Nearly 8% of all kids across the world engaged in child labour: ILO report

Bengaluru: Nearly 8 per cent of the children worldwide are engaged in child labour, with over 57 per cent of the child labourers belonging to the youngest category (5-11 years old), data from the latest report by the ILO shows.

Entitled Child Labour – Global estimates 2024, Trends and the Road Forward, the report has found that 13.75 crore children are involved in child labour, of which 7.89 crore children (57.3 per cent) are in the youngest age category (5-11).

While conceding that the target of ending child labour by 2025 hadn’t materialised, the report mentioned that the total number of child labourers had decreased by over 1 crore since 2000.

Gender divide

The report states that boys are “overrepresented” in child labour at every age. As per the report, over 56 per cent of child labourers are boys (7.82 crore).

While explaining that the extent of child labour has decreased amongst both girls and boys since 2000, the report says that the downward trajectory has been “steadier” and “more consistent” for girls.

Hazardous labour

“Among all children in child labour, two in five (5.4 crore) perform hazardous work. Of these 5.4 crore children, close to half are under age 15, and nearly one in five is younger than age 12."

"While children of all ages must be protected from hazardous work, its persistence among younger children is especially worrying,” the report states, adding that serious injuries may result in lifelong consequences for these young kids.

Most child labourers are employed in the agriculture sector (61%). In hazardous industries, the majority are in industries (60%).

Child labour and education

Nearly 33 per cent of child labourers in the compulsory schooling age were found to be missing school, compared to just 8 per cent of other kids in that age group who are out of school.

For Children in hazardous work, the toll is even steeper - nearly half are out of school. "For adolescents aged 15-17, the incompatibility of child labour and schooling is even more pronounced. Nearly 60 percent of the adolescents in child labour globally are not in school compared to just 14 percent of their peers who are not in child labour," the report adds.

In conflict zones, 21 per cent of the kids are child labourers, while nearly 25 per cent of the kids in low-income countries were into child labour. Africa accounts for the highest amount of child labourers, followed by Asia and the Pacific, Birth America and Latin America - Caribbean

The report bats for free and high-quality schooling, strengthening legal protection against child labour, universalising social protection and expanding access to basic services are some measures to curb child labour.