Child labour is work that harms children. In the world today, there is a growing gap between rich and poor. Millions of young children are forced to leave school and into go to work. The International Labour Organization estimates that 215 million children between the ages of 5 and 17 currently work under conditions that are considered illegal, hazardous, or extremely exploitative. Underage children work at all sorts of jobs around the world, usually because they and their families are extremely poor. Large numbers of children work in commercial agriculture, fishing, manufacturing, mining, and domestic service. Some children work in illegal activities like the drug trade and prostitution or other traumatic activities such as serving as soldiers.
· Violates minimum age laws
· Threatens children’s physical, mental, or emotional well-being
· Involves intolerable abuse, such as child slavery, child trafficking, debt bondage, forced labour, or illicit activities
. Prevents children from going to school
. Children can face long hours in extreme temperatures, health risks from pesticides, little or no pay, and inadequate food, water, and sanitation.
Of an estimated 215 child laborers around the globe: approximately 114 million (53%) are in Asia and the Pacific; 14 million (7%) live in Latin America; and 65 million (30%) live in sub-Saharan Africa.
· Bananas in Ecuador
. Cotton in Egypt and Benin
· Cut flowers in Colombia
· Oranges in Brazil
· Cocoa in the Ivory Coast
· Tea in Argentina and Bangladesh
. Fruits and vegetables in the U.S
· Carpets from India, Pakistan, Egypt
. Clothing sewn in Bangladesh; footwear made in India and the Philippines
· Soccer balls sewn in Pakistan
· Glass and bricks made in India
· Fireworks made in China, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, India, and Peru
· tea in Argentina and Bangladesh
. Surgical instruments made in Pakistan
Child laborers suffer extremely high illness and injury rates in underground mines, opencast mines, and quarries. Children as young as 6 or 7 years old break up rocks, and wash, sieve, and carry ore. Nine-year-olds work underground setting explosives and carrying loads. Children work in a range of mining operations, including:
· Gold in Colombia
. Charcoal in Brazil and El Salvador
· Chrome in Zimbabwe
· Diamonds in Cote d’Ivoire
· Emeralds in Colombia
· Coal in Mongolia
Many children, especially girls, work in domestic service, sometimes starting as young as 5 or 6. This type of child labour is linked to child trafficking. Domestic child laborers can be victims of physical, emotional, and sometimes sexual abuse.