Background: Child labour remains a critical global issue, defined as work that deprives children of their childhood, potential, and dignity, hindering their physical and mental development. Despite Nepal's ratification of numerous international conventions and the establishment of national laws to combat it, child labour persists, with an estimated 1.1 million children engaged in work. The hospitality industry is one sector where this exploitation is prevalent. This study focuses on the socio-economic, cultural, and institutional factors driving child labour in the hospitality industry of Birendranagar, the capital of Karnali Province, which has the highest child labour rate in Nepal. Objective: The general objective of this research is to explore and analyze the key socio-economic, cultural, and institutional factors contributing to the prevalence of child labour in the hospitality industry of Birendranagar, Surkhet. Methods: This study employed a quantitative research design. Data were collected in 2024 from 104 child labourers working in hospitality establishments in Birendranagar-07, Surkhet, using a convenience sampling method. Primary data were gathered through a semi-structured questionnaire, covering socio-demographic characteristics and the causes of child labour. Simple frequency distributions were used for data analysis, with results presented in descriptive and tabular forms. Findings: The study revealed that the majority of child labourers were male (89.42%) and aged between 12-16 years (69.23%). The primary drivers of child labour were economic: the pursuit of financial independence (36.54%) and poverty (36.53%) were the most cited reasons, with 44.23% of respondents working to increase their family's basic income. Cultural factors played a significant role, with 53.85% of respondents acknowledging its influence; 30.36% believed cultural acceptance normalizes child labour. Key social factors included a lack of community support for education (36.54%) and peer pressure to join the workforce (29.81%). A majority (62.50%) of respondents did not believe parental negligence was a cause. Conclusion: The prevalence of child labour in Birendranagar's hospitality sector is a multifaceted problem rooted in acute economic deprivation, compelling children to seek work for survival and financial autonomy. This economic driver is reinforced by cultural norms that normalize child work and social systems that fail to provide adequate educational and recreational alternatives. Addressing this issue requires a multi-pronged approach that goes beyond legislation to tackle the deep-seated economic and socio-cultural underpinnings. Implication: The findings provide critical evidence for federal and provincial governments to formulate targeted policies and interventions aimed at creating a child labour-free society. The study also offers practical insights for NGOs and INGOs working in child protection, emphasizing the need for initiatives that address poverty alleviation, shift cultural perceptions, strengthen community support for education, and enforce child rights.
Dhanush Chandra Pathak, Tej Bahadur Karki, Balkrishna Paudel et al.
The current study delved into the complex issue of child labour. The study aimed to extensively examine the interrelation between child labour, poverty, illiteracy, and population growth. As a matter of fact, child labour is still an existing issue in Pakistan, depriving children from their basic necessities, such as education and a safe childhood. The study used a random sampling technique to collect data from a broad sample of 384 respondents mainly from general public of Lahore. Data was collected using standardized questionnaire which was then rigorously analyzed using SPSS. The results revealed that there is a significant link between child labour and the factors of poverty, illiteracy, and the growth of population.The results contribute significantly to the existing body of research and provide valuable insights for policymakers
Muhammad Hatim, Mubarka Abbas, Mahjabeen Arshad et al.
In the last two decades, Nepal experienced a significant rise in work-related migration and subsequent remittance inflows. We examine the impacts on child education and child labour in a two-wave panel constructed from the 2008 Nepal Labour Force Survey and the 2010 Nepal Living Standards Survey. We use grade-specific net enrolment rates rather than the more commonly studied attendance rate, and exploit variation in destination-driven predicted migration as an instrumental variable. Migration and remittances appear to raise net enrolment of children in secondary education. The positive effect on school outcomes is complemented by a fall in child labour force participation. The effects appear larger for children aged ten and above, and seem to predominantly operate through remittances.
Form of child labour for many decades is one of Dakshin Dinajpur's greatest problems.Many campaigns against child labour are organized by the Government and NGOs.However, because of the many socioeconomic conditions of Dakshin Dinajpur they were unable to achieve their goal.In order to estimate the number of children's work and situations, a General Survey 2016 (GS16) was conducted privately.In this research area we try to establish a methodology to determine child labour rates and scholastic retardation in Dakshin Dinajpur.
In Myanmar, almost one in ten children are engaged in child labour and more than half of the working children are doing hazardous work. The Covid-19 pandemic and responses to it have far-reaching social and economic consequences for vulnerable populations, including children in the worst forms of child labour (WFCL). This report examines how working children including those in WFCL and their families in Hlaingtharya, Yangon, Myanmar experienced the conditions of the Covid-19 pandemic and how it intersects with existing vulnerabilities to affect their incomes and livelihoods, living and working conditions, food security, housing stability, physical and mental wellbeing, and engagement in WFCL. It also explores how the pandemic has affected child protection systems and support networks that provide services for children and vulnerable families. In addition, the paper identifies knowledge and policy gaps related to WFCL and recommendations to tackle WFCL in Myanmar.
Child labour remains a prevalent global concern, and progress toward eradicating harmful children's work appears to have stalled in the African continent and henceforth, integrated social policy intervention is still required to address the problem. Among several forms of social policy interventions, stomach infrastructure (i.e., in-kind and/or cash transfers) have been a key policy approach to support vulnerable families to lighten households' resources burden, which forces them to consider child labour as a coping strategy. There is growing evidence on the impacts of these programs in child labour. However, this evidence is often mixed regarding children's work outcomes, and the existing studies hardly describe such heterogeneous outcomes from the child-sensitive approach. To this end, a systematic literature search was conducted for studies in African countries. From 743 references retrieved in this study, 27 studies were included for the review, and a narrative approach has been employed to analyse extracted evidence. Results from the current study also demonstrate a mixed effect of in-kind and cash transfers for poor households on child labour decisions. Hence, the finding from the current review also demonstrates a reduced participation of children in paid and unpaid work outside the household due to in-kind and cash transfers to poor households, but children's time spent in economic and non-economic household labour and farm and non-farm labour, which are detrimental to child health and schooling, has been reported increasing due to the program interventions. The question remains how these programs can effectively consider child-specific and household-related key characteristics. To this end, a child-sensitive social protection perspective has been applied in this study to explain these mixed outcomes to inform policy design.
Dagim Dawit Gonsamo, Herman Hay Ming Lo, Ko Ling Chan
Child labour is a universal concern as one child in every ten is engaged in child labour globally. Pakistan is no exception to this trend. This study attempts to identify the role of migration on children’s vulnerability to work. For that purpose, this study evaluates the demographic and household attributes, collected from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) (2017–2018), and Logit regression is used for empirical analysis. The findings reveal that migration is one of the decisive determinants of child labour, which is triggered by the high economic and social disparities existing across space in Pakistan. Therefore, balanced growth policies are recommended that require attention to the socio-economic development across all regions and provinces of the country. The study also emphasises the role of both supply-side and demand-side factors in controlling the menace; poverty alleviation reforms, development of social institutions in rural areas, and greater enforcement of child labour laws are strongly recommended.
Child labour remains a persistent socio-economic challenge in Bihar despite various legislative measures and welfare initiatives introduced by the Government of India and the Government of Bihar. This study examines the effectiveness of government policies and welfare schemes in reducing child labour in the state. It critically analyzes key interventions such as the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, the Right to Education Act, the National Child Labour Project (NCLP), Mid-Day Meal Scheme, and poverty alleviation programs. The research adopts a mixed-method approach, combining secondary data analysis from government reports, census records, and NSSO surveys with qualitative insights from field observations and stakeholder interviews. Findings indicate that while enrollment in schools has significantly increased due to educational incentives and awareness campaigns, economic vulnerability, migration, lack of strict enforcement, and socio-cultural factors continue to contribute to child labour, particularly in rural and marginalized communities. Welfare schemes have positively influenced school attendance and reduced hazardous child labour, yet informal sector employment remains a concern. The study concludes that although government initiatives have contributed to measurable progress, their impact is uneven across districts. Strengthening monitoring mechanisms, ensuring effective implementation at the grassroots level, enhancing livelihood opportunities for families, and promoting community awareness are essential for sustainable eradication of child labour in Bihar.
A child chasing goats or cows, cutting grass or a very young girl washingutensils, carrying a pot of water, precariously balancing it on her head orcleaning her house while minding her younger brother in a cradle, areuncommon images in rural India. Not so visible are the thousands of childrenrolling beedis, working in glass factories or engaged in carpet weaving, matchmaking, agriculture etc. Similarly, the shoeshine boy or the little child serving acup of tea or sweeping the floor with a soggy dark piece of cloth in a hotel or adhaba and the risking number of street children may be the visible forms ofworking children in urban townships or along highways. But there areinnumerable invisible young girls and boys performing domestic chores,helping their parents employed in an urban on rural home.Child labour inancient India was existed in the form of slaves and in medieval India rulersencouraged it with intention to make traffic in child slaves. In India, it is mainlyassociated with the industrialization, from British rule
Child labour is not single reasoned phenomena rather there are many social, economic and cultural issues which are leading and paving the way towards child labour. A study was conducted in the Department of Sociology, Government College University, Faisalabad, Pakistan during the year 2017. The objective was to analyse the factors causing child labour in market of nearly city Faisalabad. The population for this study was four towns of Faisalabad (Madina Town, Jinnah Town, Dhuddiwala and Jaranwala) for data collection using convenient sampling technique. A sample of 200 respondents was selected from four towns of Faisalabad. The results revealed that About 90% of respondents were agreed that low level of family income creates more chances of child labour in society. About 85% of respondents were agreed that parent’s illiteracy creates more chances of child labour in society. Majority of the respondents, (69.5 %) agreed that poverty is the biggest reason behind child labour.
Asad Hussain, Babak Mahmood, Ayesha Chaudhry et al.
