Project report
The Challenges of Child Labour Research: Data Challenges and Opportunities
Monica Puoma Lambon-Quayefio ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This rapid review examines child labour research in Ghana, focusing on children's work in agriculture. It explores how existing datasets could be re-analysed to provide new insights into the forms, prevalence and drivers of child agricultural work. The report aims to guide how such re-analyses might be undertaken and whether data can be mapped to specific agro-ecological zones. It broadens the understanding of child work beyond narrow definitions commonly used in reports.
Key points
- The review seeks to re-analyse existing datasets to yield new insights into forms, prevalence and drivers of children's work in agriculture in Ghana
- Existing data could potentially be mapped to main agro-ecological zones or agricultural systems to show the number or density of children working
- Much child work in agriculture has been ignored in the literature, suggesting current understanding is incomplete
- The report challenges narrow, conventional definitions of child labour used in most reports
- Recommendations for future research on child labour are based on a renewed, broader understanding of child work
Limitations
This is a rapid review and methodology paper focused on data challenges and research opportunities rather than a study that presents empirical findings on the prevalence or outcomes of child labour in Ghana. It cannot provide specific statistics on how many children work in agriculture or demonstrate the effectiveness of any interventions to reduce child labour.
Abstract
his Rapid Review is an attempt to instigate a broader discussion on child labour by considering the various dimensions and angles associated with the phenomenon beyond the straitjacket definitions provided in most reports. Its objectives are threefold. First, it aims to determine whether re-analysis of existing data sets is likely to yield new insights into the forms, prevalence and drivers of children’s work in agriculture in Ghana. Second, it aims to provide specific guidance on how these re-analyses might be undertaken and framed. And third, it aims to determine whether any of the available data sets might be used to map the number or density of children to the main agro-ecological zones or agricultural systems. In doing this, the review describes the nature of child work in the agricultural sector, highlighting areas that have often been ignored in the literature. The conclusion offers suggestions for future research on child labour based on our renewed understanding of the broad concept of child work.