting, on average, 14% of the total domestic income.
There are no regular inspections of working conditions or employment practices in the mines.
There are more than 6500 children working in the mining sector in and around Potosí; an estimated
1200 to 1500 inside the mines. Poverty is the main contributing factor to child labour in the mines.
Most of the children are migrants from the countryside, with low levels of education and few
alternatives to work; their parents also suffer a lack of employment opportunities. 148 About 800
children and adolescents work at the Cerro Rico mines. The majority of them are from mining
families going back generations. 149 Children generally do not go to school due to a lack of access to
educational materials, large distances to school, malnutrition, abuse and discrimination by teachers
and other students and the many possibilities of work in and around the mines.
Mining families are large; contraception is rarely used in this macho culture. The father often dies at
young age from occupational illnesses, such as silicosis, leaving the older children to take on the
responsibility of providing for the household. Some parents see mining as a way of giving their
children a skill to rely on in the future, while others view it as dangerous and regretful, but see no
other choice for their children.
The older boys will work alongside their fathers and the other men in the mines, while the younger
children, from the age of six, carry rocks and tools out of the mines or work on the edge of the mines
collecting rocks. Sometimes children from the ages of 8 to 12 are sent down small mine shafts to carry
tools, extract minerals and to set up and explode dynamite. Boys and, in some instances, girls move
the full mining carts out of the mines or carry the heavy loads on their backs inside the mines without
carts, taking it to be processed.
Young boys, girls and women are primarily employed in the processing stage, which is largely done
by hand, with the exception of the largest mines. The tool used for processing is a crescent-shaped
145
Silvia Escobar dne Pabon (El Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario(CEDLA))
146
Silvia Escobar dne Pabon (El Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario(CEDLA))
147
Patricia Benvenuti (UNICEF)
148
Roberto Fernandez (KinderNotHilfe)
149
Ana Maria Janco (CARE)
58

stone weighing up to 60 kg. Small rocks are placed on a metal plate and the stone is used to grind
them down. Once this is done, the rocks are rinsed off in a large metal barrel with a sieve separating
rock from mineral. In the next stage, children use toxic chemicals to grind down what is left of the
rocks in order to extract the remaining minerals. They do not use any protective clothing and risk
being burnt by the chemicals and harmed by the toxic fumes they inhale. Children often complain of
feeling weak and nauseous after carrying out this task. The collected minerals are then polished and
shined. Children work eight to ten hours per day, typically earning Bs15 to 30 (€1.5 to 3) per day.
There are many risks involved in mining work. Accidents occur while using dynamite and due to
falling rocks inside the mines. Due to a lack of ventilation, workers inside the mines inhale rock dust
and other toxic fumes, such as mercury and sulphur, which is also absorbed through the skin.
Repeated exposure to dynamite blasts often leads to a loss of hearing and the heavy loads and
cramped working conditions commonly lead to back, muscle and bone problems. Outside of the
mines, accidents involving the heavy processing stone also occur and children occasionally fall on the
steep and precarious mine surfaces. Respiratory problems and rheumatism are common. The hard
work also affects the natural development of children, causing unusual numbers of children with
retarded physical development, deformations, low self-esteem, socialization problems and low
performance in schools to be found within the mining communities. Another risk found within the
mining communities arises from the high level of alcohol abuse and regular consumption of coca
leaves, which leads to social problems such as the excessive use of violence and sexual abuse within
and outside the family unit.
The Bolivian government does little to protect the mine workers. Existing laws need to be converted
into concrete regulations in order for them to have any effect. Mining companies need to take
responsibility by protecting their workers from exploitation and providing them with health
insurance. The police should monitor the mines, but currently do not due to low capacity and low
salaries. 150
Sugarcane harvest
The Bolivian government considers work during the sugarcane harvest to be one of the worst forms
of child labour (IREWOC 2008). Every year between April/May and November, approximately 35,500
people move to the sugarcane regions to work during the harvest (UNICEF: 2). Even though there has
been a decrease in the number of families working in the sugarcane harvest, there are still 2800
migrant camps and 350 large agricultural estates serving the industry 151 . There are an estimated
10,000 (IREWOC 2008) to 25,000 152 children aged 9 to 13 working in the sugarcane harvest in Bolivia.
In Santa Cruz, 7000 children are involved; of whom about half are below the age of fourteen
(UNICEF: 2).
Most of the families working during the harvest are form Santa Cruz, Chuquisca, Potosí, Oruro, Tarija
and La Paz. More than half of the harvest workers are temporary migrants. The decrease in the
number of people necessary to harvest sugarcane over the years has naturally also lead to a decrease
in child labour as well.
As with the mining industry, the children are generally not contracted directly, but accompany their
fathers to the fields. They live and work in harsh and precarious conditions, 40° C is not unusual, for
twelve hours a day, often without a proper meal and with few protective measures against injuries
150
Roberto Fernandez (KinderNotHilfe)
151
Lidia Mayser (Sub-commission for the Eradication of Child Labour)
152
Lic. Lidia Rodriguez (Defensor del Pueblo La Paz)
59

and diseases. An adult earns Bs60-100 per day and a child Bs30-35 per day. Malnutrition, influenza,
diarrhoea and anaemia among children are common maladies. 153
The work being done by children during the sugarcane harvest varies from camp to camp, but
generally boys from the age of fourteen are involved in all activities, including burning, cutting, detopping,
stacking and loading. Girls typically work either on the land or as cooks for the field
workers. There are not many children below the age of fourteen working during the harvest in most
sugarcane areas. However, in Bermejo, children younger than twelve still harvest sugarcane, working
a few hours a day or at the weekends, but still being exposed to the risks associated with carrying
heavy loads and handling machetes.
Since the sugarcane harvest is seasonal, workers migrate from various districts to the sugarcane areas.
This migration disrupts children’s education on an annual basis; sometimes they will drop out of
school altogether. The camps set up for migrant workers are, in many cases, located in remote areas
further hindering children’s school attendance rates. In some regions, up to 90% of the children do
not go to school. Schools are frequently too far away and families often move from one camp to the
other, making school attendance problematic. Other factors hindering school attendance are financial
limitations, a lack of facilities for secondary education and a perceived lack of relevance, as jobs such
as harvesting are the most common (IREWOC, 2008). There is a high drop-out rate; 30% of all
children above the age of thirteen no longer receive any formal education. 154
Labour inspectors rarely visit the sugarcane farms and when the responsible authorities do make a
visit there is often a lack of follow-up or continuity afterwards. There is a dependency on the policies
set by the centralized government in La Paz which has little understanding of the real situation in the
harvest areas. 155
4. Interventions
a. The Government
The 2000 - 2010 National Plan for the Progressive Eradication of Child Labour is an ILO sponsored
project aimed at children and adolescents working in the sugarcane, mining and Brazil-nut industries,
as well as child domestic servants and commercial sex workers in urban areas. This National Plan has
three objectives: firstly, the total eradication of the worst types of child labour; secondly, the
progressive eradication of work among children under the age of fourteen; and thirdly, the regulation
and protection of working children aged 14 to 19. 156 A special inter-institutional committee (CEPTI)
was established to implement this National Plan. Research about the characteristics of child labour is
currently being processed with the help of the ILO. This should provide reliable up-to-date data, as
well as more information about the specific living, working and health conditions of working
children. The National Plan for the Progressive Eradication of Child Labour has not yet been
completed due to a lack of resources and suffers from a permanent lack of inter-institutional
cooperation. 157
The National Development Plan is aimed at eradicating poverty, social inequality and social exclusion
and expresses an intent to work towards a gradual elimination of child labour.
153
Lic. Lidia Rodriguez (Defensor del Pueblo La Paz)
154
Lic. Lidia Rodriguez (Defensor del Pueblo La Paz)
155
Lidia Mayser (Sub-commission for the Eradication of Child Labour)
156
Eva Udaeta (Commission for the Progressive Elimination of Child Labour (CEPTI))
157
Lic. Lidia Rodriguez (Defensor del Pueblo La Paz)
60

The Municipal Department of Labour Offices and the Defensoría de la Niñez y Adolescencia are in
charge of child protection in Bolivia. The Defensoría de la Niñez y Adolescencia is an organization that
supports victims of trade, trafficking, sexual abuse, violence, and the like with psychological and legal
assistance from lawyers, psychologists and social workers. 158 The Defensorías work to stimulate childfocused
public policies regarding health, education, justice and protection; strengthen the Defensorías
at the municipal level; draw attention to protocols within the legal framework; and build capacity at
the national level. Programmes have been established by Defensorías to help children in various
municipalities and departmental commissions have been created for the benefit of children. A special
and inter-disciplinary committee has been formed in order to provide protection and legal support to
victims of commercial and non-commercial sexual violence in Santa Cruz, Cochabamba, Tarija and
Sucre. Furthermore, awareness-raising campaigns are being carried out to address violence at schools
and the Ministry of Education is devising a plan to change the way children are being disciplined by
teachers.
The above agencies have been criticized for not responding to the requests of working children,
reaching the target population, addressing structural causes of child labour or protecting the labour
rights of working adolescents over the age of fourteen (Terre des Hommes 2008: 35-36). The
objectives of the National Plan for the Progressive Eradication of Child Labour have not been
adequately prioritized by the Defensoría de la Niñez y Adolescencia. Moreover, they face a lack of
institutionalization, which limits the continuity of their actions and the effectiveness of their results.
Little has been done in the smaller provinces of Bolivia due to a lack of resources and infrastructure. 159
In 2006, 41% of the 327 municipalities had not yet established Defensorías (Defensoría del Pueblo
2009).
The Platform for Children and Adolescents, launched in 2007, is an initiative by forty organizations
and institutions to make joint and integrated efforts to guarantee the rights of minors.
Trafficking
Legislation is in place to combat trafficking, but the implementation is lacking. This legislation
includes provisions for the creation of a national database on human-trafficking crime statistics, as
well as for information on missing children. It has also lead to the creation of anti-trafficking police
units in La Paz, El Alto, Santa Cruz and Cochabamba. 160 The government, police and Defensoría del
Pueblo are not doing enough to fight trafficking due to a lack of capacity, money and specialized
knowledge on the issue. The trafficking division of the national police has only seven officials and one
car. 161
There has been an increase in the reporting of trafficking cases 162 , but there is still a need for more
information to better understand the nature of trafficking and a need to raise the awareness of the
general public about its dangers. Increased public awareness will serve as a preventative measure
against trafficking, but it should also result in higher incidences of reported cases, leading to the
higher visibility of the issue and an enhanced capability of the police to act against it. Families,
especially women, need to be empowered against trafficking and protection mechanisms for potential
victims need to be strengthened. The development of inter-institutional criminal policies would also
aid in the fight against trafficking.
158
Mr. Nestor Villca Conde (Policia Boliviana)
159
Lic. Lidia Rodriguez (Defensor del Pueblo La Paz)
160
Mr. Nestor Villca Conde (Policía Boliviana)
161
Ruth Montano Suarez (Abogada Trata y tráfico), Lic. Adolfo Cardenas Machicado (Policía Nacional La Paz)
162
Mr. Nestor Villca Conde (Policía Boliviana)
61

According to CNNA, people under the age of eighteen can only travel abroad with the permission of
one of their parents or by authorization through a judge, in order to guarantee their return. The
Defensoría del Pueblo has nevertheless registered many cases that did not comply with this rule. In
2006, more than 15,000 children left the country, most of them illegally. In 2007, the Ministry of Justice
launched a committee in the Villazón border region to bring these abuses under control and many
judges in this area have been fined or replaced (Defensoría del Pueblo 2009).
b. Non-Governmental Organizations
Terre des Hommes - NL has implemented several initiatives addressing child exploitation in Bolivia
in order to improve access to education and training and child organization and participation. TdH-
NL works against intra-family violence by training public officials about this issue and by
strengthening the public reporting system. Through its interventions, TdH-NL is also working
towards the improvement of the judicial system. It is currently difficult to bring perpetrators of
violence to justice in Bolivia, as the burden of proof lies with the victim. Furthermore TdH-NL’s
education programme hopes to address some of the cultural aspects of child labour, especially the
mindset found primarily in rural areas that views work rather than school as a fundamental part of a
child’s education and preparation for life (Terre des Hommes 2008: 35-36) .
Sexual violence against children is being addressed by different NGOs, for example by CUBE,
through direct support for the victims, formation of networks to strengthen child protection,
information dissemination and data collection; all with the aim of influencing policies. 163
UNICEF, the Netherlands’ development agency HIVOS, DNI and Plan International have all been
identified as influential organizations working for children’s rights in Bolivia. 164 UNICEF is working
to eliminate child labour during the sugarcane harvest by calling attention to child protection issues,
improving working conditions and reducing the demand for child labour. Over the past four years,
UNICEF has facilitated access to primary schools and provided tutoring, school materials and health
care to children living in the harvest camps. They are also working to increase the knowledge and
visibility of child protection-related issues by cooperating with relevant actors such as the Defensorías,
health-care centres and schools. As per a UNICEF and Ministry of Labour initiative, within the
framework of the National Plan for the Progressive Eradication of Child Labour, a declaration was
signed in 2005 by thirty sugarcane industry entrepreneurs. This declaration formalizes the
commitment of sugarcane businesses and workers to the education, health care, recreation, and the
physical and mental development of children and adolescents, denouncing the hiring of children
below the legal minimum age and guaranteeing dignified working conditions. 165
DNI Bolivia is active in La Paz, El Alto, Oruro, Cochabamba and Santa Cruz and it uses direct
interventions, advocacy and lobbying, research and monitoring, and training and capacity building as
its main strategies for combating children’s rights violations in Bolivia. 166 CARE Potosí, the Ministry
of Education, Cepromin, the Teachers Training Institute and the National Commission for the
Eradication of Child Labour are working together to serve mining families in Potosí. The programme
hopes to develop a variety of skills and alternative education services for child miners, improve the
literacy and knowledge about the rights of female miners and improve the mining families’ average
income through the development of small alternative income sources. 167
163
Group interview CUBE staff
164
Silvia Escobar dne Pabon (El Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario(CEDLA))
165
Anival Melgar (Federación de Cañeros Santa Cruz)
166
Nancy Tames (Defence for Children International (DNI) Bolivia)
167
Ana Maria Janco (CARE)
62

CARE Bolivia initiated the Proyecto Eliminación Progresiva y Prevención del Trabajo Infanto-Adolescente
Minero (PETIM – Project for the Progressive Elimination and Prevention of Child and Adolescent
Labour in Mining) in 2002. It aims to fight against poverty and social exclusion through education,
creating development strategies and improving the quality of life. The goal is to contribute to the
prevention and progressive elimination of child labour in Cerro Rico de Potosí and Distrito Minero de
Siglo XX, through the improvement of the quality and relevance of education and social mobilization.
The project is directed at six- to seventeen-year-old children who were associated with mining
activities and lacked access to quality education. Their objectives are to sensitize families about the
risks of child labour and the importance of education as a preventive measure, as well as looking for
alternative ways to generate and increase income. The project reaches almost seven thousand
children and adolescents; 602 working in mines and 6250 in the mining industry. Ten percent of the
children working in the mines were taken out of work. Furthermore, the project achieved the
inclusion of these children into the development of the curriculum, the construction of innovative
learning environments and the development of inventive learning methods. Moreover, it helped
achieve the promotion of boys active in mining to the industries’ technical branches and supported
productive initiatives for the mothers of miners. Finally, the project made efforts to add to
policymaking on education.
5. Recommendations by respondents
In order to fight the causes of child labour in Bolivia, there is a need for increased employment
opportunities for adults, stronger implementation of relevant laws, stricter monitoring of rights’
violations, better health provisions and improved access to education. Lack of political will and
structural impediments, such as the symbolic role of the state and the lack of policies to improve the
living conditions of Bolivians, underlie the weak implementation of laws meant to protect children
from exploitation. 168 A lack of human and financial resources also hinders the implementation and
monitoring of laws.
The empowerment of women and the creation of more opportunities for women will be necessary to
improve the child labour situation. There is also a general need for advocacy in order to increase
public awareness about, and visibility of, the harmful effects and scope of child labour. Convincing
parents about the benefits of formal education is necessary in order to bring about a change in
attitudes towards education and increase enrolment rates. It is important to empower children so that
they are able to stand up for themselves by disseminating information about their rights.
Due to the widespread and common nature of domestic violence against children and the links made
between this kind of abuse and the susceptibility of children to other types of exploitation, it is
necessary to run information and awareness campaigns in order to bring about a change in attitudes,
traditions, policies and relevant laws.
Sustainable, integral and participatory interventions are necessary to bring about a shift in national
cultural perspectives and practices. Schools should be kept in mind as a useful tool for this purpose.
Although there are many NGOs working on child labour issues in Bolivia, a lack of co-operation
among them and between them and the government is constraining the impacts of these efforts.
168
Silvia Escobar dne Pabon (El Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo Laboral y Agrario(CEDLA))
63

There is a need to raise awareness among local authorities about the national laws and international
conventions regarding the rights of children and the prohibition of child labour that have been
ratified by Bolivia. Information on labour rights should be widely disseminated. Authorities must
take into account the impact of poverty, cultural traditions and organizational weaknesses when
designing and implementing development policies.
To improve the functioning of the Defensorías, sufficient resources need to be made available and staff
need to be better trained. There is a need for continuity, social effectiveness and collaboration with
other public and private actors to ensure a sufficient level of performance and sustainability by the
Defensoría. A comprehensive vision that integrates work, education and health care is needed to
effectively support working children.
Generally the Brazil-nut harvest is not included in various legislations concerning agricultural work.
Therefore, those who work in the Brazil-nut industry should be incorporated into the General Labour
Law in order to have their labour rights recognized. The prohibition of child labour during the Brazilnut
harvest should be included into legislation, such as the Code for Boys, Girls and Adolescents and
it should be prioritized in the National Plan for the Progressive Eradication of Child Labour. In order
to ensure the progressive eradication of child labour during the Brazil-nut harvest, there is a need for
sensitization about child labour rights as well as the creation of labour unions, strengthening of
labour organizations and their negotiation capacities and the provision of training sessions about
labour rights.
6. Bibliography
Anti-Slavery, The worst forms of child labour in Bolivia (2006) www.antislavery.org
Defensoría del Pueblo. La defensa de los derechos humanos un compromise con la vida. La Paz: 2009.
Government of Bolivia, Ley del Código del Niño, Niña y Adolescente, Ley No. 2026, (October 27,
1999). Accessed April 4, 2010:
www.ilo.org/public/spanish/region/ampro/cinterfor/temas/youth/legisl/bol/iii/index.htm
Government of Bolivia, Constitución Política del Estado.
Government of Bolivia, Ley 3325: Trata y Trafico de Personas y Otros Delitos Relacionados, (January
18, 2006); as retrieved from:
http://www.bolivialegal.com/modules/Sileg/pdfphp.phpnumero=6&dbname=slb402.
INFANTE. 2009. Recovering Little Stars From the Community. Terre des Hommes, The Hague.
IREWOC, 2008. Van den Berge, M., Baas, L., Ensing, A. & Quiroz, L. The Worst Forms of Child
Labour in Latin America: Identification and Policy Options. Main findings from Guatemala,
Bolivia and Peru.
Ministry of Labour, Employment and Welfare, CEDLA, HIVOS & UNICEF. Sin tiempo para soñar.
Situación de los niños, niñas, adolescentes y sus familias en la zafra y el beneficiado de la castaña.
2009.
Terre des Hommes. 2008. Annual Report, Bolivia
64

UNICEF Progress for Children: An assessment of the progress for children nr. 8, Information Summary
Bolivia. As retrieved from: www.unicef.org/bolivia/Bolivia_-_Progress_for_Children_-
_Protection.pdf
USDOL & CARE. De la Mina a la Escuela: Tendiendo Puentes y Caminos para la Eliminación del Trabaj
o Infantil-Adolescente Minero en Bolivia. La Paz: 2006.
U.S. Department of State, "Country Reports – 2006: Bolivia," Section 6d.
UDAPE, Quinto Informe de Progreso 2008, Objetivos de Desarrollo del Milenio en Bolivia
7. List of respondents
Mrs. Maria Leonor Quiedo Bellott, advocate, CUBE, 1. October
Veronica Roque, coordinator, CUBE, 1. October
Julia Vasquez and Bertha Quinteros, prevention sector, CUBE, 1. October
Interview Mr. Cristóbel Gonzales Ugalda, Program coordinator- Espacio Niño, AVE , 2. October
Ruth Montano Suárez, Abogada Trata y tráfico, 5. October
Maria del Carmen Villarroel Z, Coordinator, INFANTE – Casa de la Mujer y de las Estrellitas Waritas,
6. October
Lorena Yanez, Executive Director, INFANTE - Trata y Tráfico, 7. October
Mr. Néstor Villca Conde, Policia Boliviana fuerza Especial de lucha contra el crimen, Jefe de división
trata y tráfico de personas, 8. October
Defensoria Municipio Cochabamba, (Cira Castro), 9. October
La Paz
Silvia Escobar dne Pabón, Researcher, CEDLA, 12. October
Patricia Benvenuti, UNICEF, 12. October
Erán Nagán, Segundo Secretario Encargado de Asuntos Políticos Cultura y Prensa, The Netherlands
Embassy, 13. October
Monica Beltrán Sánchez, Coordinadora Regional de Promoción y Defensa de Derechos de la Infancia,
Aldeas Infantiles SOS Bolivia, 13. October
Eva Udaeta, Comisionada Eradication Progresiva Trabajo Infantil, CEPTI, 14. October
Willma Valasco, Vision Mundial, 14. October
Susana Ayllon, Jiska Pankarita, 15. October
M. Marisable Paz Céspedes, Director, CEBIAE, 15. October
Karen Flores, Voces Vitales, 15. October
Lic. Lidia Rodríguez, Defensor del Pueblo La Paz, 16. October
Lic. Adolfo Cárdenas Machicado, Direccion Departemental Fuerza Especial De Lucha Contra el
Crimen La Paz, Policia Nacional, 16. October
Cecilia Erostegui, Cancilleria, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 16. October
65

Sucre
Sister Cira, Centro Santa Clothilde, 19. October
Albert Roelsma and Randi Vat, Chicos de los Andes, 19. October
Marco Antonio Santillán, Centro Educativo Nanta, 20. October
Flores family at Centro Educativo Nanta, 20. October
Hugo Clemente, at Centro Educativo Nanta, 20.October
Lila Carrasco, Lourdes Prieto and Maria Esther Padilla, Defensoria de la Ninez, 20. October
Cochabamba
Nancy Tames, DNI Cochabamba, 28. October
Karina Ribera, director, and Sheila Marinez Alarcón, co-ordinator ‘Centro Trabajadoras’, Mosoj Yan,
28. October
Sandra Vega , co-ordinator ‘Centro de Motivación’, Mosoj Yan, 29. October
Save the Children, 30. October
Ana Maria Janco, Care Potosi, 3. November
Felix Muruchi Guzmán, executive director, Pastoral Social Caritas Potosi, 3. November
Luz Rivera, Responsable proyectos NATS, Pastoral Social Caritas Potosi, 3. November
Interviews with child labourers, Potosi, 3. November
Wilver La Fuente, UNICEF Potosi, 4. November
Roberto Fernandez, co-ordinator ‘Saber Nuevo’, KinderNotHilfe, 4. November
Santa Cruz
Omar Pinho, Defensoria de la Ninez, 5. November
Anival Melgar, director, Federacion de Caneros Santa Cruz, 5. November
Lidia Mayser, co-ordinator ‘subcomisión departamental de erradicación del trabajo infantil,’ 6.
November
66

Peru
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation
Child labour appears to be on the rise in Peru, but statistics vary greatly 169 . An analysis of ILO,
UNICEF and World Bank studies by Understanding Children’s Work (UCW) placed the working rate
of children, aged 6 to 17, at 22% in the year 2000. According to a National Household Survey
(ENAHO) in 2001, about two million, or almost 29% of people under the age of eighteen, were
working; 61% were children aged 6 to 13 years, and 39% were between 14 and 17 years. Seventy
percent of child labourers were living in the rural areas of Peru at this time. The main types of work
done by children are agricultural (65%), helping with a family business or at the market (11%),
domestic work (6%) and mechanics, construction, cleaning, or mining (18%). 170 According to a 2007
ILO and INEI study, about 3.3 million, or 42% of people between 5 and 17 years old, are working.
Several root causes of child labour have been identified in Peru. Poverty is one, but arguably not the
most important factor. Poverty has been decreasing at the macrolevel, but this has made little
difference to the lives of most Peruvians. 171 One reason for this lack of impact is the large size of
Peruvian families; limited household resources still have to be stretched to the limit. As with a
number of other countries studied for this report, children’s work in Peru is seen as part of their
education and socialization. This cultural factor is a significant and deeply ingrained reason for the
perpetuation of child labour. It is common for children to start helping out around the house as soon
as they are able and to accompany their parents to work from a very young age. It is in this manner
that cultural values and practical agricultural knowledge are passed on to the next generation.
The low quality of education and the lack of relevance education carries for ordinary lives reinforces
the cultural perspectives of the role of work for children. The school year does not run parallel to the
harvesting season and the education system does nothing to convince parents that their children
would be better off in school 172 . The lack of options available beyond primary school, indirect
education costs such as uniforms and textbooks and a lack of faith in the education system are some
of the reasons children do not attend school. 173 Language can also be a barrier for children in rural
areas, where the mother tongue is generally not Spanish, the language of instruction at formal schools
(ILO/INEI 2007). Many working children have parents with low levels of education and so may have
no direct experience with the benefits of a formal education. 174 There is also a common belief that as
long as children stay busy they will not become a burden or a danger to society and work is often the
most viable option for keeping a child busy throughout the day. Social inequalities combine with
cultural factors to further compound the problem, as the wealthier view child labour as a form of
social control over the poor and their potentially problematic offspring. As long as all economic
segments of society view child labour as acceptable, nothing of any significance is going to change. 175
Family instability is identified as a further significant factor making children vulnerable to
exploitation. The death or separation of parents, alcoholism, a lack of parental affection and family
169
Maria Luisa Rodriguez Campos (ILO-IPEC)
170
From: Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP) Project Renewal Appplication
171
Ada Meija (Via Libre)
172
Maria Luisa Rodriguez Campos (ILO-IPEC), Ada Meija (Via Libre)
173
Alejandro Cussianovich Villaran (MANTHOC-IFEJANT)
174
Isaac Ruiz (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
175
Isaac Ruiz (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP)), Dra. Mayda Ramos Ballon (Defensoría de
la Niñez y Adolescencia)
67

violence can leave children without a support network. 176 The majority of both sexual and physical
violence occurs within the home: sexual violence against children is usually perpetrated by a male
relative and physical violence most often by the mother. 177
Children in rural areas are identified as particularly vulnerable to exploitation. They are expected to
carry out many tasks around the house or on the land and a failure to fulfil them often results in
physical punishment. Girls in particular are given many responsibilities, such as taking care of
younger siblings, household chores and cooking; they generally face physical punishment or abuse
when this is not carried out properly (ILO-IPEC Estudio sobre el Aspecto Cultural en el Trabajo
Infantil en Peru).. Corporal punishment is common until the age of 12 to 14. Older children by
contrast are insulted, shouted at or threatened with being thrown out of the house(ILO/INEI 2007).
Children escaping these abusive situations generally end up living and working on the streets.
Families in rural areas often have many children and sending one or more of them to work outside of
their communities is a traditional survival strategy. Boys are often sent into the mines or forests,
whereas girls are sent to the cities for domestic work. Girls are often sent or given away at very young
ages, 7 or 8 years old is common, because it is believed that younger girls will adapt to their new
environment (ILO/INEI 2007).faster. Many children from rural communities do not have birth
certificates or other-such identity documents. This situation facilitates their recruitment as domestic
workers, but also increases their susceptibility to trafficking and smuggling for commercial sexual
exploitation. Without official identification, children can easily be made to disappear and are almost
impossible to track(ILO 2007).
Even though the majority of child labour takes place in the rural areas, there is a feeling that
government child labour policies are dominated by urban groups and concerns and that the rural
areas have been somewhat neglected. 178 The large range of geographical environments within Peru
bring additional consequences, for example the communities living in the higher Andes are more
dependent on the natural climate cycle and hence feel the impact of climate change more than the rest
of the country. 179
The current debate surrounding child labour in Peru focuses on whether child labour should be
eradicated or whether the monitoring process, work conditions and support for working children
should be improved. The official state position is total eradication. 180
National laws for the protection of children are in place, the problem lies with the implementation of
these laws. The main reasons for the lack of implementation are insufficient budget allocation, a lack
of continuity within the government and its policies 181 , the prioritization of other issues over those
concerning children and the absence of a strong civil society to pressure the government for change. 182
Furthermore, there is a lack of knowledge about the legal consequences of different forms of child
exploitation, as well as corruption among those responsible for bringing these cases to justice. 183 There
is not enough specialized knowledge among police, 184 health-care workers 185 or the staff members of
176
Ada Meija (Via Libre), Maria Angelica Chong (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
177
Sra. Matilde Becerra (Demuna Cajamarca), Paula Contreras (Demuna Baños del Inca)
178
Walter Alarcon
179
Ana Maria Marquez (Save the Children)
180
Roxana Davila (Ministry of Women and Social Development)
181
Maria Luisa Rodriguez Campos (ILO-IPEC)
182
Isaac Ruiz (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
183
Ada Meija (Via Libre)
184
Ada Meija (Via Libre), El Instituto de Investigacion y Capacitacion Profesional (IINCAP) Staff
185
Ana Maria Marquez (Save the Children)
68

children’s shelters 186 to effectively support exploited children. Re-victimization in cases of abuse and
exploitation is common and occurs due to a lack of sufficient protection measures within the juvenile
justice system and a lack of trained personnel at health-care facilities and shelters. 187 The socioinstitutional
consequences of the twenty-years-long conflict in Peru can be seen as a broader reason
for the insufficient implementation of existing laws. This is still a post-conflict country and even
though the situation is improving macro-economically, there is little concern or political will for
tackling social issues such as education, health care, employment opportunities and poverty
reduction. 188
The global economic crisis has had negative effects in Peru. The already existing inequality of wealth
distribution has continued to grow 189 and the poor and middle classes find it progressively harder to
earn a living. According to some sources, the amount of children that work out of necessity, in order
to support themselves or their families, has increased. Children are beginning to enter work at ever
younger ages and work longer hours to compensate for their low earnings. 190
2. Law and policy
The minimum age in non-industrial agriculture is 15, in the industrial, commercial and mining sector
it is 16, and in the industrial fishing sector it is 17 years. The minimum age for normal work in Peru is
14, while light work is permitted under restrictions and only with permission from the government.
The government authority will check that the work is not hazardous and not limiting to school
attendance and children between 12 and 14 may not work more than 4 hours per day or 24 hours per
week; children between 15 and 17 may not work more than 6 hours per day or more than 36 hours
per week. Children in non-paid work and in (paid or unpaid) child domestic work are allowed a daily
resting period of at least 12 hours and they must have access to education. 191 Heavy work that
includes physical hardships, toxic substances and unsafe situations is prohibited for children under
18 (US Department of Labour 2006). A list of hazardous work, including sex work and activities
linked to domestic work has been compiled (Decree of Ministry of Women and Development,
number 007-2006-Mindes) but is no longer valid.
National Plan for the Prevention and Eradication of Child Labour was created in 2005 to prevent and
eradicate child labour under the age of 14, and to protect the rights of workers between the ages of 14
and 18. This plan aims to provide inter-sectoral actions for children and adolescents: improve the
living conditions of families most likely to have children working, increase surveillance of economic
activities and areas of the country where child labour is common, improve reporting mechanisms
increase sanctions on those exploiting labour by children. This national plan considers child domestic
work to be ‘hazardous’ (ILO 2007).
Code of Children and Adolescents which recognizes the child’s right to work when this does not
involve exploitation, risk or danger, does not impede his or her educational process, and does not
interfere with the child’s physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social health. It grants jurisdiction to
local governments to authorize, register and supervise work carried out by children between 12 and
18 years old (ILO 2002). It sets the maximum hours of work for children between 12 and 14 years old
186
Dra. Mayda Ramos Ballon (Defensoría de la Niñez y Adolescencia), IINCAP Staff
187
Roxana Davila (Ministry of Women and Social Development)
188
Ellen Roof (Dutch Embassy Peru)
189
Ana Maria Marquez (Save the Children), Alejandro Cussianovich Villaran (MANTHOC-IFEJANT)
190
Alejandro Cussianovich Villaran (MANTHOC-IFEJANT)
191
Roxana Davila (Ministry of Women and Social Development)
69

at 4 hours a day. Children between 15 and 17 years old are allowed to work up to 6 hours a day. It
forbids night work, work under the ground (mines), and activities harmful to a child’s health (Ley
27571).
National Plan of Action for Children and Adolescents 2002-2010: focuses on improving the health of
children up to the age of 5, providing quality basic education for children aged 6 to 11, eliminating
the worst forms of child labour, preventing and eliminating child labour in general, and monitoring
the working conditions of children above the legal minimum age. 192
Peru has enacted anti-trafficking laws in 2007 and 2008 under the penal law, that punish trafficking
with up to 15 years imprisonment (USDOL 2006). Under this law, sexual exploitation of children is a
grave offence.
Both the possession and the distribution of child pornography is illegal. The penalties for
involvement in child pornography are 4 to 6 years jail time in cases where the victim is 14 to 18 years
old, 6 to 8 years if the victim is below the age of 14 years, and up to 12 years if the offender is a
government official, part of a criminal organisation or related to the victim. 193
The sexual abuse of children, especially those younger than 14 years old, is punished with longer
imprisonments.
The Law of Domestic Workers, issued in 2003, recognizes the labour rights of domestic workers,
including salary, social security and maximum working hours. For child domestic workers the work
cannot interfere with their education, and must meet the norms of the Code of Children and
Adolescents.
3. Forms
a. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of
children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict
Child domestic work
Although there are no official statistics, the Ministry of Labour estimates that 120,000 of the 700,000
domestic workers in Peru are children. 194 The preliminary results of a 2007 national survey about
child work in Peru indicate that the number of child domestic workers is currently increasing (Anti-
Slavery: Child Domestic Workers in Peru, 2009: 1).
Child domestic workers are often from migrant families, the majority are girls born into poverty and
many have experienced familial violence. Poverty compounded by a lack of economic prospects,
domestic violence, physical or sexual abuse, the absence of a father, the presence of violent male
family members, social exclusion or early pregnancies are all factors pushing Peruvian children into
domestic work (ILO/INEI 2007). Many children have been trafficked into domestic work under false
pretences. 195 The majority of child domestic workers in Peru have migrated from rural indigenous
communities to urban areas. The lack of opportunity for economic development in rural areas
provides significant motivation for becoming a domestic worker (ILO 2004). Some children hope to
192
Roxana Davila (Ministry of Women and Social Development)
193
Dimitri N. Senmache Artola and Johan Guisse Pinedo (Red Peruana contra la Pornografía Infantil)
194
Sofia Mauricio Basilio and Blanca Figueroa (Casa Panchita)
195
Andrea Querol (Capital Humano Social Alternativo)
70

find more comfort and greater opportunity in the cities’ richer households. Rural children are also
sent by their parents to live with relatives, often very distant ones, or acquaintances in the city in
hopes of improved access to, and higher quality of education.
An ILO/IPEC study (2002) surveying child domestic workers revealed that the majority started doing
domestic labour before the age of eleven. Many were introduced to this work by family members or a
godmother. Some child domestic workers have mothers who are also domestic workers. Children will
accompany their parents to work and start helping out from the age of five. Tasks such as cooking,
cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, and child care are carried out by domestic workers. Domestic
work takes place in a secluded environment hidden behind closed doors and often without monetary
remuneration. About half of the children in the ILO/IPEC study did not receive a salary, while others
were given tips or irregular payments. The remainder were provided with a place to sleep, food and
clothing. When children did receive a salary, it was generally between 13 and 26 euro’s a month.
Child domestic work is generally not viewed as productive labour, which justifies the insufficiency or
complete lack of wages.
Child domestic workers generally work more than nine hours a day, but have been known to work
up to fourteen- hour days with the possibility of a few hours off in the afternoon or evening. They are
often prohibited from leaving the house and experience physical, mental and sexual abuse at the
hands of their employers. Child domestic workers live in substandard social and economic
conditions, frequently without a proper place to sleep, little access to nutritious food and no access to
health-care services.
Many children become involved in domestic work with the principal intention of studying, but the
reality of the situation, including seclusion, discrimination, the loss of freedom and the lack of access
to education services, makes it difficult to fulfil these hopes. The ILO/IPEC study (2002) indicated that
almost 70% of child domestic workers between 6 and 13 years old and 60% between 14 and 17 years,
were not attending school. Though many child domestic workers suspend their education, some
continue to go to non-formal schools during the evenings and weekends. These schools offer
inadequate low-quality education by unmotivated teachers(ILO 2002). Moreover, it brings other
dangers with it, as children sometimes travel long distances after dark by themselves. 196
The awareness about the risks of child domestic labour within society, as well as the amount of
attention currently being given to this issue at the macrolevel have both been rising. As a result, there
has been some registration of child domestic workers at the municipal level, which is helping to
provide some indication about the scope of the problem. However employers are still refusing to
accept the exploitative nature of this type of labour and there is a lack of resources and action at the
local level to fight the problem. Parents in rural areas are not aware of the reality of the working and
living conditions when sending their children to work in the cities. In general, domestic work is still
generally considered a safe and appropriate form of employment for children. 197
Trafficking 198
196
Sofia Mauricio Basilio and Blanca Figueroa (Casa Panchita), Galvez, Urteaga, Terrones, Zurita (Asociación
Mujer Familia (AMF))
197
Sofia Mauricio Basilio and Blanca Figueroa (Casa Panchita), Galvez, Urteaga, Terrones, Zurita (Asociación
Mujer Familia (AMF))
198
Andrea Querol (Capital Humano Social Alternativo), Kathy Maguina Sotoniayor (Movimiento El Pozo),
Roxana Davila (Ministry of Women and Social Development), Leticia Silva Chavez and Maritza Cristina Perez
Veliz (Public Ministry)
71

Human trafficking is a definite reality in Peru. The existence of trafficking-based mafias operating in
Lima, Piura, Cusco, Puno, Arequipa and many smaller towns is common knowledge. The main
victims are women and children from 10 to 25 years of age, who are commonly trafficked for the
purposes of prostitution or labour in factories, fields and mines. Children are also recruited as
beggars, to transport drugs, for the sale of their organs or for illegal adoption. Trafficking is also
connected to child domestic work.
The exact number of trafficking victims in Peru is unknown and official statistics are very low.
Children living in poverty, coming from dysfunctional or broken families, from an abusive home
environment, abandoned by their families and living in isolated rural areas are particularly
vulnerable to trafficking. The routes used by traffickers are diverse and includes both national and
international movement, but they generally start in rural areas and areas of extreme poverty and end
in urban centres and zones with advanced economic activity.
The methods used by traffickers to capture children are varied. Promises of employment, marriage,
education and a better life are given to lure in the children and their parents. The internet facilitates
traffickers in their ruse as marital, employment or adoption agencies; it also provides chat rooms and
blogs which can be used to hunt potential victims. Once the trust has been built and the children have
left their families, the promised opportunities turn out to be a lie and the children are forced into
prostitution or labour.
The majority of workers in the sparsely populated Madre de Dios region, which borders Brazil and
Bolivia, are boys and men from the age of twelve who have been trafficked from the high-Andean
region to work in the illegal logging and mining industries. There are also girls being trafficked to this
area for purposes of labour and prostitution.
The trafficking-based mafias are organized and powerful, with many resources at their disposal. In
comparison, the capacity of the judicial authorities to fight trafficking is very limited. In order to
protect children it is necessary to increase the general awareness about the dangers of trafficking and
the legal procedures available to victims. Police capacity needs to be strengthened in order to improve
the registration of crimes and border control. Specialized centres for the victims of trafficking also
need to be created.
b. Involvement of children in prostitution, production of pornography or pornographic
performances
There is no current or reliable data on the numbers of children involved in commercial sexual
exploitation, but the problem is estimated to be increasing. 199 There are regulations in Peru concerning
prostitution which state it can be carried out by people from eighteen years and up. However,
clandestine prostitution is an increasing phenomenon. At the end of the 1990’s, around 20% of the
1200 prostitutes in Lima were between 13 and 17 years old (ILO, 2007). Both pornography and the
number of brothels are said to be growing, as is the number of boys affected by sexual exploitation. 200
It is believed that the majority of the victims are concentrated in Lima (ILO date unknown). However
Cusco, Iquitos, Cajamarca and the region bordering Ecuador are also known for sex tourism. The
199
Sophie Marechel (UNICEF)
200
Ada Meija (Via Libre) / ILO 2007
72

commercial sexual exploitation of children is also known to take place in Loreto, Pucallpa, Puerto
Maldonado, Tarapoto and the mining zones of Madre de Dios and Puno. 201
A 2007 ILO study surveyed 167 child victims of commercial sexual exploitation. This study revealed
that the majority of victims started doing sex work between the ages of 15 and 17; although a starting
age of 13 and 14 was also common. Most children were from both vulnerable social and psychological
situations and poor regions of the country. Almost all of the children were literate but were no longer
attending school. Most sexually exploited children are not active in their place of origin, but rather
first travel to other areas, either through trafficking or in search of better living conditions and
opportunities. Many of them are lured under false pretences and think that they are going to be doing
domestic work. Notably, in many cases the children’s exploiters are also their lovers or romantic
partners who make them feel protected, wanted and loved (ILO/IPEC 2007).
The reasons why children end up being sexual exploited are both social and economic. Children from
broken or abusive families or girls that have become pregnant at an early age are especially
vulnerable. The lack of information available about exploitation, peer pressure from friends -
promoting sex work as an easy way to make money - and poverty are also influencing factors. Many
runaways end up living and working on the streets and remain isolated from their families, further
increasing their vulnerability to abuse and exploitation.
The internet is being used by perpetrators progressively more to make contact with potential victims.
They gradually gain the confidence of vulnerable children through the use of chat rooms. By steadily
introducing sexual content into interactions, either within the conversation or by showing images of
peers involved in sexual activities, the children’s inhibitions are slowly lowered, making it easier to
exploit the child in the future. The risks that children face on the internet are often under-rated by
parents. Widespread use and access to the internet has heightened the accessibility of pornographic
images. The increased level of exposure to child sex images is linked to an increase in the sexual
exploitation of children; perpetrators frequently admit that child pornography fuels their fantasies
and plays an important part in leading them to commit physical sexual offences against children. 202
Some children are involved in sex work on a regular basis, while others only engage in it occasionally.
The work can take place in private houses, public bathrooms, parks, streets, tourist areas or internet
booths. Many hotels, night clubs and bars allow the entrance of minors who are likely to be sexual
exploited.
Children who have fallen into the world of sexual exploitation are being manipulated, emotionally
blackmailed and induced to consume alcohol and drugs. Half of the children in the ILO study (2007)
stated that they used drugs, mainly industrial glue. They also face situations of physical and
psychological abuse. Once involved, it can be difficult to escape from commercial sexual exploitation
out of fear for the repercussions to themselves or their family, due to the abusive and dominant
position of the exploiter and due to a lack of other opportunities. 203 Many victims are either afraid or
too ashamed to report their exploiter, or in fact to tell anyone about it. Corruption within the police
remains a problem and they are known to take bribes from criminal organizations to look the other
way. 204 There is insufficient recognition of, or assistance for, victims of sexual exploitation. Due to the
201
Roxana Davila (MIMDES), Kathy Maguina Sotoniayor (Movimiento el Pozo), Dra. Mayda Ramos Ballon
(Defensoria de la Niñez y la Adolescencia), Martha Zegarra (Mesa de la Consultación), Sophie Marechel
(UNICEF)
202
Dimitri N. Senmache Artola and Johan Guisse Pinedo (Red Peruana contra la Pornograf;ia Infantil)
203
Zulay Chiroque-Leydi, Leydee Rosado and Ada Meija (Via Libre), Monica Puello (Casa de la Sonrisa), Cecilia
Vilchez and Hermana Juana Acteaga Rojas (Casa de la Mujer Santa Rosa)
204
Jose Soto Lazo (Ministry of Tourism)
73

absence of specialized knowledge about child sexual exploitation within the health-care and legal
sectors, as well as among shelter staff and police, re-victimization is common. Investment needs to be
made for the psychological support of these victims.
The Peruvian newspaper, Peru21, recently reported that many poor central-Peruvian families, for
example in Iquitos, prostitute their children for as little as one Nuevo Sol, 34 cents, or a quarter of a
chicken. They also reported the sale of child pornography videos at Lima’s market places. There are
reported cases of children as young as three being abused in pornographic videos and of foreign
organizations taking advantage of the availability of minors for sexual purposes in some of the
country’s poorest areas, such as Iquitos, Pucallpa and Madre de Dios. These foreign organizations
tape pornographic material which is then sold on the black market. These criminal groups can be
difficult to fight as they are well organized and have a lot of funds at their disposal.
c. Hazardous work: work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried
out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children
Hazardous labour in Peru takes place in mines and quarries, in commercial agriculture, on banana
and peanut plantations, in the gold-panning areas, in the fish and the shrimp industries, at bars and
restaurants, unloading trucks along the border region with Ecuador, at markets, in garbage collection
and in construction.
Mines
Mining is still an important labour sector in Peru and there are several regions where the minerals
remain lucrative. There are also mines that have been abandoned by the large mining companies, but
where individual miners have stayed and work under even more hazardous conditions, as there is no
longer any supervision or protection. 205
According to ILO estimates there are 50,000 children working in the mining industry. Although
mining is listed as a worst form of child labour that should not be done by people under eighteen,
under the Peruvian Code for Children and Adolescents, it is permitted for children from the age of
sixteen years. Many mining communities lack basic services such as running water, a sewage system
or health care. Domestic violence and alcoholism are common problems(IREWOC 2008).
There is a significant amount of informal mining in Cajabamba and Madre Dios. An estimated 20% of
the 8000 informal miners are children. Entire families can be found working in the mines, including
children from the age of eight. Children are commonly involved in gold-ore processing, tasks inside
the mines or sorting and crushing the ore. Most of them work unprotected up to 72 hours a week,
frequently at night. Breathing in the dust, contact with mercury and accidents caused by falling stones
are examples of the serious health risks involved in mining. There is no strong governmental presence
in these areas and as a result hardly any monitoring of the situation. 206
Brick making
In the brick-making industry, wages are paid based on the number of bricks completed; therefore
children assist their parents in order to increase their family’s daily income. This is physically
205
Isaac Ruiz (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
206
Alfredo Rebaza and Dr. Luis Cruzado Garcia (District Attorney’s Office)
74

exhausting work, generally from 5 am until 4 pm each day. The wages are about 27 Soles (€7) per
1000 bricks, or about one to two days work for four or five people. 207
Agriculture
Commercial agriculture accounts for a major part of Peruvian exports. Work on cotton plantations
and asparagus farms exposes children to chemicals, physically heavy labour, sharp tools and extreme
weather conditions (IREWOC, 2009: 24-30).
Rural child labour, mostly on family owned farms includes herding, sowing, harvesting and domestic
work. Especially during the harvesting season, the work is physically heavy on the children. The
herding and some of the domestic work is done unsupervised. Children also handle sharp tools
(IREWOC, 2009: 12-18).
Collecting and sorting waste material
Children collect material thrown away on the streets and in bins, varying from paper, plastic and
glass to just about anything that can be recycled or reused. Children as young as seven years old can
be found sorting through garbage as a means to survival. The children work for many hours a day
collecting and sorting waste, without protection and in unhygienic conditions, for very little pay. At
dumpsites children are exposed to toxic materials, sharp objects, chemical and human waste and are
required to carry heavy loads. This leads to headaches, hygiene-related health problems and back
problems. Children are often harmed or become ill from the materials they come into contact with
and health problems such as yeast infections are common. Moreover, they also face violence on the
streets (IREWOC, 2008). 208
4. Interventions
a. The Government
The ministries of Labour and Employment, Education, that for Women and Social Development
(MIMDES) have developed policy for the prevention and eradication of child labour.
The ministry of Education purports to offer education to all Peruvian children, and attempts to reach
working children by offering schooling during the evening. At the same time, the ILO recognizes that
schooling to some very vulnerable groups like child domestic workers is not yet achieved.
a. Ministry of Women and Social Development:
Leadership of the inter-institutional committee on child labour, which proposes
alternatives to domestic work and mining;
Participation in the Committee of Prevention and Eradication of Child Labour;
Passing of Ministry Resolution Nr. 007-2006-MIMDES, which approved the list of
hazardous work for children;
Participation in the law and rules that protect children engaged in begging;
Actions carried out against the commercial sexual exploitation of children, such as
the Work Mesa which validates the criteria and procedures for the interventions
regarding sexual exploitation of children;
Operation of the Street Educators programme, which takes care of working children
living on the streets, including those who beg, are gang members or consume
207
Isaac Ruiz (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
208
Isaac Ruiz and Maria Angélica Chong (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
75

psychoactive substances. Unfortunately this programme has become almost inactive,
in spite of a pre-set budget; and
Responsibility for Defensoría del Niño y el Adolescente (Children’s and Adolescents’
Ombudsman), a public service organization which is accountable for the promotion
and defence of the rights of children and adolescents, especially at the legislative
level. One of its main focuses is the right to education of child domestic workers.
b. Ministry of Tourism
Operates two prevention programmes against the commercial sexual exploitation of
children in the tourism industry.
c. Ministry of Internal Affairs
Executes the Colibri police programme which benefits working children.
d. Ministry of Labour and Job Promotion
Responsible for the Office of Child Protection and Job Security and the Sub-Office of
Protection to the Minor at Work. The Sub-Office is in charge of granting work
authorization and guidance for adolescents wanting to work. They also carry out
awareness-raising activities regarding child labour; and
Presides over the National Committee for the Prevention and Eradication of Child
Labour (CEPTI) which is in charge of the development of the National Plan of
Prevention and Eradication of Child Labour.
e. Ministry of Health
Runs programmes aimed at the prevention of child labour; and
Improves the access of child domestic workers to health services.
f. Public Ministry
Operates programmes concerning the National Plan for the Prevention and
Eradication of Child Labour;
Run campaigns on children’s rights at health-care and education centres;
Carries out inspections with the aim of enforcing child labour laws at factories,
companies and within the informal sector;
Responsible for the registration of working children; and
Responsible for programmes that aim to prevent the commercial sexual exploitation
of children in bars and clubs
The local level governments, by contrast, have very few programmes aimed at working children. The
Provincial Municipality of Metropolitan Lima has developed a pilot project called Municipal Network
Focused on Care and Protection of Working Rights of Boys, Girls and Teenagers (REFONATS) in
Cercado de Lima. This project is led by an array of offices and programmes in this municipality, in
alliance with public and private institutions. It is mainly aimed at providing care for children and
teenagers working on the street or as maids in the centre of the city. In 2008, REFONATS combined
forces with CPETI and formed the Regional Office of Prevention and Eradication of Child Labour.
The district municipalities of Comas, Villa María del Triunfo and Santa Anita in Lima and Ventanilla
in Callaof, have approved and carried out Promotion and Protection of Rights of Working Boys, Girls
and Teenagers’ projects, focusing in areas with high rates of harmful child labour (Ministerio de
Trabajo y Promoción del Empleo, 2008).
A Code of Conduct for the protection of girls, boys and adolescents against sexual exploitation in
tourism and travel is being promoted by the government and UNICEF through the National Tourism
Directorate. The focus areas are Madre de Dios, Iquitos, Cusco, Lima, Trujillo and Arequipa. 209 This
code of conduct is aimed at encouraging the tourism sector to play an active role in the protection of
209
Jose Soto Lazo (Ministry of Tourism)
76

children. There is also a new tourism law which contains a specific article on the prevention of the
sexual exploitation of children. UNICEF also runs information campaigns, encourages co-operation
among relevant ministries, fights re-victimization by improving the attention given to victims by
lawyers, social workers, psychologists and doctors and promotes the formation and operation of the
different Defensorías. 210
The laws concerning crimes of sexual abuse and exploitation were modified in 2004, making penalties
tougher and child sex tourism punishable by law. Many municipalities have also taken measures, for
example, to restrain minors’ access to pornographic websites in internet cafes. Yet the municipalities
known for sex tourism have neither taken measures to combat child sexual exploitation nor
implemented projects aimed at preventing it. (ILO-IPEC 2007)
Colibri is a special division of the National Police and is coordinated by the Ministry of Internal
Affairs. Colibri aims to both reorient current attitudes about child labour and eradicate the worst
forms of child labour while, at the same time, protecting children’s right to work from the age of
fourteen. Colibri is attacking the worst forms of child labour from three separate angles: prevention,
by workshops about children’s rights and the risks of work; protection, by increasing police presence
on the street and working closely with street children; and promotion, through participation in
relevant activities and organizations. 211
b. Education
Over the past few years, the number of children going to school, especially primary school has
substantially increased. Currently, about 95% of Peruvian children are enrolled in primary school.
This percentage however does not take drop outs into account, so the actual attendance rates are
likely to be somewhat lower. School enrolment rates are higher in urban areas. The enrolment rates
for secondary school are considerably lower, at around 70 - 80%, signifying twelve as a crucial age for
dropping out of school and entering the labour force full-time. 212 Nonetheless, 93% of working
children in Lima and 82% in Arequipa attend school, 213 raising doubts about the effectiveness of
education as the sole tool for reducing the incidence of child labour. These doubts are shared by those
who make use of schools, noting that they close or change hours without notice, teachers don’t turn
up and provide low quality education. Furthermore, education cannot solve the problem of family
migration. This is, according to Van den Berge, one of the major constraints for the effectiveness of
education (IREWOC, 2009: 54).
c. The NGOs
CESIP runs a programme that promotes and protects children’s rights throughout Peru. The Lomas
project, supported by TdH-NL, aims to protect children from hazardous labour by strengthening the
protective role and economic capacity of the family unit; stimulating community participation,
including that of the education services in the development of protection mechanisms for children;
and bolstering the personal skills, social skills and participation of children. 214
The National Movement of Organized Working Children and Adolescents (MANTHOC) is an
example of an intervention that takes an alternative position in the child labour debate and hence has
a different approach to supporting working children. MANTHOC is actually a network of working
210
Sophie Marechel (UNICEF)
211
Remigio Murillo (Colibri)
212
Isaac Ruiz (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
213
Alejandro Cussianovich Villaran (MANTHOC-IFEJANT)
214
Maria Angelica Chong (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
77

children with no interest in ending child labour; their aim is to defend the rights of young workers
and to improve the quality of their lives. Members of MANTHOC are working children who also
attend school (IREWOC 2007) and they claim to represent over 1500 working children. They support
the education of working children, their empowerment and their participation. MANTHOC worked
with the police in order to develop Colibri, the special division of the National Police that deals
specifically with child workers. 215
Third-year law students at the Universidad Privada del Norte, in cooperation with Asociación Mujer
Familia (AMF), provide services free of charge to surrounding villages in order to help children
obtain official identity documents. The children are then able to access health-care services, education
and legal advice.
The Peruvian Net Against Child Pornography works against child pornography, sexual abuse,
trafficking and all forms of commercial sexual exploitation, including sex tourism. This organization
works to prevent child sexual crimes through information campaigns and by training relevant actors;
they carry out direct actions against child pornography on the internet and provide assistance to
victims. The Netherlands government is financing the creation of a website to make it easier to report
cases of child pornography and sites containing child pornography.
There are various institutions, including religious ones, offering capacity training, legal and
psychological assistance, education opportunities, recreation and sex education to child domestic
workers. The National Association of Domestic Workers, La Casa de Panchita, Centro de Apoyo Integral
para las Trabajadoras del Hogar, and the Asociación Mujer y Familia are some examples of such
institutions.
The Network for a Future without Child Labour also has intervention projects. Child domestic
workers however are not included in them. Casa de la Mujer has projects for children who have been
commercially sexually exploited. Their goal is to offer the children a better life as an alternative to sex
work. These projects, however, have major limitations and only a few children have access to them.
5. Bibliography
ILO - IPEC, 2007. Asociación Vía Libre. Imperdonable. Estudio sobre la explotación sexual comercial
de la infancia y adolescencia en Perú: Cajamarca, Cusco, Iquitos y Lima.
ILO (Date unknown). Prevención y erradicación del trabajo infantil doméstico y de la exploitación
sexual commercial infantile en Chile, Colombia, Paraguay y Perú.
ILO – IPEC, 2002. Perú. Inivisible y sin derechos: Aproximación al perfil del trabajo infantil doméstico
ILO- IPEC, 2004. Prevención y erradicación del trabajo infantil doméstico (TID) y de la explotación
sexual commercial infantile (ESCI) en Chile, Colombia, Paraguay y Perú.
ILO – INEI, 2007. Principales Resultados: Estudio sobre Trabajo Infantil en el Perú. Encuesta sobre
trabajo infantil del 2007. Unpublished
215
Alejandro Cussianovich Villaran (MANTHOC-IFEJANT)
78

IREWOC, 2008. Van den Berge, M., Baas, L., Ensing, A. & Quiroz, L. The Worst Forms of Child
Labour in Latin America: Identification and Policy Options. Main findings from Guatemala,
Bolivia and Peru. Amsterdam
IREWOC. 2009. Van den Berge, M. Rural Child Labour in Peru. Amsterdam.
IREWOC 2007. Van den Berge, M. Working Children’s Movements in Peru. Amsterdam.
Latin American Herald Tribune. ‚Parents Rent Their Children to Pornographers for a Few Cents In
Peru.‛ Retrieved from: http://laht.com/article.aspCategoryId=14095&ArticleId=344055 on 05-
04-2010.
Ministerio de Trabajo y de Promoción del Empleo, Comité Directivo Nacional por la Prevención y
Eradicación de Trabajo Infantil (CPETI). 2008. Boletin informativo no. 5. Lima.
http://www.mintra.gob.pe/archivos/file/cpeti/publicaciones/2008/BOLETIN_CPETI_N05.pdf
Peru 21 Article: available through the Latin American Herald Tribune website:
http://laht.com/article.aspCategoryId=14095&ArticleId=344055 on 20-03-2010
United States Department of Labour, 2006 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour - Peru, 31
August 2007. As retrieved from: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/48d7494b46.html on
29-03-2010
6. List of respondents
María Luisa Rodríguez Campos, Oficial de Programas – IPEC, ILO, 11. November
Zulay Chiroque-Leydi, Socioliogist and former project coordinator, Via Libre, 12. November
Leydee Rosado, Psychologist and current project coordinator, Via Libre, 12. November
Ada Mejía, Responsible de Proyectos, Via Libre, 12. November
Isaac Ruiz, Child Labour Program, CESIP, 3. November
Maria Angélica Chong, CESIP Project Lomas, CESIP, 3. November
Dimitri N. Senmache Artola, President, Red Peruana contra la Pornografía Infantil, 16. November
Johan Guisse Pinedo, Red Peruana contra la Pornografía Infantil, 16. November
Andrea Querol, Director, Capital Humano Social Alternativo, 16. November
Sofia Mauricio Basilio, Coordinator Casa Panchita, Associacion Grupo de Trabajo Redes, 17.
November
Blanca Figueroa, Casa Panchita, Associacion Grupo de Trabajo Redes, 17. November
Silvia Loli, Amnesty International, 17. November
Mónica Puello, CESVI, Casa de la sonrisa, 18. November
Kathy Maguina Sotoniayor, Movimiento El Pozo, 19. November
Roxana Davila, Lawyer, Mimdes, 20. November
79

Alejandro Cussianovich Villaran, MANTHOC-IFEJANT, 23. November
Remigio Murillo, Coordinador del Programa Colibri, 23. November
Cecilia Vílchez, Casa de la Mujer Santa Rosa, 24. November
Hermana Juana Acteaga Rojas, Casa de la Mujer Santa Rosa, 24. November
Sr Guillermo Fustamante, CPETI, Ministerio de Trabajo, 24. November
Ana Maria Marquez, Save the Children, 25. November
CESIP, Interviews with working children, 26. November
José Soto Lazo, Mincetur, 30. November
Dra. Mayda Ramos Ballón, Defensoria de la Niñez y la adolescencia, 30. November
Karina Gutierrez, Municipalidad Lima, 1. December
Ellen Roof, The Netherlands Embassy, 3. December
Walter Alarcon, 3. December
Leticia Silva Chavez, Fiscal de familia, Public Ministry, 4. December
Maritza Cristina Perez Veliz, Fiscal de familia, Public Ministry, 4. December
Cajamarca
IINCAP, Interview with Marcela Rabanal Pajares and the rest of the team, 5. December
General meeting team AMF, Interview with Omar Galvez, Rossina Urteaga, Miriam Cecilia Torres
Terrones and Cecilia Barrantes Zurita and child domestic workers, 7. December
Martha Zegarra, Mesa de la Consultación, 7. November
Sra Matilde Becerra, Demuna Cajamarca, 9. December
Paula Contreras, lawyer, Demuna Banos del Inca, 9. December
Sra Martha Rodriguez Tejada, Sub Gerencia de Desarrollo Social, 9. December
Albergue Liliam, 10. December
Judith Meza, Universidad Privada del Norte, 10. December
Alfredo Rebaza, 2 nd Fiscalia, 10. December
Dr. Luis Cruzado Garcia, 3rd Fiscal de Familia, 10. December
Wilson Olortegui, Direccion de Educacion Cajamarca, 10. December
Interviews domestic workers, 11. December
Mariela Peralta, Programa educadores de la Calle Local de PEC en el Mercado (INABIF program), 12.
November
Paul Kowalczyk, Programa educadores de la Calle Local de PEC en el Mercado (INABIF program),
12. November
Tania Silva, Pronino, Telefonica Group, 14. December
Dr. Manuel Garcia, ILO, 17. December 2009
Sophie Marechel, UNICEF, 17. December 2009
Alexander Sotomayor, Mimdes, 21. December
80

Kenya
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation
Approximately 80% of Kenya’s population live in the in rural areas. Ten to thirty thousand, out of an
estimated 1.9 million working children, are thought to be involved in the worst forms of child
labour. 216 Child labour in the slum areas is said to be on the increase due to the recent droughts. 217
There is an increase in child labour countrywide, but whether this is due to increased reporting, as a
result of heightened awareness, or an actual growth in the number of cases, remains unclear. 218
Most recent UNICEF estimates from the period 1999 to 2008 state that 26% of children age 5 to 14 are
involved in child labour, 219 whereas an analysis of ILO, UNICEF and World Bank surveys by the
inter-agency research project Understanding Children’s Work (UCW) in 2007 place this at 32.5% for
the year 2000 (US Department of Labour, 2006). According to the ILO however, there was a reduction
in child labour from 1999 to 2005, decreasing from 1.9 to 1.3 million economically-active children.
There has also been a shift in the working age of children from roughly eight to sixteen years old.
Seventy percent of all child labourers work in the agricultural sector, the remaining 30% work in more
hidden sectors, such as the domestic sector. The significant progress that has been made in the
eradication of child labour, according to the ILO, refers mainly to visible employment sectors and not
the more hidden forms of child labour such as domestic work or commercial sexual exploitation. Boys
are more often involved in the visible sectors, whereas as girls are more likely to be working out of
sight. 220
The increasing trend of urban migration, including trafficking to urban areas, underlies child labour
issues. The recent droughts have affected harvests in the rural areas, fuelling rural–to-urban
migration. 221 Unfavourable geographic and economic locations, such as the northern regions
(Turkana) and Coast and Eastern Provinces, are relatively underdeveloped and so are the first to feel
the effects of droughts and economic crises. 222 The population in urbanized areas tend to be less
homogenous, with weaker social structures and support networks and hence are not able to provide
supervision for children as in rural areas. Children coming to cities, either alone or with their families,
in search of better opportunities often end up in the slums. Slum areas typically have little access to
education and are more vulnerable to exploitation from various employment sectors. 223 As well as
rural-to-urban migration, movement within the rural areas also takes place, again disrupting
children’s education, disturbing their social networks and increasing the chance that they will drop
out of school and start working. 224
Post-election violence has had a big influence on people’s lives and the impacts are still visible today.
As a result of the violence, people have been killed and displaced, interrupting both security and
children’s education. Many of the displaced children end up working, as it becomes difficult for them
216
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
217
Ruben Centre Group Discussion
218
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
219
http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/kenya_statistics.html#68
220
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC), Tatu Njaka (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
221
Janet Githaiga (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
222
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
223
Rose Odoyo ((African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
224
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
81

to access schools in their new situation. 225 The economic crisis has hit the most vulnerable sections of
society especially women and children. Employment opportunities have been dwindling over the last
few years, making it harder for families to meet their basic needs. 226
The prevalence of HIV/AIDS is another determining factor for the high level of working and
exploited children in Kenya and has left a large number orphaned and semi-orphaned children, childheaded
households and children caring for seriously-ill parents. These children are identified as
particularly vulnerable to exploitation. 227 There are 1.5 million orphans in Kenya. 228 Some estimate
that the majority of child labour is carried out by orphans, placing a lot of importance on the Orphans
and Vulnerable Children Policy that sets up protective measures for this particular group. 229 The
perpetuation of myths surrounding HIV/AIDS, for example, that sex with a young girl or virgin is a
cure, is an additional reason for the exploitation of girls. 230
The disappearance of extended family networks coupled with the increase of broken families is
adding to the vulnerability of children. 231 Children who face abuse or neglect at home run away and
end up on the streets, leaving them at risk of exploitation. 232 There has been a rise in the amount of
very young girls escaping neglect or poverty and ending up on the streets in urban areas; examples of
four-year-old girls being rescued off the streets of Mombasa exist. 233 Teachers are also a source of
abuse for children, adding to the various other reasons contributing to the high drop-out rates and
child labour statistics. 234 Boys are still often given priority for education, again leaving girls in a more
vulnerable position. 235
The participation of children in work, especially in domestic and agricultural work, remains
culturally acceptable. 236 Work done by children, albeit heavy, dangerous or otherwise detrimental, is
not denounced by society.
While on the one hand improving livelihood opportunities for families would diminish the financial
necessity of child labour 237 , there are children working for reasons other than pure necessity. These
children work for extra spending money and to feel independent. This group is much harder to reach,
as their reasons for working cannot be directly addressed by any intervention. In order to encourage
these children to focus on school rather than working, the long term benefits of education need to be
made more visible. 238
2. Law and policy
225
Janet Githaiga (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children), Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
226
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle), Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre)
227
Charity Mwinde (District Children’s Officer, City Council Mombasa)
228
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
229
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
230
Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre), Evelyne Menyi and Beldine Otieno (SOLWODI)
231
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect),
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
232
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
233
George Ouda (Wema Centre)
234
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle)
235
Charity Mwinde (District Children’s Officer, City Council Mombasa)
236
Ruth Nzaeki (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
237
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle)
238
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
82

Children’s Act (2001)
The 2001 Children’s Act regulates the rights of children in Kenya. It includes the right to parental
care, the right to education, protection from child labour and armed conflict, the right to health care,
protection from child abuse, protection from sexual exploitation, the right to leisure time and
recreation and protection from torture and the deprivation of liberty. This act defines a child as a
person under the age of eighteen.
Sexual Offences Act (2006)
The Sexual Offences Act of 2006 criminalizes child trafficking, trafficking for sexual exploitation, child
prostitution, child pornography, child sex tourism, rape and defilement. The a child is defined as in
the Convention on the Rights of the Child as any person under the age of 18. The punishments for
these offences vary from no less than five to no less than ten years.
Employment Act (2007)
The Employment Act of 2007 sets the minimum age for work at sixteen, while allowing light work as
described by the government for children between the ages of 13 and 16. Children of this age are
protected. Above the age of sixteen, this means that children are allowed to perform certain tasks that
include operating machinery.
The Constitution of Kenya
The Constitution of Kenya prohibits ‘slavery, bonded and forced labour, and servitude, including by
children.’ (US Department of Labour 2006).
The role of police is limited in handling cases involving children, especially as they occur within a
community, since local chiefs often mediate an out of court solution. This solution may involve
compensation to the family or marriage in the case of pregnancies. If the police is contacted, their
training in investigative techniques may be inadequate to deal with child victims in a sensitive
manner (Stöpler, 2008a, Stöpler, 2009b).
3. Forms
a. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking
of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict
Domestic labour
Child domestic labour is a common form of child labour and, regardless of a lack of comprehensive
data, the rates appear to be increasing. 239 Official statistics claim that the number of children involved
in domestic services is 98,518. 240 The majority of child domestic workers are girls - estimates range
from 71 to 95% 241 - typically aged somewhere between nine and eighteen. Child domestic labour is
found all over the country, but is a hidden form of exploitation, making these children hard to reach.
Often the children themselves will not admit to exploitation, as they are either grateful for the
opportunity to work or fearful of their employees; either way, most child domestic workers are
completely dependent on their employers for survival. 242
239
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle)
240
Kenya National Bureau of Statistics 2008
241
Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre), ILO 2006, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics 2008
242
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
83

The working day for child domestic workers may last from four in the morning until midnight and
average more than 10 hours per day. The children sometimes go unpaid for their work, as their wages
are either paid to their parents or are paid only in kind. 243 Tasks include cooking, cleaning, washing
clothes, carrying heavy loads of water over long distances and taking care of younger children.
Children are often trafficked into domestic labour and work in bonded situations. Much of child
domestic work takes place within the households of relatives. 244 Children also migrate from rural to
urban areas on their own, or through family members, in search of the opportunity for work or an
education, but end up as domestic workers in slave-like conditions. The child domestic workers
become trapped; often living hundreds of kilometres away from their parents, confined to the house,
isolated and lacking a support network. To escape these conditions, many children become runaways
and end up living on the streets and working in other hazardous sectors such as prostitution. 245
Domestic workers face a lot of abuse; they are an easy scapegoat for anything missing or broken in
the house and are frequently punished by beatings or by being thrown out for the night. These
children often have no access to education. Parents are not always aware of the conditions their
children are living and working under and some have been tricked by false promises of better
opportunities. 246 Labour inspectors are reluctant to enter private homes, especially when the worker is
a relative; it is difficult to prove exploitation. 247
Trafficking
There has been a recent increase in abductions of children from rural areas and slums as a result of
worsening economic conditions. Many abducted girls end up in prostitution. 248 ’Kenya is a source,
transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced
labour and sexual exploitation’ (United States Department of State 2009). Children are trafficked
internally for a variety of functions, including domestic labour, commercial sexual exploitation and
forced agricultural labour.
b. Involvement of children in prostitution, production of pornography or
pornographic performances
Sex tourism occurs most frequently in Kenya’s coastal areas, 249 but commercial sexual exploitation of
children also occurs in hotels and brothels near slum areas. 250 Due to inadequate law enforcement,
corruption and widespread poverty, Mombasa is becoming known for child sex tourism. Many
people travel to Mombasa for the purpose of illicit sex. UNICEF reports that about 30% of all twelve
to eighteen year olds in Mombasa and other coastal areas of Kenya, are involved in casual sex work,
estimating that 10,000 to 15,000 in these regions are involved in the industry. 251 Commercial sexual
exploitation of children in Mombasa is most rampant from June to February; the high season for
tourism. However, perpetrators are local people as well as tourists. The ages of the children involved
depend on the customers and, although some are as young as twelve, the majority are above the age
243
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
244
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
245
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
246
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect),
Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre)
247
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
248
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
249
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle)
250
Ruben Centre Group Discussion, Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre)
251
http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/kenya_37817.html
84

of fifteen. 252 According to a study by ILO-IPEC (2008) on the commercial sexual exploitation of
children in Kwale, Kakamega, Eldoret, Nairobi and Nyeri, most of the girls involved are fourteen to
eighteen years old and boys are commonly fifteen to eighteen, although the actual age ranged from
ten to eighteen. According to this study, which targeted 327 relevant people from different social
groups, including children engaged in commercial sexual exploitation, boy victims are most common
in Nyeri. Forty percent of the studied children were in school during the day and work in the
commercial sex industry at night. Others are street children or work at hair salons during the day
(ILO-IPEC, 2008).
Girls come from rural areas to Mombasa, where they are lured into sex work at nightclubs and
brothels, often through initial promises of legitimate work. Mombasa is divided into zones that
delineate work areas. How much a girl can earn depends on the client, but typically a European client
will pay KES 3000 (roughly € 30) and a local client about KES 1000. When working for a brothel or
club owner, a girl might get to keep about a third of her earnings. The girls get one day off per week.
Many children end up working in the sex industry for the rest of their lives, which are often cut short
by HIV/AIDS or violence. 253
UNICEF, working with the government of Kenya, has initiated a code of conduct for the tourism
industry which has had an impact, but due to lapses in monitoring, reporting and co-ordination, child
sex tourism still occurs in smaller hotels in Mombasa. 254 The police are criticized for not doing as
much as they should to support the victims of sexual exploitation. Many cases go unreported, but
even in cases where the perpetrator is caught, bribes as small as KES 500 are used to dissolve the
situation. 255 Research done by UNICEF, about commercial sexual exploitation of children along
Kenya’s coast, showed that parents are often fully aware of the situation they were putting their child
into. 256
c. the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the
production and trafficking of drugs as defined in the relevant international treaties
There is little focus on the use of children for illicit practices found within child labour initiatives and
research studies in Kenya. However, children are seen to be involved in gang activity and are
employed to traffic illegal goods. 257 The infamous Mungiki sect is widely believed to be involved in
underworld criminal activities. This sect is said to recruit children and use them for activities
involving drugs, petty theft and even murder. The recruited children are said not to be allowed to
obtain medical treatment or an education. Mungiki has apparently penetrated ‘all’ areas and sections
of society. They are especially prevalent in low-income areas, such as the slums, which are beyond the
reach of government protection services; protection is instead offered by the Mungiki gangs. 258
Estimates put the amount of children involved in these gangs at eight percent, but as this is a
relatively new phenomenon, no comprehensive research has been conducted yet. 259
252
Charity Mwinde (District Children’s Officer, City Council Mombasa), Tatu Njaka (Kenya Alliance for
Advancement of Children)
253
Evelyne Menyi and Beldine Otieno (Solidarity with Women in Distress (SOLWODI))
254
Charity Mwinde (District Children’s Officer, City Council Mombasa), Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC), Tatu Njaka
(Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
255
Evelyne Menyi and Beldine Otieno (Solidarity with Women in Distress (SOLWODI))
256
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
257
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
258
Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre)
259
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle)
85

d. Hazardous work: work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is
carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children
Children in Kenya can be found working in the mining, soap-stone and sugarcane industries.
Hazards in the sugarcane industry include snakebites and tractor accidents Children also work on
plantations and at dump sites. 260 In the slums, children from the ages of eight to fifteen can be found
searching for scrap metal to sell; from the age of five they search through garbage sites looking for
anything edible or sellable and are sometimes involved in small-scale illegal brewing. Children in the
slums can work up to fourteen hours per day in an attempt to meet their basic needs. 261 Children from
the ages of nine to fifteen are involved in fishing, stone-breaking and tea-leaf harvesting in rural
areas. They can also be found working in quarries, breaking down stones or filling trucks. 262
4. Interventions
a. Government initiatives
The Government of Kenya's National Development Plan 2002 to 2008 recognizes child labour as a
problem and a committee under the vice-president on child labour has been established to set policy
on this subject. On trafficking, a similar committee structure has been established, also combining
inputs from several ministries to determine policy.
The Ministry of Labour and Human Resource Development is responsible for enforcing child labour
laws, but, according to the U.S. Department of State, the Ministry's enforcement of the minimum age
law continues to be nominal (US Department of State, 2006). ANNPCAN, an NGO engaged to stop
child abuse and neglect, has commented that the government’s approach lacks concrete alternatives
to child labour, including accessible schools and relevant vocational training. 263 Some feel that the
provision of free primary education and ensuing increased enrolment rates has resulted in decreased
child labour rates. 264 However, even free education brings many hidden costs, such as books,
uniforms and transportation, all of which can be prohibitive for poor families. 265
There have been many reforms within the police department, such as the creation of Gender and
Children’s Desks, with specialists trained specifically for dealing with these issues. This has resulted
in improved relationships between police and organisations dealing with exploited children. 266
However, these specialized desks are not activate in every district, are weighed down by a lack of
resources and are criticized for a lack of motivation regarding children’s affairs. 267
School meal programmes and the compulsory education law have been successful at encouraging
parents to send their children to school. However, a decline in the quality of education has resulted
from the push to get all children into schools; more funding needs to be allocated to schools in order
260
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
261
Ruben Centre Group Discussion
262
Janet Githaiga (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
263
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
264
Evelyne Menyi and Beldine Otieno (Solidarity with Women in Distress (SOLWODI)), Tonny M. Odera (The
Cradle)
265
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
266
Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre)
267
Charity Mwinde (District Children’s Officer, City Council Mombasa)
86

to accommodate the increasing enrolment rates. 268 Furthermore, the meal programmes are only
available in a limited amount of schools. 269
There are district children’s officers around Kenya, but many more of them are needed at the local
level. The Mombasa district, for example, has only three children’s officers, leaving each officer
responsible for about 400,000 children. The children’s officers are responsible for advocacy in schools
and training on children’s rights in organizations that work with children. They provide counselling
and support for children and their parents, report cases of rights violations and rescue victimized
children, finding placements for them in shelters. 270
The Kenya Country programme, Education and Training programme, Commercial Agriculture
Project, Child Domestic Labour Project, Capacity-building programme, Time Bound Project and
Tackling Child Labour Project all have played a role in the effort to fight child labour in Kenya.
Together, these programmes have raised awareness; created relevant institutions; withdrawn or
prevented Kenyan children from child labour, including its worst forms; built capacity among
authorities; and strengthened the respective legal framework addressing child labour issues (ILO-
IPEC, 2009). Much of this work by the government is done in collaboration with the ILO, which
evaluated the programs.
The Child Domestic Labour project (ILO-IPEC 2009), implemented from 2003 to 2005, aimed to design
rapid response removal strategies for all children found in exploitative or hazardous domestic child
labour and to develop protection measures for adolescents whose condition could be improved.
Achievements of this project were the creation of Child Labour Committees at the village and school
level, the implementation of community-based income-generating activities, the development of
information and education material and the training of implementing agencies.
b. Other initiatives
The ILO is working towards the eradication of child labour by 2016, with a focus on the worst forms.
There are projects targeting specific sectors, such as domestic work, commercial agriculture, children
working on the street, and commercial sexual exploitation, but the main focus of the programme is
education. The TACKLE (Tackling Child Labour through Education) programme works by setting up
a comprehensive legal framework, continuous capacity building, rescuing child labourers and raising
awareness and advocacy activities. 271 The ILO/IPEC’s SCREAM - Supporting Children’s Rights
through Education, the Arts and the Media - programme is also running in parts of Kenya. 272
Wema, an organization that provides rescue and rehabilitation services for sexually abused and
exploited girls has outreach workers who are in daily contact with children involved in, or at risk to,
sex work. Their 24-hour shelter provides basic needs and psychosocial support. They encourage the
children to attend school and provide vocational training for the older children. Raising awareness
about children’s rights is another important activity that stimulates the role of the community in child
protection. 273
268
Janet Githaiga (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
269
Catherina Maina (Provincial Children’s Officer Nairobi)
270
Charity Mwinde (District Children’s Officer, City Council Mombasa)
271
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
272
Janet Githaiga (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
273
Evelyne Menyi and Beldine Otieno (Solidarity with Women in Distress (SOLWODI))
87

5. Recommendations by respondents
A lack of readily available resources is often used as a reason for lapses in child protection measures
and the education system in Kenya. This excuse is criticized by child rights organisation The Cradle
as merely a way to deflect the fact that children are not a priority issue for the government. 274 There
are actions that could be taken by the government to improve the situation of child exploitation in
Kenya. The budget allocation to children’s issues reflects this lack of prioritization, 275 and should be
reassessed. There is a need for stronger social protection policies regarding food and health care that
should be made available through schools to encourage children to attend classes. Some have
suggested that a separate Children’s Ministry could be established to handle all affairs regarding
children. If labour laws are to be effectively monitored, the Ministry of Labour needs to be sufficiently
staffed. 276
Children’s rights and child labour should be included into the standard police training curriculum. 277
The police require better links with the community in order that they are better informed on crimes
and are able to perform their
On a legislative level, there are also some steps that could be taken to enhance child protection. The
ratification of international anti-trafficking laws is necessary to fight the forms of labour linked to
trafficking 278 (US Department of State, 2009 ). The discrepancies in the minimum working age in the
Children’s Act (18 years) and the Labour Act (16 years) need to be corrected. 279 Currently, there is
little trust that the legal system can deal adequately with cases of child exploitation, as courts issue
lenient sentences and corruption is widespread. There is thus a need for a stronger and corruptionfree
enforcement of laws. 280
The education system could be a used as a tool to reach children, their families and the communities
in which they live. In order to raise awareness among children, information about children’s rights
and child labour should be included in the school curriculum. More comprehensive school meal
programmes could go a long way in the struggle to get children into schools and out of work. 281 The
provision of more support for education beyond primary school is necessary to provide children with
alternatives and real opportunities. 282 In order for compulsory education provisions to function
effectively, teachers need to follow up on cases of school absenteeism and parents need to be held
accountable. 283
Removing children from the working environment does nothing to address the root causes of child
labour and exploitation. 284 Interventions need to focus on raising awareness about the risks and forms
of child labour and target those who exploit children in order to make an impact into the prevention
of child exploitation. There is a particular need for the widespread dissemination of information
274
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle)
275
Janet Githaiga (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
276
Bernard Kiura (ILO-IPEC)
277
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme), Tatu Njaka (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of
Children)
278
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect), United
States Department of State, 2009
279
Janet Githaiga (Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children)
280
Tonny M. Odera (The Cradle)
281
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect),
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
282
Evelyne Menyi and Beldine Otieno (Solidarity with Women in Distress (SOLWODI))
283
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
284
Ibrahim Alubala (Children’s Legal Action Network)
88

about the risks involved in the types of work that are typically seen as appropriate for children, such
as agricultural and domestic work. Boys remain overlooked and their role in sexual exploitation is
poorly understood; more attention needs to be paid to this group in order to design appropriate
interventions. 285 Raising awareness in communities, capacity building among those working with
children and providing children with more alternatives and support systems would improve child
protection.
From the existing programs initiated by the Government of Kenya in collaboration with the
ILO/IPEC, several lessons were learned. These include the need for a multi-sector approach, which is
most effective when addressing child labour; and a genuine commitment to the cause by government
agencies. Universal education, raising awareness, the support of social mobilization, the
documentation of experience and accumulation of knowledge, capacity-building of partners and
communities and the alleviation of poverty are all important in the fight against child labour.
The media could also play a more positive role in child exploitation, for instance, instead of glorifying
violence and sex in programmes aimed at the youth, the media could be utilised to spread
information about children’s rights issues and sources of support. 286 NGOs need to better recognize
the importance of family as a source of information, support and protection for children and target
interventions accordingly. Even though there are NGO networks working towards similar themes,
the continued competition for funds indicates that the level of cooperation is not as effective as it
could be. 287 Co-ordination between NGOs and the government also needs to be enhanced. 288
Kenyan society should be engaged in denouncing child labour 289 . Awareness about the effects of child
labour and the possibilities to avoid child labour through education or vocational training, as well as
employment opportunities that are less hazardous. This is a movement requiring general social
support 290 , that should be initiated by the government of Kenya, which is currently being criticized
for insufficiently prioritizing the well-being of children. 291
6. Bibliography
ILO-IPEC. 2008. Combating child labour in Kenya. A study on commercial sex exploitation of children in
Kwale, Kakamega, Eldoret, Nairobi and Nyeri – 2008. Publicised by ILO-IPEC, with funding of
USDOL.
ILO-IPEC. 2009. International programme on elimination of child labour. An inventory of ILO-IPEC’s
contribution to the fight against child labour in Kenya. Publicised by ILO-IPEC.
International Labour Office. 2006. Emerging good practices on action to combat child domestic labour.
Publicised by the ILO.
285
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
286
Robin Masinde (Gender Violence Recovery Centre)
287
Christine Kungu (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
288
Charity Mwinde (District Children’s Officer, City Council Mombasa)
289
Ruth Nzaeki (Women’s Rights Awareness Programme)
290
Risper A. Omondi (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
291
Rose Odoyo (African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect)
89

Kenya National Bureau of Statistics with ILO-IPEC. 2008. Kenya integrated household budget survey
2005/2006. Child labour analytical report. Publicised by ILO-IPEC and funded by the United
States Department of Labour.
Niles, C. Report reveals Kenyan child sex industry of ‘horrific’ magnitude. As retrieved from:
http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/kenya_37817.html
Stöpler, L. (2008a). The Hidden Shame. Violence against children with disabilities in East Africa. Terre
des Hommes, The Hague.
Stöpler, L. (2009b). Money makes the World Go Down. Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children in
Tanzania. Terre des Hommes, The Hague.
United States Department of State. 2009. Trafficking in Persons Report 2009 – Kenya. Retrieved from
http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/4a4214ae32.html accessed on 17-03-2010
United States Department of Labour, 2006 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour - Kenya,
31. August 2007, as retrieved from: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/48d7493dc.html, on
31-03-2010
U.S. Department of State, "Country Reports – 2006: Kenya," Section 6d. See also U.S. Embassy –
Nairobi, reporting, September 14, 2005.
7. List of respondents
Nairobi:
Tonny M. Odera, Project Manager, The Cradle, 5. October
Rose Odoyo, CEO, ANPPCAN, 7. October
Risper A. Omondi, Programme Officer - Legal Aid & Child Protection Programme and Community
Mobilisation Against WFCL, 7. October
Janet Lanya, Community Health Worker, Ruben Centre, 8. October
Bonface Kithuka, Community Health Worker, Ruben Centre, 8. October
Daniel Fidel, Head teacher Ruben Junior, 8. October
James Musau, Police Officer, 8. October
Ruben Centre interviews with beneficiaries, 8. October
Robin Masinde, Project coordinator- Social Work & Advocacy, Gender Violence Recovery Center, 9.
October
Christine Kungu, Legal Officer, Women’s Rights Awareness Programme (WRAP), 12. October
Ruth Nzeki, Counsellor, Women’s Rights Awareness Programme (WRAP), 12. October
Marceline Nyambala, Programme Officer, Association of Media Women in Kenya (AMWIK), 13. October
Bernard Kiura, National Project Coordinator Tackling Child Labour Through Education, ILO/IPEC,
13. October
Ibrahim Alubala, Legal Officer, Child Legal Aid Network (CLAN), 14. October
90

Janet Githaiga, Programme Manager, Kenya Alliance for Advancement of Children (KAACR), 15.
October
Mombasa:
Charity Mwinde, District Children’s Officer, City Council, 21. October
Tatu Njaka, Project Assistant, KAACR Mombasa, 21. October
Evelyne Menyi, Programme Officer, SOLWODI, 22. October
Beldine Otieno, Field Coordinator Code of Conduct, SOLWODI, 22. October
George Ouda, Project Officer, WEMA Centre, 22. October
Nairobi:
Catherina Maina, Provincial Children’s Officer, Nairobi Province, 25. October
Elizabeth Onuko, Deputy Labour Commissioner, Ministry of Labour and Human Resource
Development, 25. October
91

Tanzania
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation
Thirty-six percent of households live below the national poverty line in Tanzania. Tanzania has a
largely dependent population, with 36%, or more than 40 million inhabitants under the age of fifteen
years(Terre des Hommes Baseline study Tanzania, 2005: 11-16). UNICEF estimates that nearly one
million children are orphans due to HIV/AIDS and that there are many more child-headed
households in existence where children have taken the main responsibilities over from ailing parents
(UNICEF, State of the Worlds Children 2010). In 2001 almost 40% of the children from 5 to 17 years
old were economically active, while nearly 48% were engaged in housekeeping activities (Terre des
Hommes Baseline Study Tanzania 2005:40). A national child labour survey (of 2000/01) found that 1.2
million children were involved in child labour of some kind, with the worst forms of labour
prevailing in four sectors: commercial agriculture, mining and quarrying, domestic work and the
commercial sex trade. Based on data from 2001, UNICEF and ILO estimate that 77,4% and 79,9% of
working children is involved in agriculture (ILO, Tanzania, 2001). UNICEF and ILO estimate further
that stated that between 17,4% and 22,4% of working children are engaged in the service sector. As for
domestic labour, research revealed that 80% of domestic workers, in 2000, were younger than
seventeen years(Terre des Hommes Baseline Study Tanzania 2005: 41). Children also work in the
informal sector and underground in mines. Child trafficking is related to the issue of child
exploitation and in Tanzania chiefly concerns girls from rural areas who are forced into domestic
labour or prostitution in urban (Tanzania, NSGPR 2005: 10).centres. A study by ILO/IPEC (2005)
revealed that as many as 25% of child prostitutes were former domestic workers (Terre des Hommes
Baseline Study Tanzania 2005: 42).
While school enrolment rates have significantly risen since 2000(UNICEF undated), possibly
indicating a decline in child labour and exploitation, problems related to the exploitation of children
can be found within the education system. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child noted a
concern regarding ‘

them unsupervised while they go fishing. Other notable reasons for the perpetuation of child labour
around Lake Victoria is the prevalence of orphans with no source of support and the low levels of
education among the parents, which inhibits them from holding education as a priority for their
children. 293
There is a gap between national-level policies and local realities for children throughout the country.
Government policies are not effectively reaching the people and so their impact remains minimal.
Language is one barrier, as many laws and policies are written in English and not in the more widelyunderstood
Swahili. There is little awareness about the existence or content of child labour policies
and laws, both among the general population and the officials responsible for their execution.
National government representatives, such as Labour Officers, do not have a strong enough presence
in all areas of the country. Local governments are in a better position to address child labour issues, as
they have the trust and respect of their communities, have a good overview of the specific situation in
their areas and are able to mobilize the people. It is easier for local authorities to gain access to private
homes in order to monitor child domestic labour and to keep track of school absenteeism. 294
Certain groups of children are particularly discriminated against and vulnerable to exploitation. The
HIV/AIDS epidemic, alongside the high number of orphans resulting from it, has brought an overall
shame that is further fuelled by a lack of information about the contraction and treatment of the virus.
Children of infected parents often face discrimination. 295 Girl children are at a disadvantage, as they
are often married off at an early age to bring in a dowry for the parents, and so no priority is made for
their education. Children in remote rural areas have less access to health-care and education services.
The global economic crisis has had noticeable consequences in Tanzania. Areas relying heavily on
agriculture have been affected, as farmers are no longer able to sell their cash crops to the cooperative
unions because the co-operatives can no longer obtain loans from the banks. Furthermore,
the government has placed restrictions on the export of food, for fear of running a shortage due to
droughts and unpredictable rains. 296
There are no official statistics about children working in the formal employment sector. A Regional
Labour Officer in Mwanza, speaking from his own personal experience, says that there are no
children employed in the formal sector in his region, but he does know that this is happening in Dar
es Salaam. 297 The labour offices however suffer from a lack of resources and they are understaffed,
hindering the effective monitoring of child labour laws. 298
2. Law and policy
Minimum age
Children under fourteen are permitted to perform light work. Under the age of eighteen, work in
mines, factories and large-scale plantations is prohibited. Children aged 14 to 18 are limited to specific
types of work. Light work is often considered to be helpful to the development of the child, or in the
very least, not harmful to the development of the child. Employment Ordinance No. 47, implemented
in 1955requires that 12 to 14 year old child workers receive a daily wage, work on a day-to-day basis,
are provided transportation home each evening, and obtain permission to work from their parents.
293
Ladislaus B. Munaku and Athanas Everist (Adilisha)
294
Maimuna Kanyamala (Kivulini)
295
Patricia Kamugisha and Barnaba Mwenge (Baraka Good Hope Orphans Development)
296
Patricia Kamugisha and Barnaba Mwenge (Baraka Good Hope Orphans Development)
297
Hadija Hersi (Regional Labour Officer Mwanza)
298
Wilfred Mdumi and Venance Kadago (Labour Officers Musoma)
93

Children are forbidden from working in any occupation that is dangerous or injurious to their health
and most industrial occupations are prohibited. Tanzania's child labour laws fall short of
international standards and there are no specified categories of light work, so interpretation is left up
to individuals. 299
Agriculture and mining
All agriculture and mining is classified as hazardous labour for children and is prohibited.. 300
The Penal Code
In Tanzania, the laws against child sexual abuse and exploitation are generally very strict. There are
stiff penalties for sexual offenses against children. The Sexual Offenses Special Provisions Act (SOSPA
1998) purports to ‘further safeguard the personal integrity, dignity, liberty and security of women and
children’. This act has created new offenses, namely, acts of gross indecency between persons, sexual
exploitation of children, grave sexual abuse, gang rape, sexual harassment, and cruelty to children. It
also clarifies the legal definition of rape, indecent assault and defilement.
Current law in Tanzania includes the following measures:
Verbal harassment can be punished by imprisonment and a fine.
Gross indecency includes touching and masturbation and is punished by one to five years
imprisonment.
Grave sexual abuse is defined as anything that does not constitute rape and is punished by a
sentence of 15 to 30 years with corporal punishment; a harsher sentence is given if the victim
is under fifteen years of age.
The punishment for rape is a minimum of 30 years imprisonment and the provision of
compensation to the victim.
Procurement is punished with a minimum of ten years or a fine.
Unnatural offences (anal sex) are punished by a minimum of 30 years and mean a mandatory
life sentence if committed to a child of less than ten years, the offence includes carnal
knowledge, or the perpetrator is a third-time offender.
Gang rape is punished by life imprisonment.
Prostitution or exploitation, such as producing child pornography, is punished less harshly,
with sentences ranging from two to ten years imprisonment or a fine of up to about 5000
dollars. (Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, 2008: art. 4-5)
In light of the above, someone who organizes and profits from child sexual exploitation receives a
lighter sentence than someone convicted of procurement or rape.
The age of adulthood has been set at eighteen, and this is also the age for consensual sex. The Sexual
Offenses Act was responsible for raising this age to eighteen, but makes an exception for married
children, who can have sexual relations from the age of fifteen. (SOSPA, sec. 130; ILO: 1; US dept of
state: 11)
Hazardous work
The relatively new labour law, enacted in 2004, criminalizes child labour. (Employment and Labour
Relations Act 2004). This law incorporates the provisions on hazardous work from ILO Convention
182, specifying the working age limit of fourteen, though it makes an exceptions for light work and
work for educational purposes. The law states that the government must provide a list of hazardous
work, something which the government of Tanzania is currently still in the process of doing (CEACR
individual observation on Tanzania, 2010).
299
Hadija Hersi (Regional Labour Officer Mwanza)
300
Hadija Hersi (Regional Labour Officer Mwanza)
94

National Child Development Policy
The National Child Development Policy recognizes that familial violence can result in children living
on the streets. This policy touches on issues related to child participation rights, the escalating
number of orphans and worst forms of child labour.
3. Forms
a. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of
children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including forced or
compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict.
Domestic work
The minimum wage for domestic work is TZS 60,000 per month (approx. €30), but domestic workers
are more typically paid around TZS 10,000 to 30,000 (€5 to €10) per month on top of room and board.
Domestic work is considered light work in Tanzania, especially when compared to work in the mines
and on plantations, but due to a lack of regulation, domestic workers often work long hours and
working days from 5 am until 11 pm would not be considered unusual. Child domestic labourers
often have little or no education, have no alternatives to their situation and are in no position to
bargain for better wages or working hours. There are connections between domestic work and the
sexual exploitation of children; a boyfriend, or men and even women within the household, have
been known to solicit domestic workers for a few thousand shillings. Sometimes girls enter into sex
work voluntarily to supplement their meagre earnings and to be able to send some money home to
their families. Some child domestic workers have been sold and trafficked from rural areas. 301
Case studies
The first case study exemplifying the situation for domestic workers in Tanzania is that of a sixteenyear-old
girl who has been a domestic worker for eight months. When her parents arranged for her
marriage to a 57-year-old man, she ran away and found a position in a household about eight
kilometres from her village in Musoma. Her parents are farmers and she has completed school up to
Standard 7. This child wakes up at 4.30 every morning to tidy up before her employers wake up and
works until about 10 pm. Her other tasks are cleaning the compound, maintaining the garden and
taking care of the baby. Her salary is TZS 7000 per month and she has no free days. Although she
faces physical abuse at the hands of her employers and is regularly given less food than family
members, she feels that this is the best alternative available to her at the moment. 302
A contrasting typical story is that of a fifteen-year-old girl who dropped out of school when her
parents died of HIV/AIDS. She was sent to live with relatives, who in turn sent her to work as a
domestic worker in another household. Her relatives received an initial payment of TZS 20,000 for her
services and her monthly earnings of TZS 12,000 go straight to them. She works from 5 am until 11
pm cleaning the house, preparing meals, taking children to school, fetching water and gardening. As
punishment for mistakes, including false accusations, she has been locked outside of the house for the
night and food has been withheld for days on end. This child was also beaten when the lady of the
house accused her of seducing her husband; he had given her sweets for her birthday. She receives
one Sunday off per month. 303
301
Verena Maro (Foundation HELP), Patricia Kamugisha and Barnaba Mwenge (Baraka Good Hope Orphans
Development)
302
Beneficiary Centre for Widows and Children Assistance
303
Beneficiary Centre for Widows and Children Assistance
95

According to ILO (ILO 2006) estimates 80% of child domestic workers in Tanzania are girls, many of
them from rural and slum communities from districts or regions some distance from where they are
employed. The majority of these girls start doing domestic work when they are younger than fifteen.
However, there are others who enter this service as early as seven. Most child domestic workers work
between 14 and 16 hours daily. Research on Poverty Alleviation (REPOA) estimates that one-third of
all working children in Tanzania are employed in the domestic sector (ILO 2006). According to the
ILO-IPEC (2003), 25% of girls engaged in prostitution started out as child domestic workers.
b. Involvement of children in prostitution, production of pornography or pornographic
performances
The sexual exploitation of children in the mining and fishing regions of Tanzania is rampant. Girls
aged 12 to 15 arrive in these areas on pay day in search of a way to earn money. Typically, there is a
lot of alcohol abuse involved in these sexual encounters. 304 The sexual exploitation of children in
fishing areas is hidden from society-at-large and it is difficult to measure the true scope of the
problem. Estimates by the organization Adilisha, which operates at 16 fishing posts in the Mwanza
area, place the number of girls involved as more than ten per fishing post.. 305
Lalor (2004) concluded that in Tanzania, little empirical data exists on child sexual exploitation. Lalor
further states that there is a wide-spread perception that the HIV/AIDS epidemic has further
exacerbated the level of commercial sexual exploitation, due to the popular idea that one can cleanse
oneself by having sex with a child. Commercial sexual exploitation is further fed by the breakdown of
the childcare system, poverty, the position of girls in society and foreign influences.
c. Hazardous work: work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out,
is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children
The three main types of hazardous labour that Tanzanian children are involved in are fishing, mining
and agriculture. In remote areas, such as the Mara region, children are involved in the livestock
sector. They herd cattle in unsupervised conditions, are exposed to snakes and other dangerous
animals and have no access to services. 306
Many children living in the fishing communities surrounding Lake Victoria spend their days
working. They do tasks directly related to the fishing industry, as well as tasks such as preparing
meals. While fishing, the children are exposed to extreme and harmful conditions and often work
long days in the hot sun. Families and children living in poverty travel to the lakeside regions such as
Bukima Beach, Irungwe Beach Island, Burungu Beach and Bwai Beach in search of work and their
children often end up exploited by the fishers. The girls are especially vulnerable to sexual
exploitation. There is also a high rate of school drop outs in the fishing communities. 307
According to the Labour Office in Musoma, children are not involved in the formal mining sector, but
they do work in small-scale informal mining. 308 A report by the International Labour Organization
supports this view (ILO 2007). According to the Aids Control and Community Development
304
Phillip Minani (ACCODEO)
305
Ladislaus B. Munaku and Athanas Everist (Adilisha)
306
Phillip Minani (ACCODEO)
307
Bigambo Jeje (Mara Hope for Life)
308
Wilfred Mdumi and Venance Kadago (Labour Officers Musoma)
96

Organization in Musoma, there are 460 children working at informal mining sites in the area.
Children living in mining areas are exposed to hazardous conditions and are susceptible to malaria,
diarrhoea, bilharzia and respiratory problems. There are children as young as 10 to 14 years old
working the mines. 309 The ILO-study 33 also found that girls between 12 and 17 were working between
42 and 70 hours per week in gemstone brokering. Boys employed in this field tended to be fifteen
years or older. Mining is often a family activity.
4. Interventions
Government initiatives
The Universal Primary Education programme has assured a free education for all Tanzanians and it is
possible to receive contributions toward secondary education. There has not been a sufficient level of
focus on this education reform however and in practise education costs are still prohibitive for many
families. School contributions, uniforms, books, exams and extra-curricular activities can add up to
TZS 60,000 to 80,000 per year for primary school and TZS 200,000 for secondary school. Even though
there is a national policy requiring local governments to provide education costs for orphans and
vulnerable children, the reality of corruption means that this policy is poorly implemented, funds are
handed out unsystematically and children are rarely supported for more than a few years. 310 Further
noteworthy problems found in the education system are an insufficient number of teachers and books
and frequent syllabus changes. Teachers have also been known to have children work for them
during school hours, for example, to sell things and bring back the earnings. 311 There are now
penalties for parents who do not enrol their children in school, but these penalties are minimal.
Sending the parents to jail however would only worsen the situation for everyone, so this is usually
avoided. 312
District Labour Officers, in collaboration with district councils, teachers and parents, run seminars to
educate communities about child labour. They aim to withdraw children from work and enrol them
in school. Labour Officers also carry out inspections and in cases of violation, can refer a case to the
police. Bringing in the police however is seen as a last resort, as the reason for the violation of child
labour laws is often due to a lack of awareness by employers and parents. If this is the case, it is
important to first educate the perpetrators about the relevant laws. 313
There is room for improvement regarding state child protection measures. There is only one
children’s court and two children’s remand homes in the entire country. Whereas some police stations
have a child desk, this practice is not yet universal and children who come into contact with law
enforcement services are often received in an inappropriate manner by untrained officers.
Furthermore, street children regularly face abuse at the hands of the police. 314
The problems of corruption among the judiciary and police, as well as the lack of education and
awareness about child labour and child protection laws, are pervasive throughout Tanzania. Bribes
are often justified by the low wages earned by police. Language also remains a barrier for lower-level
309
Phillip Minani (ACCODEO)
310
Patricia Kamugisha and Barnaba Mwenge (Baraka Good Hope Orphans Development)
311
Verena Maro (Foundation HELP)
312
Patricia Kamugisha and Barnaba Mwenge (Baraka Good Hope Orphans Development)
313
Wilfred Mdumi and Venance Kadago (Labour Officers Musoma)
314
Ladislaus B. Munaku and Athanas Everist (Adilisha)
97

officials since legislation is officially written in English and only some of it has been translated into
Swahili. 315
At the national level, ILO is working with the government on child labour issues. Little of this seems
to be reaching the district and regional levels however and there is limited knowledge about the work
currently being done. NGOs working in Tanzania do have some data about the reality of child labour
and exploitation, but unfortunately do not readily share this information with the government. As a
result, the government is not fully aware of the magnitude of the problem. There is a lack of
communication between the various actors working at different levels; a problem that could easily be
solved by setting up procedures or regular formal meetings for the purpose of information sharing. 316
Other initiatives
The Aids Control and Community Development Organization (ACCODEO) provides support for
orphans and vulnerable children through skills training, small loans and by removing children from
the worst forms of child labour for rehabilitation. The organization Kivulini runs a programme for the
protection of child domestic workers from abuse and exploitation, by organizing meetings with
groups of children and employers. Rather than just withdrawing children from work, they want to
bring those involved in domestic labour together to shed more light on their situation and provide
them with alternatives. This organization works with street leaders to support child domestic
labourers. They work to improve relations between children and their employers in times of conflict,
to increase the level of understanding and awareness about child rights at the community level and to
remove underage children from work. Supporting child domestic labourers brings the challenges of
gaining entry into private homes and dealing with employers who readily pretend to be the
guardians of their domestic workers. These extra challenges present the need for community-level
interventions that proceed slowly in order to first gain the trust of employers and the wider
community. 317
Mara Hope for Life is an NGO, formed by local journalists, that conducts research studies and brings
child labour issues to light through the use of local media, such as radio stations, and by sending
reports of their research findings to the government.
UNICEF is supporting the establishment of village- and district-level committees for the identification
and support of orphans and other vulnerable children and for the development of strategies for
protection. These committees face numerous challenges, such as the lack of sufficient training among
committee members and difficulties in delivering strategies to the higher levels of government
suitable for their execution. 318
The organization Adilisha offers alternatives to exploited and vulnerable children in the fishing
communities of Mwanza. These include the provision of primary education, complementary basic
education and vocational training, as well as the removal of children from labour and the
establishment of child labour committees at each fishing post. In order to ensure the sustainability of
these initiatives, Adilisha has linked the ten-member child labour committees to government
structures. The committees meet to discuss cases of child labour and decide on appropriate penalties
for parents.
315
Wilfred Mdumi and Venance Kadago (Labour Officers Musoma), Maimuna Kanyamala (Kivulini)
316
Malli Silesi (Centre for Widows and Children Assistance)
317
Group interview with Kivulini staff
318
Patricia Kamugisha and Barnabas Mwenge (Baraka Good Hope Orphans Development)
98

5. Recommendations by respondents
In order for child labour interventions to be successful they need to address the root causes of the
problem. Interventions that remove children from work but do nothing to support them afterwards
are unlikely to have any long- lasting effects. Working children and their families need to be
provided with viable alternatives to the exploitative situation that they are in. Without follow-up
children will return to their job or move to a different employment sector. The combination of
education, heightened awareness and the empowerment of the community can lead to the
sustainability of an achievement. Interventions need to be comprehensive and target issues of
financial security and the provision for a variety of education opportunities. The participation of
community members in the design and implementation stages of a project should be central. 319
There is a need for sensitization to child labour issues at all levels. The government needs to prioritize
children in their policies and budgets 320 ; community leaders need to become aware of the situation
and hazards for children in their area; and parents, teachers and employees need to be given
information about child labour laws and the importance of education. The education system, at both
the primary and secondary levels, needs improvement to ensure that accessibility does come at the
cost of quality 321 . All relevant legislation needs to be translated from English into Swahili to improve
awareness and implementation of these laws throughout the country. The costs and complexity of the
process involved in bringing a case to court are prohibitive for many and there is a need to simplify
these procedures. 322
6. Bibliography
Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR).
Individual observation on Tanzania, 2010. As retrieved from: http://natlex.ilo.ch/ilolex/cgilex/singleilc.plquery=062010TZA182@ref&chspec=03&highlight=&querytype=bool
on 05-04-
2010
Committee on the Rights of the Child. 2001. Concluding observations, Tanzania.
Government of Tanzania. 2005. National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty.
ILO. 2006. Emerging good practices on action to combat child domestic labour. As retrieved from:
http://www.ilo.org/ipecinfo/product/download.dotype=document&id=2979 on 31-03- 2010
ILO. 2007. Girls in Mining. As retrieved from http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/-
--gender/documents/publication/wcms_090521.pdf on 31-03-2010
319
Group interview Via Kivulini staff; Patricia Kamugisha and Barnaba Mwenge (Baraka Good Hope Orphans
Development)
320
Ladislaus B. Munaku and Athanas Everist (Adilisha)
321
Ladislaus B. Munaku and Athanas Everist (Adilisha)
322
Maimuna Kanyamala (Kivulini)
99

ILO/IPEC. 2003. Facts on Child Domestic Labour. Geneva. As retrieved from: www.ilo.org/childlabour
and http://www.wotclef.org/documents/fs_domesticlabour_0303.pdf
Lalor. K. 2004. Child sexual abuse in Tanzania and Kenya. Child Abuse & Neglect 28, pp 833–844
Terre des Hommes. 2005. Baseline study Tanzania. Nairobi, Kenya.
UNICEF 2010. State of the World’s Children.
UNICEF. Undated. Tanzania. As retrieved from:
http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/tanzania_1254.html, on 05-04-2010
7. List of respondents
Musoma:
Bigambo Jeje, Managing Director, Mara Hope for Life (MHL), 18. November
Wilfred Mdumi, Labour Officer, Labour Office, 19. November
Venance Kadago, Labour Officer, Labour Office, 19. November
Verena Maro, Finance and Administration, Foundation HELP, 19. November
Phillip Minani, Executive Director, Aids Control and Community Development Organization
(ACCODEO), 19. November
Malli Silesi, Director, Centre for Widows and Children Assistance (CWCA), 20. November
Centre for Widows and Children Assistance (CWCA), Interviews with child domestic workers, 20.
November
Maimuna Kanyamala, Executive Director, Kivulini, 24. November
Rugemalira Florence, Project Coordinator, Kivulini, 24. November
Patricia Kamugisha, Coordinator, Baraka Good Hope Orphans Development (BAGODE), 27.
November
Barnabas Mwenge, Lobbying and Advocacy Officer, Baraka Good Hope Orphans Development
(BAGODE), 27. November
Ladislaus B Munaku, Project Coordinator, Adilisha, 27. November
Athanas Everist, Social Worker, Adilisha, 27. November
Hadija Hersi, Regional Labour Officer, Labour Office Mwanza, 2. December
Kivulini, group interview with child domestic workers and street leaders, 2. December
100

Uganda
1. Introduction and background to child exploitation
There are various estimated rates of child labour in Uganda. The Ministry of Gender, Labour and
Social Development claims that there are two million children involved in child labour in Uganda. 323
According to the most recent statistics by the United States Department of Labour (2005-2006), 31% of
the total child population aged 5 to 14 years is working and the vast majority, about 95.5%, are
working in agriculture. 324 According to Understanding Children's Work, 38.3% or 2.5 million of 7 to
14 year olds and 63% of 15 to 17 year olds were estimated to be working in 2005 and 2006; 735,000
children under ten years of age were also estimated to be working (UCW 2008). The majority of
working children - 92% of 7 to 14 and 67% of 15 to 17 year olds - are in school. In rural areas, the
percentage of working children is much higher than in urban areas and working seems to be a barrier
to education beyond the primary level (UCW 2008). School attendance peaks for eleven year olds,
with 96% in school, thereafter it slowly declines as children start leaving school and working full-time
(UCW 2008). According to this same report, 96% of economically active 7 to 14 year olds work in
agriculture, against 3% in services and more than 1% in manufacturing (UCW 2008). Within the
agricultural sector, 89% of children are involved in the growing of cereals or other crops and 5% in
mixed farming. Almost all working children work on behalf of their families (UCW 2008).
Poverty is seen as one of the main causes of child labour in Uganda. The effects of the war in the
north are still visible and responsible for large numbers of internally-displaced and dependent
people. Laws are poorly enforced in the camps for internally displaced persons (IDP) and other waraffected
areas, leaving children vulnerable to exploitation. Children migrate from the north, alone or
with their families, to escape the destruction, poverty and insecurity of these areas. The war,
combined with the HIV/AIDS epidemic, has resulted in a large population of orphans and childheaded
households in Uganda. Domestic violence and neglect pushes children out of the house, onto
the streets and into cities in search of better conditions. Polygamy and high-birth rates result in large
families; however all families are experiencing an escalating difficulty in providing basic needs. 325 The
education system is criticized for its low quality, overcrowded classrooms and lack of qualified
teachers. 326 As a result of the global economic crisis, the cost of living has gone up, especially in
industrial areas where many people have lost their jobs. 327 Food prices have been rising for the past
few years, also making survival difficult. 328
Some of the organizations interviewed for this report claimed that child labour rates, as well as
instances of child neglect, early marriages and missing children, are declining with the growing
awareness about these issues. The Ugandan Police Force, for example, receives fewer reports of child
labour than previously; the majority of reports generally involve cases of child domestic work. 329
Regardless, poverty and polygamy are arguably on the rise, as is the rate of domestic violence and
other types of sexual and physical abuse, as men leave their families in search of richer wives during
tough economic times. Other interviewees felt that, as a result of the growing poverty, number of
323
Godfrey Kiberu (Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development)
324
United States Department of Labour, 2007 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour - Uganda, 27 August 2008,
available at: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/48caa49628.html [accessed 29 March 2010]
325
Anslem Wandega (ANPPCAN), Dr. Regina Mbabazi (International Health Sciences University), Group
interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
326
Dr. Regina Mbabazi (International Health Sciences University)
327
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
328
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
329
Nandi Ketty and Moses Kyomba (Uganda Police Force)
101

street children, incidence of domestic violence and number of child-headed households, child labour
too is increasing. 330
Debates are taking place in Uganda about the practical meanings of children’s rights and children’s
responsibilities; about their right to education, for example, versus their responsibility to contribute to
the household. Work is sometimes seen as a form of child participation, in other words, as a way for a
child to exercise their rights, rather than a violation of their rights. 331
2. Law and policy
ILO conventions 182 and 138
Both the ILO conventions regarding the worst forms of child labour and minimum age have been
ratified by Uganda.
The Employment Act
The minimum age of admission to work in Uganda is fourteen years. Children under twelve years are
prohibited from working in any business or workplace. Children between the ages of 12 and 14 years
may engage in light work that does not hinder their education and is supervised by an adult over
eighteen years. The law states that no child under eighteen years may be employed in hazardous
work or work between the hours of 7 pm and 7 am (US Department of Labour 2007).
National Programme of Action for Children
Uganda has established a National Programme of Action for Children (1993) in order to provide a
framework for all actors protecting the rights of children (ILO-IPEC, 2004).
National Child Labour Policy
The National Child Labour Policy was adopted in 2006. ‘The objectives of the policy are to integrate
child labour issues into national and community-level programmes; establish frameworks for
coordinating, monitoring, and evaluating child labour programmes; and encourage efforts to
eliminate child labour.’ (www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/tda/tda2006/Uganda.pdf)
The Constitution of the Republic of Uganda (1995)
The constitution prohibits the slavery or servitude of persons. Another article in the Ugandan
constitution protects children under the age of sixteen years from social or economic exploitation.
The Children Statute (1996)
The statute legislates many of the commitments of the CRC. Children are defined as persons who are
below the age of eighteen. The statute establishes the rights of children to live with their parents and
be protected from discrimination, violence, neglect and abuse; it also prohibits children from doing
jobs and tasks that could be harmful (ILO-IPEC, 2004).
The National Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children Policy (2004)
‘Government through the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development is mandated to
promote social protection of poor and vulnerable children. Such children include orphans, those who
live on the streets, those that toil under exploitative conditions of labour as well as those that suffer
sexual abuse and other forms of discrimination.’ The policy aims to ‘inform programmes, legal and
330
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN; Angella Baligenya (Community Development Officer, Jinja Central
Division)
331
Jimmy Obbo Ivans (ANPPCAN)
102

administrative actions that affect the safety, well-being and development of orphans, vulnerable
children and their care-givers.’ (National Orpahns and Other Vulnerable Children Policy 2004).
3. Forms
a. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of
children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including
forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict
Child domestic labour
This is an overlooked and neglected sector of child labour in Uganda. Child domestic labour is most
rampant in urban areas, with children as young as eight being placed into domestic service. There
have been cases of children being trafficked to Nairobi for the purpose of domestic labour. 332 Many
child domestic workers come from war-affected areas in the north. 333 Child domestic workers are
often locked in, so it is difficult to assess the extent and severity of the exploitation. Even though the
problems associated with child domestic labour are well known, it is a challenge to regulate the
conditions under which children work due to the hidden nature within this sector. 334 Some children
are able to combine domestic work with school. The ILO (2006) found that 55.6% of child domestic
workers in Uganda are girls, and 44.4% are boys.
Case studies:
One young woman interviewed for this report has been a domestic worker since the age of fifteen.
Her tasks include taking the children to school, preparing their meals, house cleaning, fetching up to
60 litres of water per day, laundry and ironing. She works seven days a week, from 5 am to 10 pm,
and is the first to wake up and last to go to sleep. This particular young woman gets one day off for
Christmas annually. Her remuneration amounts to USH 15,000 (about €5) per month, as well as three
meals a day and a place to sleep. She is both verbally and sexually abused by her employers. The
young woman started working as a domestic servant when her father died of HIV/AIDS and the
family was no longer able to pay her secondary-school fees. At this point she migrated from her
village to Kampala to work for the middle-class household referred to above. 335
A second, fairly common example of child domestic labour, is that of a fifteen-year-old girl who was
brought over from her village two years previously to live with her aunt in Jinja. She attends school
during the day and does the housework in exchange for a place to sleep, money for the bus to school
and one meal a day. Her tasks include cooking, house cleaning, laundry and child care. This girl faces
verbal and emotional abuse by her employers, but puts up with this for the sake of the education she
is receiving. 336
Trafficking
Active trafficking routes between Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya, 337 as well as internal rural-to-urban
trafficking, exists in Uganda today. Cross-border trafficking for the purpose of prostitution,
particularly into Kenya, also occurs. Children are trafficked from northern Uganda into southern
Sudan for war purposes and marriage. The issue of trafficking is presently gaining attention; the
332
Anslem Wandega (ANPPCAN)
333
Dr. Regina Mbabazi (International Health Sciences University)
334
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
335
UYDEL beneficiary (3. November)
336
Child domestc worker, Jinja (11. November)
337
Nandi Ketty and Moses Kyomba (Uganda Police Force)
103

government has become aware of the problem and is taking steps against it, but there remains a lack
of relevant data about the scope and nature of trafficking in Uganda. 338 According to IPEC (2007),
boys are trafficked at an earlier age, generally 10 to 14 years of age, than girls, who are more often 15
to 19 years old. Trafficked children mainly end up as domestic workers, waiters, prostitutes and street
vendors. Other children end up in the fishing or agricultural sectors. IPEC (2007) claims that no effort
is yet made to report the disappearance of children to the authorities, not even by parents. Many of
the victims’ family members surveyed appeared to praise the traffickers because they helped to
reduce the burden of extra children in the family (IPEC 2007).
A recent case about a woman who kept 32 children imprisoned under poor conditions exemplifies the
types of trafficking that occur in Uganda. This woman brought children from rural areas, after
swindling money from their parents under the guise of taking the children to a foreign-run school
and needing the money for the children’s upkeep. 339
b. Involvement of children in prostitution, production of pornography or pornographic
performances
The commercial sexual exploitation of children is taking place throughout Uganda; it can be found on
the streets and in brothels, bars, restaurants and hotels. 340 It also takes place in fishing communities,
which are often also characterized by high levels of alcohol abuse. Girls are trafficked into fishing
communities from outside districts for the purpose of sex work. In general, many female prostitutes
started out as domestic servants, living and working under tough conditions and often receiving no
pay. They managed to escape this situation, only to end up on the streets and extremely vulnerable to
traffickers who promised them the opportunity for a better job or education. 341 Other victims are
taken from villages by recruiters who promise parents a better education for their daughter and then
sell the girls to a brothel. These girls are often transported long distances and imprisoned inside
houses to ensure that they cannot go for help; they quickly loose sight of any alternatives or ways of
escaping. In March 2008, there was a case where 26 girls were rescued from a brothel and the
perpetrator was successfully caught by the police and eventually sentenced to a jail term. 342
Although there are no official statistics about child prostitution, some of the interviewees estimated
that it was on the downturn. 343 Child pornography however is said to be increasing and little attention
has yet to be paid to this type of exploitation. 344 According to research by ILO-IPEC (2004), 728
children interviewed pinpointed the need for money as a major factor leading them into commercial
sexual activities; 70% claimed that they entered this business at the persuasion of friends. ILO-IPEC
(2004) also reported that prostitution was more evident in society than pornography and trafficking
and that this particularity limits the capacity of district leaders to acknowledge a problem and
intervene. Moreover, 71% of the children who were interviewed had never received any support
while they were victims of sexual exploitation.
338
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
339
Jimmy Obbo Ivans (ANPPCAN)
340
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council); Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
341
Dr. Regina Mbabazi (International Health Sciences University)
342
Jimmy Obbo Ivans (ANPPCAN)
343
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
344
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
104

c. Illicit activities
Illicit activities, such as the production of illegal goods and smuggling, are known to occur in both
rural and urban areas, but there is little knowledge about the extent of these activities. 345 Children are
used in illegal brewing, especially in rural areas. 346
d. Hazardous work: work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out,
is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children
Children are involved in many different types of hazardous labour in Uganda. In the agricultural
sector, children’s tasks include caring for livestock, work in the fields, burning charcoal, drying
tobacco, picking coffee and tea and transporting and processing sugarcane. Children work in the
fishing industry, on boat landing sites, and fetching and selling firewood and water. 347 Child labour in
the sugarcane industry is thought to be on the rise, but there are very few NGOs focusing on this
sector. 348 In the urban setting, many children are involved in the collecting and selling of scrap metal,
factory work and work in garages, hotels, restaurants, markets and stores, they can also be found
washing motorcycles and cars. 349 Overall however, child labour is said to be most common in the
sugarcane and fishing industries. 350
Case studies:
One case study brought to light, focuses on a boy who makes brooms for a living. He spends three
days collecting grass, a day tying up the grass into brooms and then a full day selling the completed
brooms at the market. Cutting the grass contributes to hand injuries and back pain. On a good market
day he earns about USH 3000 (about €1) for five long days of work. 351
A second case looks at the story of a twenty-year-old who had lost both his parents by the age of
twelve. After his parents died he dropped out of school and went to live with relatives. He works
long days at various agricultural jobs and then unloads vehicles until three in the morning. This
young man earns about USH 5000 (less than €2) for every 16–hour work cycle. 352
A final example of the various pathways leading to child labour is that of a fifteen–year-old boy who
was sent to live with his grandmother in the slums after his parents divorced. He was in Primary 7 at
the time, but they could no longer afford his school fees. He and his siblings were split up and he no
longer knows where his brothers and sisters are. This particular boy was kicked out of his
grandmother’s place after a while and ended up on the streets collecting and selling scrap metal with
a group of boys. He earns USH 500 - 2000 (less than €1) a day. 353
345
Nandi Ketty and Moses Kyomba (Uganda Police Force); Jimmy Obbo Ivans (ANPPCAN)
346
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN; Jimmy Obbo Ivans (ANPPCAN)
347
Opio Ouma (Jinja District Local Government); Anslem Wandega (ANPPCAN); Dr. Regina Mbabazi
(International Health Sciences University); Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council);
Jimmy Obbo Ivans (ANPPCAN); Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
348
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN, Jimmy Obbo Ivans (ANPPCAN)
349
Dr. Regina Mbabazi (International Health Sciences University); Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN; Opio
Ouma (Jinja District Local Government); Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
350
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
351
ADSN beneficiary
352
ADSN beneficiary
353
UYDEL beneficiary
105

4. Interventions
Government initiatives
The Ugandan government is running a number of programmes aimed at combating child labour. The
Universal Primary Education programme supports the informal sector and hopes to eliminate
poverty while addressing child labour. The government also organizes sensitization programmes
which disseminate information to relevant ministries and partner organizations about the worst
forms of child labour. 354 Finally, the government has introduced National Agricultural Advisory
Services (NAADS) in order to improve food security. This programme benefits working children. 355
The Kampala City Council is running a programme that aims to make leaders at the local level more
sensitive to child labour laws. A lack of transportation and communication facilities however impedes
the municipality of Kampala from responding to and investigating all suspected cases of child
exploitation. 356 There are Child Protection Committees, including probation and social welfare
officers, police officers and community development officers, which work hand-in-hand with civil
servants to create more awareness about the National Child Labour Policy and to advocate for the
education of girls. These committees work together with the local council. 357
The introduction of universal primary education was viewed by some interviewees as a successful
intervention and according to 2006 statistics, seven million children attend school. Universal
secondary education is presently also being introduced in Uganda, however the quality of these
schools is not always sufficient. 358 Penalties have been put into place for parents who refuse to send
their children to school. 359
According to some sources, the protection provided to children by the police has improved over the
past few years due to increased capacity and funds for programmes aimed at children. 360 The police
have a separate child and family protection unit. 361 However the police are criticized for taking bribes,
including for cases involving child labour and other forms of child exploitation, which impedes the
proper implementation of relevant laws and the ability to bring a case to a close. 362
The legal consequence of the commercial exploitation of children is prosecution when caught. After
the police take up a case of child exploitation it is passed on to a special children’s and family court.
The punishment for those convicted varies, but generally the employer will have to pay
compensation to the child, including extra damages if the child has been injured. 363
Prior to the ratification of the ILO Conventions on Child Labour, the Ugandan government launched
a National Programme to Eliminate Child Labour. This programme aimed at
‘

awareness, and the formation of district groups aimed at addressing
children’s issues. Sectors receiving particular attention include commercial
agriculture, construction, and fishing. In the informal sector, rehabilitation
services are available to street children, commercial sex workers, domestic
workers, and children involved in cross-border smuggling and drug
trafficking ’ (US Department of Labour).
ILO ran a child domestic labour programme in Uganda from 2002 until 2006. The achievements of
this programme included ‘

5. Recommendations by respondents
There is a need for sustainable interventions that address the root causes of child labour by
supporting families; raising awareness about child labour and education laws and the rationale
behind them; and improving the quality, access and flexibility of formal and non-formal education.
Many current programmes do not tackle the root causes of child labour, as a result children who have
been rehabilitated from exploitative situations eventually end up back on the streets. 370 There is also a
need to develop multifaceted interventions; successful child labour interventions remove a child from
work and provide for their education while simultaneously supporting their family. 371 The quality of
schools needs to be improved and secondary education needs to be made more accessible. 372
The government needs to focus on social services. Community development, social protection,
education, security and health care need to be targeted by the government. 373 Access to social services
needs to be improved, especially in rural areas. 374 There is a lack of political will to tackle child labour
and hence a need to enhance interest in children’s affairs at the district as well as national level. 375
Donor organizations should support government initiatives and advocate for more political will on
child labour issues. 376 There is a need to harmonize laws, as there is a discrepancy in the minimum
working age between the constitution, at 16 years, and the child labour policy, which sets the
minimum working age at 18 years. 377
Political leaders at the district level need to be sensitized to child labour issues. Lobbying for more
financial support and technical assistance is necessary at a higher level. Budget allocation to
government departments dealing with children should be increased and more labour officers and a
separate children’s department are needed. 378 Communities need to be made more aware of child
labour and education policies so that they can be mobilized to assist with child protection and
monitor school attendance. 379 It is important to strengthen existing structures within communities and
capacity within the government. There is a lack of awareness about laws concerning children which is
hindering the effective implementation of these laws. 380 The treatment of children is still often
considered a private family matter where outsiders have no say. 381
Interventions should also focus on raising awareness and shifting people’s attitudes in order to be
sustainable and to bring about real change. The government’s heavy dependence on donors and
project time-frames is problematic and it is therefore important to design sustainable programmes,
thus ensuring that their impact remains after the donor has moved on. 382 A greater transparency
within NGOs and information sharing among NGOs are required; information sharing between
NGOs and the government also needs enhancing. There are many NGOs focusing on health and
370
Anslem Wandega (ANPPCAN)
371
Opio Ouma (Jinja District Local Government)
372
Godfrey Kiberu (Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development)
373
Opio Ouma (Jinja District Local Government)
374
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
375
Anslem Wandega (ANPPCAN)
376
Godfrey Kiberu (Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development); Angella Baligenya (Community
Development Officer, Jinja Central Division)
377
Anslem Wandega (ANPPCAN); Ibrahim Kibalama and Jacqueline Nassaka (Uganda Youth Development
Link); Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
378
Godfrey Kiberu (Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development); Angella Baligenya (Community
Development Officer, Jinja Central Division); Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council))
379
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
380
Group interview CRO, JINNET, ADSN
381
Angella Baligenya (Community Development Officer, Jinja Central Division)
382
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
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education in Uganda, but not enough acting on behalf of child protection. 383 The focus of
interventions and policies is often on orphans; more attention needs to be paid to child labour in
general and to child domestic labour in particular. 384 NGOs are under-represented in rural areas. 385
Universal Primary Education (UPE) is criticized for not being an appropriate programme for all
children. Some children would benefit more from skills or vocational training than formal
education. 386 Orphans, children who have to work for their survival and children who head a
household are not always able to access the benefits of UPE. Even though the instalment of free
universal primary education has reduced child labour rates, there is a need for more flexibility in
education programmes in order to reach the most vulnerable children. 387
6. Bibliography
ILO. 2007. Girls in mining: Research findings from Ghana, Niger, Peru and the United Republic of Tanzania.
ISBN: 978.92.2.120346.9
ILO-IPEC. 2004. Child Labour and Commercial Sex Exploitation of Children in Uganda. As retrieved from:
http://www.ilo.org/ipecinfo/product/download.do;jsessionid=0a038009cea6a2eda0e02294d8aa
e8a8312a574f8a6.hkzFngTDp6WImQuUaNaKbxD3lN4K-xaIah8S-xyIn3uKmAiN-
AnwbQbxaNvzaAmIhuKa30xgx95fjWTa3eIpkzFngTDp6WImQuxbhmKaxmSb3qK8OexhOaOgzX9i4j38QfznA5Pp
7ftolbGmkTytype=document&id=702 on 23-03- 2010
ILO. 2006. Emerging good practices on action to combat child domestic labour. Published by the ILO, ISBN
978.92.2.118390.7
IPEC. 2007. Rapid assessment report in trafficking of children into worst forms of child labour, including child
soldiers in Uganda. As retrieved from:
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/region/afpro/daressalaam/download/c_trafficking_uganda.
pdf on 22-03- 2010
ILO/IPEC. Support for the preparatory phase of the Uganda National Action Plan for the Elimination
of child Labour (SNAP) – Uganda. 2009. As retrieved from:
http://www.ilo.org/ipecinfo/product/viewProduct.doproductId=9970
National Orpahns and Other Vulnerable Children Policy 2004. As retrieved from:
http://www.mglsd.go.ug/ovc/index.phppage=policies-and-strategies
Understanding Children’s Work (UCW). 2008. Understanding Children’s Work in Uganda. Published by
UCW, Kampala August 2008.
United States Department of Labour, 2007 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour - Uganda,
27. August 2008. As retrieved from: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/48caa49628.html,
on 29-03-2010
United States Department of Labour. As retrieved from:
www.dol.gov/ILAB/media/reports/iclp/Advancing1/html/uganda.htm)
383
Opio Ouma (Jinja District Local Government)
384
Godfrey Kiberu (Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development)
385
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council)
386
Godfrey Kiberu (Ministry of Gender, Labour, and Social Development)
387
Adrine Namara (District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council); Ibrahim Kibalama and Jacqueline Nassaka
(Uganda Youth Development Link)
109

7. List of respondents
Kampala:
Anslem Wandega, Program Coordinator Research, Information and Policy Advocacy, ANPPCAN
Uganda, 28. October
Dr. Regina Mbabazi, Public Health Policy and Management, International Health Sciences University,
29. October
Godfrey Kiberu, Principal Labour Officer, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, 30.
October
Ibrahim Kibalama, Head Youth Center, Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL), 3. November
Jacqueline Nassaka, Project Coordinator, Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL), 3. November
Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL), Interviews with beneficiaries, 3. November
Adrine Namara, District Labour Officer, Kampala City Council, 3. November
Nandi Ketty, Child and Family Protection Unit, Uganda Police Force, 5. November
Moses Kyomba, Head Crisis Shelter, Uganda Police Force, 5. November
Crisis Shelter Kampala Police, Interviews with girls, 5. November
Jinja:
Child Restoration Outreach (CRO)/Jinja Network (JINNET)/Adolescence Development Support
Network (ADSN), group interview with Andrew Magero, Edward M. Lugero, Justine Namusubo,
Prossy Mutesi, Susan Naigaga, Michael Kitamirike, Monica P. Kwagale and Elizabeth Gumule, 9.
November
Edward Lugero, ADSN, 10. November
Prossy Mutesi, ADSN, 10. November
ADSN, Interviews with beneficiaries, 10. November
Opio Ouma, Senior probation officer, Jinja District Local Government, 11. November
Angella Baligenya, Community Development Officer, Jinja Central Division, 11. November
Jimmy Obbo Ivans, Programme Officer, ANPPCAN Uganda, 12. November
110

General conclusions
This report confirms that there are millions of children in the world working in the worst forms of
child labour. Since it is generally quite difficult to get a clear picture of the number of children active
in the worst forms of child labour, no new statistics or trends can be given. This raises some doubts
concerning ILO statistics, which may provide an indication of the magnitude of child labour, but
possibly overlook various forms and thus risk misjudging trends. The magnitude of child labour
combined with the fact that some forms are considered culturally acceptable in all of the places that
this study has taken place, should prepare us for a long-term commitment to eradicating child labour;
one that will last well beyond 2016.
When speaking of the causes of the worst forms of child labour, three points need to be addressed:
poverty, culture and parental care. Most of the children active in one of the worst forms of child
labour are poor. Child prostitution however is often an exception to this rule and this study is unable
to provide further insight into the situation of illicit activities. The implication could be made that
poor people are so desperate that they will do anything for money, even if it endangers them. This
would make poverty the primary motive for the continuation of worst forms of child labour, but not
all poor children are engaged in child labour. Poverty alone cannot explain this phenomenon. Our
data shows that children can have happy and labour free youths while living in extreme poverty.
One factor that influences children’s engagement in labour is parental care. This report has shown
that children are significantly more likely to end up in one of the worst forms of child labour when at
least one of their parents is not able to supervise, guide and protect them. This is generally due to a
death or separation, domestic violence or migration.
In the countries studied in this report where many parents die at a young age, such as has been the
case in sub-Saharan Africa due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the burden of earning an income and
caring for younger siblings is passed on to children. These children must now survive and support
brothers and sisters without parental help. Of course, substitute parents may be found for the
children, but if they are unwilling or unable to provide the care that the child is missing from his or
her parents, then the child becomes vulnerable to exploitation. Unfortunately, the study has revealed
that this care is often insufficient.
Domestic violence, such as physical or sexual abuse, neglect or other disturbing circumstances, is
another principal factor pushing children out of the family home. The number of stories about family
breakups and abusive stepfathers seemed greater in Latin America than east Africa or south Asia, but
the trend was significant throughout the target areas.
Migration is an activity replete with risks. A great number of families and children alone have taken
this uncertain step hoping to improve their prospects. The stress of migration can greatly upset a
family and children making this journey alone lose all contact with those meant to protect them. As a
result of migration and in mitigating its uncertainties, children have succumbed to traffickers and
exploiters. People victimized by trafficking, even for purposes of exploitation, often view this as a
risk-reduction measure; they are no longer alone and are therefore have the illusion of being safe.
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Secondly, poverty is often cited as one of the main reasons for engaging in child labour. All of the
children that engage in the worst forms of child labour, with the exception of a minority of child
prostitutes, are poor and from poor families. Poverty is not the same for everyone, however, and
influences behaviour in different ways. The children experience poverty differently from their
parents. While children want to remedy a lack of perspective and sometimes a greater personal
income, parents have the family income and the expenses of their children as primary focus.From the
point of view of the child, the worst forms of child labour present either a lot of money, such as child
prostitution, or a perspective such as engaging in child domestic servitude to live in the city and with
the idea – albeit often an illusion – that it can lead to a better education. From the point of view of the
parents, children can supplement the family income and if they do so away from home, they also
reduce the burden on the family. These differing perspectives on poverty and the need to work need
to be addressed if the worst forms of child labour are to be addressed.
At the same time, it would be incorrect to say that poverty is the sole reason for engaging in (the
worst forms of) child labour. There are many children that live in poverty, and a small percentage of
them is engaged in unacceptable forms of child labour. In order to understand why children engage
in the worst forms of child labour, the fact of poverty must be combined with problems within the
family and the fact that it is culturally acceptable to allow one’s child to work in these cases.
A third factor to take into account when analysing the underlying causes of child labour is that of
culture. In this study’s set of focus countries, work is just what children do; in some target areas the
average age for moving into the workforce is younger than in others, but for all areas, secondary
school, let alone post-secondary education, would be a remarkable achievement. Their parents do not
see the benefits of education, especially if children live in rural areas where there are few jobs for
skilled workers and everything a child needs to know can be learner from their parents. The cultural
norms in all target areas dictate that the position of the child is always lower than that of the elder.
The defence that the child can assert is therefore usually small.
The legal systems regulating and limiting the use of child labourers is still incomplete for east-African
countries, Bangladesh and Bolivia. These countries have not accepted a list of hazardous work
activities. This means that these countries do not formally comply with ILO Convention 182 to which
they are a signatory.
Those countries that have ratified the conventions tend to insufficiently enforce the provisions that
are incorporated into their national law. Some of the states have differentiated between the formal
and informal sectors and claim that they cannot control the informal sector (see under legal analysis
under sectors ). While this is probably true in practise, this means that most of the employees in these
particular focus countries are unprotected by the law; this situation is unacceptable.
The poor implementation of international conventions also takes place due to the insufficient number
of qualified personnel hired to enforce the law, be it the labour law or the penal code. Personnel that
are untrained and uninformed about the worst forms of child labour cannot handle such cases
effectively and will not behave appropriately when confronted with victims or perpetrators.
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Trafficking, child domestic labour, and forced and bonded labour have all been included in the types
of labour under all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of
children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including forced or
compulsory recruitment of children. This study pinpointed child domestic labour as being in
desperate need of extra attention.
The specifics of the situation of child domestic workers ranged little from region to region and
country to country. The conditions, including the poor level or lack of pay and abuse endured during
employment, were similar from one place to the other. Relatives were also part of the equation in all
locations, although their role was most pronounced in the east-African countries. The fact that
relatives are part of a system that is considered extremely harmful for children themselves makes this
particularly difficult to control. Some legal clarification will be a necessary part of the solution. For
example, which specific practices, even of those currently considered normal, such as the act of
making a transaction for a child to perform child domestic labour, is actually criminal Once the legal
definitions are clarified, laws can start to be enforced. To underline this point, note can be taken from
the awareness raising activities undertaken in India on child domestic servitude, which had led to the
increased reporting of suspected cases.
From this study, it can be concluded that the position that not all domestic labour is hazardous, is
mere theory. The situation that is described in this report, where children work outside their own
home control or supervision, are invariably hazardous and often take place under bonded and slavelike
conditions. Considering the fact that it is virtually impossible to control the conditions under
which child domestic labour takes place, the perspective to regulate child domestic labour is not
realistic. The eradication of child domestic labour is the only way to end the exploitation of these
children. The fact that child domestic labour is so widespread, requires that root causes are addressed
and alternatives are created.
Work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the health,
safety or morals of children, such as in agriculture and in mines have strong similarities in different
countries. As well as resulting in similar consequences for children, it is again the family that initially
introduces children to these occupations. There are, however, differences in the direness of the
conditions under which children work and live.
The Latin American debate between those who want to abolish child labour and those who want to
regulate it exists, albeit in a less-candid manner, in all of the countries studied. When children are
withdrawn from hazardous or unconditional worst forms of child labour, viable alternatives must be
made available or there will be no positive impact on the child’s life.
The fact that street children are so deeply caught up into urban child labour underlines the poor
bargaining position that they have, regardless of the country they live in.
The use, procurement or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for
pornographic performances is the one form of the worst forms of child labour that relatively large
amounts of information can be found on. This may be linked to the increased awareness that the
subject has received over the past few years from various government and non-governmental
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organisations. The Indian state Goa, as a result of the increased attention given to child sexual
exploitation, has improved its policing system and created a code of conduct for hotels. Even though
this will not automatically end sex tourism - the specific type of exploitation that has received most of
the attention - strengthening law enforcement does give protection to some children and makes it
more difficult for offenders to exploit victims. . One important conclusion is that NGOs and the
media can positively impact both policy and praxis within the countries that they operate.
The use, procurement or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and
trafficking of drugs as defined in the relevant international treaties is a virtually unknown form of
child exploitation. For example, illicit coca may be an important export product for Bolivia and it is
highly likely that children work in the production of coca, but there is almost no knowledge about
this happening. The same holds true for the involvement of children in criminal gangs in Kenya, such
as the Mungiki sect. This is an area that involves potential dangers, making it extremely important to
gather more information about the tasks children are given in gangs; this is especially true since
increased awareness creates the sense of urgency necessary for sound policy and action.
The interventions described in this study fall into four broad categories: education, child support and
protection measures, increased legislation and awareness raising. Whereas the state is the sole actor in
control of legislation, the other three categories of interventions are executed by governments,
international organizations and civil society organizations.
What is immediately apparent from the above interventions is that they are not entirely founded on
the causes of child labour as identified in this report. Poverty is addressed to some extent by child
support activities such as school meal programmes, and by providing the type of education that may
lead to employment in the future. Insufficient care, parental or otherwise, is addressed by some child
protection measures, which go some way to providing alternative care. But providing stability and
support to migrating persons and addressing domestic violence and family break-ups is for the most
part still at the conceptual phase. The cultural acceptance of some or all of the worst forms of child
labour is addressed to some extent by awareness-raising activities.
Education can prepare a child for dignified employment, but with widespread unemployment and
poor education systems, it is not sure that this measure will have sufficient impact. Most of the
positions requiring a formal education are located in urban areas, while most child labour is located
in rural areas. Finally, schools can be a place where violence is perpetrated against children, rather
than a place that provides protection.
Poverty alleviation measures would need to be substantial in order to reduce the number of children
working to the level where labour-market scarcity will become significantly large enough to increase
wages. There is no evidence that this is happening in any of this study’s target countries.
Child protection measures also tend to be very limited in scope and have little impact on family
stability; one of the root problems of child labour.
Increasing legislation is only effective if there is sufficient enforcement capacity, but this is also
lacking across the board. Law enforcement is a very powerful tool, both for the deterrence of
114

exploitation and in providing justice for the exploited. Strengthening law enforcement has not been
associated with any of the actions to reduce the worst forms of child labour, however.
Awareness-raising campaigns are only effective when remedies for the problems being addressed are
available. The above analysis shows that viable and far-reaching solutions are scarce. For example,
Goa’s measures against sex tourism are laudable and have led to responses, but for most of the
victims involved, the measures have been insufficient.
The above analysis of these categories of intervention is not a negation of the positive effects of the
measures, rather, it is meant to demonstrate where possibilities for improvement lie.
Many of the initiatives taken by governments, international organizations and civil society are limited
in scope and are often marred by financial shortages. An important challenge for all interventions is
to make them sustainable thus creating a base for further progress. The prime example of this is
education, which for all its shortcomings has been markedly improved throughout the target
countries.
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Recommendations
A constant improvement of the monitoring mechanisms for the worst forms of child labour is
necessary for providing strategic information that guides policy priorities.
Eradicating the worst forms of child labour requires clarifying the root problems. All organizations
need to acknowledge the significance of family stability and protection for the well-being of children,
as well as incorporate this factor into their work. Poverty alleviation and child protection need to be
approached from the perspective of family stability as well. Migration policy needs to address the
major problem of disruption of family life and the vulnerability of children to the worst forms of child
labour. Other interventions will benefit from integrating measures that engage parents in the effort to
improve child supervision and protection..
Law and policy measures need to be supported by enforcement. When drafting laws that address the
worst forms of child labour, thought needs to be given to which perpetrators should be the prime
targets. Money earned from fines should be invested back into the law enforcement system to make it
more sustainable.
Raising awareness on the worst forms of child labour has been shown to have a positive effect on
reporting levels. As discussed above, this only provides widespread help if credible enforcement
systems exist. To the extent that it is less acceptable within most communities to involve children in
the worst forms of child labour, as opposed to lighter work, raising awareness will be effective in
protecting at least some children. When starting a campaign, agreements should be made to ensure
that reported transgressions will be dealt with adequately.
Child domestic labour can be rated as one of the worst forms of child labour. There should be a strong
push advocating for regulations reflecting the reality of child domestic labour in all target countries.
Reporting mechanisms for child domestic labourers should be given special attention since they are
often hidden from view.
Employing children for hazardous work needs to be prosecuted more frequently. Employers should
not be given the freedom to exploit children to the level that is currently endorsed. The states that
have ratified ILO Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labour should be implementing lists of
hazardous work.
The specifics of child prostitution are sufficiently well-known and increased attention should be paid
to strengthening law enforcement against this form of child exploitation. Where this requires extra
training for police and judicial officers, it should be provided.
Child protection systems need to be set up in order to offer children a safe haven for rehabilitation
and to provide at least a temporary alternative to child exploitation. In devising a system of child
protection, it is not always necessary to set up new government systems; adjustments to existing
116

informal systems can usually provide a good starting point. For example, providing more guidance
to extended families that are housing children may prevent them from exploiting them. Furthermore,
giving guidelines to village leaders about the interests of children may prevent them from making
decisions that favour primarily the families over the individual needs of victims of the worst forms of
child labour. Policy that has been drafted and passed must be implemented thoroughly. This calls not
only for a sense of realism at the policy level and priority setting at the executive level, but also for
ensuring that a sustainable budget for the implementation process exists.
Much can be gained from cooperation among governments, international organizations and civil
society. Aligning strategies and activities will further strengthen this approach. Governments and
civil society would do well to engage their natural counterparts in designing and executing policy.
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Annex
List of topics and questions
(Background information, responsibilities/tasks in organisation)
Vulnerability of children
1. What is the situation of children in the region
a. Mapping average situation of vulnerable children: can you give a description of an
average poor child (with regards to family, housing, community, food, schooling
etc)
b. How many exploited/ vulnerable children are there
c. What are the different forms of exploitation and sectors in which exploitation occurs
d. Who are these children (characteristics/ background)
e. What factors make children particularly vulnerable or susceptible to exploitation
f. What are characteristics of children that are vulnerable to exploitation but are not
being exploited
g. What are the reasons for the continued exploitation of children
Perpetrators & consequences
2. Who are the child exploiters
a. Who are the people exploiting these children
b. What are their reasons for exploiting children
c. Are there any (societal, legal etc) consequences for the exploitation of children
d. Who enforces the laws meant to protect children from exploitation
e. What are the difficulties with law enforcement
f. Aside from the individual exploiters, are there other parties that should be held
responsible for the continued exploitation of children
g. What needs to change in order for these people/ parties to stop the exploitation of
children
Interventions
3. What is being done against child exploitation in this region
a. What do you do What does it have to do with child exploitation
b. What are local organisations doing
c. What is the government doing (at national, state and district level)
d. What are the police doing
e. What are INGO’s doing
f. What are different child protection elements doing (c.p. agency, remand home,
special schools, local interventions)
g. What more could/ should the above be doing
h. Are the necessary policies and legislation in place (is there a list of types of
hazardous work As obliged in ILO C-182 (art. 4 par. 1))
i. How would you assess the outcomes of the efforts by the various organisations (be
specific)
j. What types of interventions work and what types do not
k. Are there particular groups/ sectors/ types of exploitation that are overlooked by
current interventions
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l. How would you assess the effects of policy, national legislation and international
conventions
m. What needs to change or be improved in order for these efforts to be more successful
is preventing the exploitation of children
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