5.1 million Bengali children engaged in child labor

 

5.1m kids engaged in labour to boost chance of being in poverty cycle

A total of 5.1 million children in the country aged between 5 and 17 years are engaged in labour enhancing their chance of remaining in the poverty cycle, said a report released jointly by ILO, UNICEF and WB Bangladesh office.

"Children forced out of school and into labour to help their families make ends meet are denied the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and skills needed for gainful future employment, thereby perpetuating the cycle of poverty."

In the report child labour is mentioned as a major obstacle to achieving Universal Primary Education and other Millennium Development Goals in Bangladesh.

Over 1.3 million below the age of 12 years were in employment in 2006 while 1.7 million children aged between 12 and 14 years were in employment which is below the minimum age for this type of work. A further 2.0 million children aged between 15 and 17 years were at work in hazardous employment, said the report.

The report mentioned several factors for forcing children into employment. Those were: household composition, household income and land ownership, education of household head, local labour demand and supply, and school availability.

The report was prepared under Understanding Children's Work -- an inter-agency research cooperation project, jointly funded by International Labour Organization (ILO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and World Bank Group.

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