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CHILD LABOUR: CAUSES AND SOLUTIONS

Child labour refers to the use of children as a source of labour while depriving them of their fundamental rights in the process. Such rights include the opportunity to enjoy their childhood, attend school regularly, have peace of mind, and live a dignified life.

CAUSES OF CHILD LABOUR

Poverty. Low Aspiration Huge demand for unskilled laborers Illiteracy Early Marriages High cost of education

Poverty

Children who come from poor families may be forced to work to support their siblings and parents or supplement the household income when expenses are more than the parents’ earnings.

Children can be found employed in mines or hawking in the streets to earn money that is used to provide basic necessities such as food and clothing for the family. Children may also be employed in factories to generate income for the family instead of attending school.

Low Aspiration

Low aspirations by parents and children is a major cause of child labour because in such a situation, being employed in a local factory, or selling grocery in the streets is the normal way of life.

They do not aspire to become professionals in the society or great entrepreneurs. It is a mindset that forms the very foundation of child labour.

Huge demand for unskilled labourers

Children are mostly unskilled and provide a cheap source of labour, making them an attractive option for many greedy employers.

Child labour, by virtue of being cheap, increases the margin of profits for such entrepreneurs whose only objective is profit maximization even if it comes at the expense of ethics and good business practices

ILLITERACY

Illiteracy, on the other hand, makes it difficult for many people to understand the importance of education. Illiterate people view education as a preserve of the privileged in the society.

The view of life is seen among illiterate parents who prioritize children contributing to the upkeep of the family over going to school.

EARLY MARRIAGES

Marrying at an early age is a major contributing factor to overpopulation. Young parents are able to sire a lot of children because they remain fertile for a long time.

Having many children with little or no resources to support them leads to child labour. Older children are forced to work in order to help their parents support the family.

HIGH COST OF EDUCATION

Quality education is expensive. To many parents who live in abject poverty, priority is given to providing food for the family because education is too expensive to afford especially when there are many children to pay school fees for.

Instead of letting children stay at home because there is lack of money to send them to school, parents opt to have them working as unskilled labourers to help support the family.

HOW CAN WE SOLVE THE PROBLEM

FREE EDUCATION

Free education holds the key to eliminating child labour. Parents that do not have money for school fees can use this as an opportunity to provide their children with education.

Mid-day meals schemes can also be used as a motivating factor for children whose parents can barely afford a meal to learn. Even if they will be attending school because of the free meals, they will still be able to learn and create a good education foundation for themselves.

MORAL POLISHING

Child labour should not be entertained at all. It is legally and morally wrong.

Factory owners, shopkeepers, and industries among others should not employ children. The society should be educated on the negative impacts of child labour so that it becomes an issue that is frowned upon whenever it occurs.

Many of the ills that go on in the society do so because people turn a blind eye or fail to consider their moral impacts. With this kind of approach, cases of child labour will greatly fall among our communities.

CREATE DEMAND FOR SKILLED AND TRAINED WORKERS By creating the demand for skilled and trained workers, child labour cases will

reduce since almost all child labourers fall under the unskilled worker category. It will lead to adult employment as the demand for skilled labour rises

Establishing skill-based learning centers, vocational training centers, and technical training institutions improves literacy and contributes to the availability of skilled and trained workers in the job market.

Creation of job opportunities by the government is also another way that cases of unemployment can be reduced and household income for the population increased.

AWARENESS

Creating awareness about the illegality of child labour can also help in stemming the practice. Parents should be made aware that sending their children to work has legal ramifications and the law would take its course if they are found to be aiding and abetting this vice.

Conducting a campaign to create awareness about its harmful effects would eliminate the practice. The government, together with non-governmental organizations and the civil society, can create a strategy to make such an initiative a success.

EMPOWERMENT OF POOR PEOPLE

Poor people are the most affected by child labour. The poor living standards and financial constraints sometimes make them unwilling participants in this vice. Empowering poor people through knowledge and income generating projects would go a long way in reducing cases of child labour.

Parental literacy also plays an important role in ensuring that the rights of children are upheld, and minors are not used as a source of labour. Empowering parents with this kind of knowledge can create a positive change in the society and encourage the shunning of child labour practices in communities.

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