Research on Child Issues

CHILD LABOR

According to the International Labor Organization, child labor is defined as work that deprives children of their childhood, potential and dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development. In its most extreme forms, child labor involves children being enslaved, separated from their families, exposed to serious hazards and illnesses and/or left to fend for themselves on the streets of large cities, often at a very early age. Whether or not particular forms of “work” can be called “child labor” depends on the child’s age, the type and hours of work performed, the conditions under which it is performed and the objectives pursued by individual countries.

The worst forms of child labor:

• 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 labor, including forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict.
• The use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances.
• 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.
• 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.

UNICEF stated that millions of children work to help their families in ways that are neither harmful nor exploitative. However, approximately 150 million children aged 5-14 in developing countries, about 16% of all children in this age group, are involved in child labor. It was estimated that throughout the world, around 215 million children under 18 work, many full-time. In Sub Saharan African, 1 in 4 children aged 5-17 work, compared to 1 in 8 in Asia Pacific and 1 in 10 in Latin America. Even though the prevalence of child labor has been falling in recent years everywhere (besides Sub Saharan Africa, where it is increasing among children aged 5-14), child labor continues to harm the physical and mental development of children and adolescents and interfere with their education.

 Facts about Child Labor  

• One out of 6 children in the world today is involved in child labor, doing work that is damaging to his or her mental, physical and emotional development. 
• Every year, 22 000 children die in work related accidents. 
• 73 million working children are less than 10 years old. 
• 40-50% of those in bonded labor are children. 
• The largest number of working children is in the Asia-Pacific region. 
• Sub-Saharan Africa has the largest proportion of working children (69 million-nearly one third of children aged 14 and under). 
• Most children work in the informal sector (e.g. in homes or on the streets) without any legal protection. 
• 69% work in agriculture, commercial hunting and fishing or forestry. 
• 9% work in manufacturing. 
• 8% work in wholesale and retail trade, restaurants and hotels.  
• 7% work in community, social and personal service, such as domestic work.

Child labor is a heavy issue that continues to grow and affects more than 10 million children each day. Child labor does not only damage children’s health and threaten their education but it leads to further exploitation, violence and abuse.



CHILD ABUSE
 
The World Health Organization (WHO) defined child abuse or maltreatment as all forms of physical and/or emotional ill-treatment, sexual abuse, neglect or negligent treatment or commercial or other exploitation, resulting in actual or potential harm to the child’s health, survival, development or dignity in the context of a relationship of responsibility, trust or power. 

• Physical (e.g. failure to provide necessary food or shelter, or lack of appropriate supervision) 
• Medical (e.g., failure to provide necessary medical or mental health treatment) 
• Educational (e.g., failure to educate a child or attend to special education needs) 
• Emotional (e.g., inattention to a child's emotional needs, failure to provide psychological care)
• Exploitation (e.g. child labor, child prostitution)

Facts about Child Abuse

• An estimated 1.2 million children are trafficked worldwide every year. 
• An estimated 300 million children worldwide are subjected to violence, exploitation and abuse, including the worst forms of child labor in communities, schools and institutions. 
• Children living in areas of extreme economic hardship and social disruption are at increased risk for abuse, violence, and exploitation. 
• About 1.5 billion children live in the 42 countries affected by violent conflict between 2002 and 2006. 
• Of 14.2 million refuges worldwide, 41% may be children under the age of 18. 
• Worldwide, an estimated 40 million children under the age of 15 suffer from violence, abuse and neglect. 
• An estimated 1.2 million children (both boys and girls) are trafficked each year into exploitative work, including mining, factories, armed conflict or commercial sex work.