Project report
Child labour and the persistence of inequality: Evidence from the world's least mobile country
Matías Ciaschi, Mario Negre, Guido Neidhöfer ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view ·Key points
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Abstract
In this paper, we present comprehensive evidence on intergenerational mobility in Mozambique—the country with the lowest documented level of mobility worldwide—and investigate its relationship with child labour. Using survey data that include a module on non-co-resident adult children, we document a strong link between children’s educational attainment and parental education and household wealth. Interestingly, our findings suggest that child labour perpetuates intergenerational inequality, not merely as a response to income shocks but mainly due to labour market structures—particularly the complementarity between parent and child labour and the substantial opportunity costs associated with schooling. These findings underscore the need for targeted policies that decouple children’s labour market prospects from those of their parents and enhance awareness of the long-term returns to education.