understanding child labour and youth employment in...
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Understanding child labour and youth employment in Malawi
Inter-agency country report
September 2018
UCW gratefully acknowledges the support provided by the United States Department of Labor for the development of the report. This report does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of UCW partner agencies or of the United States Department of Labor. The mention of trade names, commercial products and organizations does not imply endorsement by the United States Government.
This report was prepared by the Understanding Children’s Work (UCW) Programme, a joint research initiative by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the World Bank initiated the interagency Understanding Children’s Work (UCW) Programme in December 2000. The Programme is guided by the Roadmap adopted at The Hague Global Child Labour Conference 2010, which laid out the priorities for the international community in the fight against child labor. Through a variety of data collection, research, and assessment activities, the UCW Programme is broadly directed toward improving understanding of child labor, its causes and effects, how it can be measured, and effective policies for addressing it.
Pre-publication release: September 2018
Acknowledgements
The Ministry of Labour, Youth, Sports and Manpower Development andtheNationalStatisticalOfficeofMalawiprovidedvaluableinputsandadviceatvariousstages of the report. UCW gratefully acknowledges the support provided by theUnited States Department of Labor and the Global Affairs Canada for thedevelopmentofthereport.**ThisreportdoesnotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsorpoliciesoftheUnitedStatesDepartmentofLabororoftheGlobalAffairsCanada.Thementionoftradenames,commercialproductsandorganizationsdoesnotimplyendorsementbytheUnitedStatesGovernmentorbytheGovernmentofCanada.
Child labour and youth employment in Malawi
CONTENTS
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1. Malawi and its labor market: Recent Trends and Main Characteristics ................................... 3 Chapter 2. Child labour: the overall picture ................................................................................................ 6 Chapter 3. Children aged 5-13 years ........................................................................................................... 8
3.1 Involvement in child labour ...................................................................................................... 8 3.2 Characteristics of child labour ................................................................................................ 11
Chapter 4. Adolescents aged 14-17 years ................................................................................................. 15 4.1 Involvement in child labour .................................................................................................... 15 4.2 Characteristics of child labour ................................................................................................ 17
Chapter 5. Children’s employment, child labour and education .............................................................. 20 Chapter 6. Young persons aged 15-35 years ............................................................................................. 23
6.1 Youth labour force status: the overall picture ....................................................................... 23 6.2 Youth access to jobs ................................................................................................................ 24 6.3 Youth job characteristics ......................................................................................................... 26 6.4 Human capital and youth employment outcomes ................................................................. 30
Chapter 7. Nationalresponses to child labour and youth employment concerns .................................... 34 7.1 Legal framework for child labour ............................................................................................ 34 7.2 National policies, plans and strategies relating to child labour ............................................. 36
7.2.1 National development framework ......................................................................... 36 7.3 Legal framework for addressing youth employment issues .................................................. 41 7.4 National policies, plans and strategies ................................................................................... 42
7.4.1 Programs addressing youth employment issues .................................................... 43 Chapter 8. Addressing child labour and the youth decent work deficit: policy priorities ........................ 44
8.1 Addressing child labour: children aged 5-14 years ................................................................ 45 8.1.1 Education access and quality .................................................................................. 45 8.1.2 Social protection ..................................................................................................... 46 8.1.3 Strategic communication ........................................................................................ 48 8.1.4 Social mobilisation and advocacy ........................................................................... 49 8.1.5 Child labour legislation, inspections and monitoring ............................................. 49 8.1.6 Improving the evidence base .................................................................................. 50 8.1.7 Ensuring enforcement and monitoring .................................................................. 51
8.2 Addressing child labour: adolescents aged 14-17 years ........................................................ 52 8.2.1 Removing youth from hazardous work in order that they are protected and
afforded second chances for acquiring decent work ............................................ 52 8.2.2 Mitigating risk in order to ensure that youth are not exposed to hazards in
their workplace ....................................................................................................... 53 8.3 Addressing the decent work deficit: young persons aged 15-35 years ................................. 54
8.3.1 Skills development .................................................................................................. 54 8.3.2 Job search support .................................................................................................. 55
8.3.3 Public works programmes ...................................................................................... 56 8.3.4 Youth entrepreneurship .......................................................................................... 56 8.3.5 Prioritizing youth ..................................................................................................... 57 8.3.6 Addressing legislative gaps ..................................................................................... 57
Appendix. Additional statistics ..................................................................................................................... 59
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Introduction 1
INTRODUCTION
1. Overcoming the twin challenges of child labour and the youth decent workdeficit will be critical to Malawi’s progress towards realising its sustainabledevelopment goals. Evidence presented in this report indicates that 2.1millionMalawian children remain trapped in child labour. At the same time, youngpersonsinthe15-35yearsagerangeareconcentratedoverwhelminglyinlowskilljobs in the informal economy that offer little prospect for advancement or forescapingpovertyandexploitation.Theeffectsofchildlabourandthedecentworkdeficit facing youth are well-documented: both can lead to social vulnerability,societalmarginalisationanddeprivation,andbothcanpermanentlyimpairlifetimepatternsofemploymentandpay.2. The current Report examines the related issues of child labour and youthemployment inthecontextofMalawi.Guidedbyobservedoutcomes intermsofschooling,workactivitiesandstatusinthelabourmarket,thereportconsiderstheeconomic as well as the social determinants of child labour and youthemployment. The Malawi National Child Labour Survey conducted in 2015(NCLS2015)istheprimarydatasourceforthereport.Datafromthissurveypermita comprehensive and nationally-representative picture of the child labour andyouthemploymentsituations.3. TheReportwasdeveloped incollaborationwiththeMinistryofLabour,Youth,SportsandManpowerDevelopment,theNationalStatisticalOfficeofMalawiandwith the UCW partner agencies (ILO, UNICEF and the World Bank). As such, itprovidesanimportantcommonbasisforactioninaddressingchildlabourandtheyouthdecentworkdeficit.4. Threerelatedobjectivesareservedbythereport: (1) improvethe informationbase on child labour and youth employment, in order to inform policy andprogrammaticresponses;(2)promotepolicydialogueonchildlabourandthelackof opportunities for decent and productive work for youth; and (3) analyse therelationship between early school leaving, child labour and future status in thelabourmarket.
Panel1. UnderstandingChildren’sWork(UCW)programme
The inter-agency research programme,UnderstandingChildren’sWork(UCW),wasinitiatedby the International Labour Organisation (ILO),UNICEF and theWorld Bank to help inform effortstowardseliminatingchildlabour.
TheProgramme isguidedby theRoadmapadoptedatTheHagueGlobalChildLabourConference2010,which lays out the priorities for the internationalcommunityinthefightagainstchildlabour.The Roadmap calls for effective partnership acrossthe UN system to address child labour, and formainstreaming child labour into policy anddevelopment frameworks. The Roadmap also callsfor improved knowledge sharing and for furtherresearch aimed at guiding policy responses to childlabour.
Researchon theworkand thevulnerabilityof childrenandyouthconstitutesthemaincomponentoftheUCWProgramme. Through close collaboration withstakeholders in partner countries, the Programmeproduces research allowing a better understanding ofchild labour and youth employment in their variousdimensionsandthelinkagesbetweenthem.Theresultsofthisresearchsupportthedevelopmentofintervention strategies designed to remove childrenfromtheworldofwork,preventothersfromenteringitand to promote decent work for youth. As UCWresearch is conducted within an inter-agencyframework,itpromotesasharedunderstandingofchildlabour and of the youth employment challenges andprovidesacommonplatformforaddressingthem.
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Introduction 2
5. The remainder of the Report is structured as follows. Chapter 2 reviews thenationaleconomicandsocialcontext.Chapter3reportsestimatesofchild labourfor the 5-13 and 14-17 years age groups. Chapter 4 of the report focuses onunderstanding children’s work in the 5-13 years age range, looking first at theextentofchildlabourandthenatitsmaincharacteristics.Chapter5addressestheextentandnatureofchildlabouramongolder,14-17year-old,children.Chapter6examinesthe interplaybetweenchild labourandschooling.Chapter7thenturnsto youth employment, covering issues including job access, job quality, humancapital and skills mismatches. Chapter 8 of the Report reviews current nationalresponsestochildlabourandyouthemploymentconcerns.Chapter9consistsofaconcluding discussion of policy priorities for accelerating action in the areas ofchildlabourandyouthemployment.
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Malawianditslabormarket:RecentTrendsandMainCharacteristics 3
Chapter1. MALAWIANDITSLABORMARKET:RECENTTRENDSANDMAINCHARACTERISTICS
6. Malawi has made important economic and structural reforms over the lastdecade, contributing to sustained economic growth rates and to progresses interms of human development. Nevertheless, poverty and inequality are stillwidespread, and the economy remains undiversified and vulnerable to externalshocks.Malawian economy is based on agriculture, andmore than one-third ofGDPand90%ofexportrevenuescomefromthis.Copingwithnaturaldisastersisamajor challenge: theweatherwill continue toplayamajorpartof theeconomiccycle and households remain vulnerable to natural shocks such as drought andflooding, and food price inflation. In January 2015 southern Malawi wasdevastated by the worst floods in living memory, affecting more than a millionpeople across the country, including 336,000 who were displaced, accordingtoUNICEF.1Malawi is positioned among the poorest countries in Sub-SaharanAfrica(Figure1)andintheworld.
Figure1. MalawiispositionedamongthepoorestcountriesinSouthSub-SaharanAfricaGrossnationalincome(GNI)percapita(current1,000USDpercapita),bycountry,2015
Source:WorldDevelopmentIndicators,WorldBank
7. Despite thesechallenges, thepoverty rateinMalawi isdecreasing through theworkofthegovernmentandsupportingorganizations.Theshareofpeople living
1https://www.unicef.org/malawi/reallives_16385.html
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MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Malawianditslabormarket:RecentTrendsandMainCharacteristics 4
under thenational poverty line decreased from65.3% in 1997 to 50.7% in 2010(Figure2).Thisreductionwasevenmoresubstantialinurbanareas,wheretheratedecreasedfrom50.4to17.3.8. Usingamultidimensionalchildpovertyindicator(MCPI)andthresholdoftwoormore deprivations, 63 percent of children aremultidimensional poor inMalawi.This rate is higher than the child monetary poverty rate of 43 percent.Multidimensionalpovertyishighestamongthegroupofchildrenaged15-17years(73%), whilemonetary poverty rates are highest among children 5-14 years old(44%).Bothratesarealsohigherinruralareasrelativetourbanareas.29. Asignificantnumberofchildren,30percentofthetotal,aredeprivedintwoormoredimensionsyetliveinhouseholdsthatareabovethepovertyline.Thisresultimpliesthatsocialprogramsthattargeton income, i.e.cashtransfers,willmissasignificantnumberofvulnerablechildreninMalawi.3
Figure2. PovertytrendsinMalawi,1997-2010Povertyheadcountratios,usingnationalpovertylines
Source:WorldDevelopmentIndicators,WorldBank
10. ManyanalystsbelievethateconomicprogressforMalawidependsonitsabilitytocontrolpopulationgrowth.4ThetotalpopulationinMalawiin2015amountstoabout 18million, comparedwith about 13million in 2005. The observed rise intotal population was accompanied by an increase in the number of persons ofworkingage,i.e.15to64yearsold(from6.4in2005to9.1millionin2015)aswellasinchildrenyoungerthan15(from6.1to8.3millionrespectively)(Table1).
2UNICEF2016.ChildPovertyinMalawi.3UNICEF2016.ChildPovertyinMalawi.4"WhyPopulationMatterstoMalawi'sDevelopment:ManagingPopulationGrowthforSustainableDevelopmentDepartmentofPopulationandDevelopment."DepartmentofPopulationandDevelopment.MinistryofEconomicPlanningandDevelopment.GovernmentofMalawi.2012.Retrieved8October2014.
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MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Malawianditslabormarket:RecentTrendsandMainCharacteristics 5
Table1. DemographicchangesinMalawi,2005-2015
2005 2010 2015
Population 12,863,421 15,182,821 17,964,697
Population,female(%oftotal) 0.51 0.51 0.51
Populationages00-14,total 6,111,191 7,230,073 8,394,661
Populationages15-64,total 6,395,545 7,543,968 9,086,627
Populationages65andabove,total 483,409 213,735 269,674
Agedependencyratio 7.56 2.83 2.97
Fertilityrate,total(birthsperwoman) 6.0 5.9 5.6
Lifeexpectancyatbirth,total(years) 49 57 61
Source:USBureauofcensus,InternationalDatabase
11. These population trends – which will continue in the next decades – aresignificantlyaffectingthestructureoftheMalawianlabourmarket.Thesharprisein the potentially active population has resulted in a major increase in theMalawian labour force (seebelow), thereby raisinga growing concernabout thecapacityoftheMalawianeconomytocreateenoughjobstomatchacontinuouslyincreasinglaborsupply.
Figure3. BasicdemographictrendsinMalawi,2005-2015
Source:USBureauofCensus,InternationalDatabase
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MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childlabour:theoverallpicture 6
Chapter2. CHILDLABOUR:THEOVERALLPICTURE
12. Child labour inMalawi continues to affect an estimated 2.1million childrenaged5-17years,38%ofthisagegroup.Thesenumbersindicateclearlythateffortsinthisregardneedtobeintensifiedandacceleratedinorderthatthegoalofchildlabour elimination is reached in the nearest possible future. In this chapter webrieflysummariseestimatesofinvolvementinchildlabourfortheoverall5-17agegroup,basedonnationallegislationandstatisticalpractices.13. ThelegalframeworkforchildlabourinMalawiiscontainedintheEmploymentActof2000(CAP55:01).TheActsetstheminimumageforadmissionofachildtoemploymentat14years.TheActfurtherprohibitschildrenbetweentheagesof14and18toworkinhazardouswork.Thedefinitionof"hazardous"fulfilsatleastoneofthefollowingworkconditions:• workingindesignatedhazardousindustries,namelytobacco,mining,quarrying
andconstruction;
• working in designated hazardous occupations, namely those listed in theEmploymentactof2012(Prohibitedhazardouswork,CAP55:02);
• workingformorethan40hoursperweek;
• working in other hazardous conditions, namely working at night, beingexposed to hazardousworking environment, carrying heavy loads, operatinganydangerousmachinery/equipmentatworkorbegging.
14. The Child care, Protection and Justice act. 2010 identifies child labourers aschildreninneedofcareandprotection.15. Following national legislation and national statistical practices, children areclassifiedinchildlabouronthebasisofthefollowingcriteria:• Forchildrenaged5-13years:thoseinemployment;• Forchildrenaged14-17years:thoseinhazardousformsofemployment.16. Children in employment, in turn, are thoseengaged in anyeconomic activityfor at least one hour during the reference period in any public or privateagricultural,industrialornon-industrialundertaking,excludingworkperformedata vocational technical school or any other training institution. Economic activity,therefore, covers all market production and certain types of non-marketproduction (principally the production of goods and services for own use). Itincludes forms of work in both the formal and informal economies; inside andoutsidefamilysettings;workforpayorprofit(incashorinkind,part-timeorfull-time),orasadomesticworkeroutsidethechild’sownhouseholdforanemployer(withorwithoutpay).17. Child labour measured on this basis is very common in Malawi. Some 1.7million children aged5-13 years, andmore than400 thousand aged14-17 yearsareinchildlabour.Summingthesetwogroupsyieldsatotalofalmost2.1millionchildrenaged5-17yearsinvolvedinchildlabour(Table2).Theseoverallestimatesmaskimportantdifferencesbyresidenceandregion.Urbanareasfeaturealower
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childlabour:theoverallpicture 7
levelofchildlabour:forthe5-17yearsagerange,therateofchildlabourinruralareas(39%)issubstantiallyhigherthaninurbanareas(30%).Childlabourvariesbyregionfromahighof46and41percent inNorthandSouthtoa lowofthirty-sixpercentinCenter.18. Genderdisparitiesdonotappearparticularlylarge.Boysaremorelikelytobeinvolvedinchild labourthantheirfemalepeers:thereisatwopercentagepointsdifferencebetweenboysandgirlsfortheoverall5-17yearsagerangeandafourpercentage point difference for the 15-17 years age range. However, it isimportantrecallingthattheseestimatesdonotincludeinvolvementinhouseholdchores,aformofworkwheregirlstypicallypredominate.19. Thesenumbersrepresentconservativeestimatesofchildlabour,becausetheyexcludeso-called"worstformsofchildlabourotherthanhazardouswork."Theseformsofchild labour includechildtrafficking,commercialsexualexploitationandthe involvement of children in illicit activities. In Malawi, as in most countries,information on children involved in the worst forms of child labour other thanhazardousis limitedduetobothmeasurementdifficultiesandculturalsensitivity.The Malawi National Child Labour Survey and other similar surveys are notdesigned to generate information on children involved in worst forms of childlabour other than hazardous work. Targeted research using specialized surveyinstrumentsisrequiredtogeneratemorecompleteinformationonthisparticularlyvulnerablegroupofchildlabourers.SuchresearchisenvisagedaspartofthenewChild labour National Action Plan,5drawing on ILO guidelines6 in this area andresearchexperiencefromothercountries.
Table2. Childlabourestimatesbasedonnationallegislation
Childrenaged5-13inchild
labourChildrenaged14-17inchild
labour(a)Totalchildlabour
5-17years
% No. % No. % No.
Male 42.1 883,155 30.7 211,575 39.3 1,094,730
Female 40.2 834,139 26.5 189,762 36.7 1,023,900
Urban 33.6 195,600 21.6 47,975 30.3 243,575
Rural 42.4 1,521,693 29.9 353,362 39.3 1,875,055
North 40.1 218,335 15.4 28,979 33.8 247,314
Center 36.0 638,716 25.8 148,938 33.5 787,654
South 46.5 860,242 35.0 223,420 43.5 1,083,662
Total 41.2 1,717,294 28.6 401,337 38.0 2,118,630
Notes:(a)Childlabourforthisagerangeconsistsofhazardouswork.Workingchildrenareconsideredtobeinhazardousworkiftheyarefoundtobeinanyoneofthefollowingcategories:childrenworkingindesignatedhazardousindustries(mining,quarryingandconstruction);childrenworkingindesignatedhazardousoccupations(theyrefertothelistofhazardousworkestablishedbythenationallegislation);childrenworkinglonghours(40hoursormoreperweek);childrenworkingunderotherhazardousconditionssuchasnightwork,usinghazardoustoolsandbeinginanunhealthyworkenvironment.
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
5TheMalawiChildLabourNationalActionPlan(2011-2016)isthenationalresponsetotheILOGlobalActionPlanwhichcalledonthememberstatestocommitthemselvestotheeliminationofchildlabourby2016.6 See, for example, Child labor Statistics, manual on methodologies for data collection through surveys.International Labour Organization (ILO)/Statistical Information and Monitoring Programme on Child Labour(SIMPOC), Geneva, 2004. Manual on child labour rapid assessment methodology. International LabourOrganizationandUNICEF,Geneva,2005.Hardtosee,hardertocount:surveyguidelinestoestimateforcedlabourofadultsandchildren.InternationalLabourOffice.Geneva,2012
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childrenaged5-13years 8
Chapter3. CHILDRENAGED5-13YEARS
20. This chapter analyses theextent andnatureof child labour among5-13year-oldsinmoredetail,basedondatafromtheMalawiNationalChildLabourSurveyof2015 and on the measurement concepts outlined in the previous chapter. Thisanalysishighlightsaboveall thehighprevalenceof child labour inMalawi in thisagegroup,relativetobothregionalandglobalaverages.7
3.1 Involvementinchildlabour
21. More than two in five children aged 5-13 years (41%), almost 1.7million inabsolute terms, are child labourers (Table 3). Table 3 indicates that overallestimates of child labour mask important differences by age and residence. Inshort, child labour increases with age and ismuch higher in rural areas than incities and towns. Differences in terms of involvement between boys and girls,however,arenegligible. 22. Wenowlookinmoredetailbelowathowchildlabour(andschooling)variesinaccordancewiththeseandotherbackgroundvariables.Thisdiscussionalsodrawson results of the econometric analysis presented in the Appendix (Table A1 andTableA2).8
Table3. Involvementinchildlabour,agegroup5-13years,byage,sexandresidence
(a)Percentage
AgeSex Residence
TotalMale Female Urban Rural
5-9 28.7 31.7 24.0 31.2 30.2
10-13 59.1 51.3 45.0 57.0 55.2
Total5-13 42.1 40.2 33.6 42.4 41.2
(b)Number
AgeSex Residence
TotalMale Female Urban Rural
5-9 336,835 369,908 76,137 630,605 706,742
10-3 546,320 464,231 119,463 891,088 1,010,551
Total5-13 883,155 834,139 195,600 1,521,693 1,717,294
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
23. Age. Involvement inchild labour increaseswithage(Figure4).Thispattern islargely due to the fact that the productivity of children increases, as they grow
7ILO-IPEC.Markingprogressagainstchildlabour-Globalestimatesandtrends2000-2012/InternationalLabourOffice,InternationalProgrammeontheEliminationofChildLabour(IPEC)-Geneva:ILO,2013.8Asimpleeconomicmodelofhouseholdbehaviourisusedtoguidetheempiricalspecification.Fordetailedinformationonthemodel,seeCigno,A.;Rosati,F.C.2005.“Theeconomicsofchildlabour”(NewYork,NY,OxfordUniversityPress).
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childrenaged5-13years 9
older,meaningthattheopportunitycostofkeepingchildreninschoolasopposedtotheworkplacealsogoesup.Thispatternnotwithstanding,thenumbersofveryyoung,5-9-year-old,child labourersarebynomeansnegligible. Inall,morethan700,000children inthisagerangearealreadyengaged inchild labour.Theseveryyoung children are especially vulnerable to workplace hazards and abuses, andtheythereforeconstituteaparticularpolicypriority.
Figure4. Children'semploymentincreasessignificantlyacrossthe5-13agerangewhileschoolattendancemovesintheoppositedirection
Percentageofchildreninchildlabour,employmentandattendingschool,byageandschoollevel(b)
Notes:(a)Asexplainedinchapter2,theconceptsofchildlabourandemploymentdivergeaftertheageof13years.(b)CompulsoryschoolinginMalawiis9yearsinduration.Theschoolsystemiscomprisedofa3-yearpre-primarycycle,a6-yearprimarycycle,a6-yearsecondarycycle(ofwhich3compulsory)(Source:UNESCOInstituteofStatistics).
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
24. Gender.Childlabourdoesnotappeartohaveanimportantgenderdimension,asboysandgirlsworkinemploymentinroughlyequalproportions.Butitisworthrecalling in interpreting this result that it does not include involvement inhousehold chores, a form of work where girls typically predominate. For thisreason,ourestimatesmayunderstategirls’involvementinchildlabourrelativetothatofboys.9
Panel2. Genderdiscriminationandviolenceagainstwomenandgirls
Malawi is making positive strides towards attaining gender equality and women’s empowerment, butsignificantchallengesremain.The Constitution of Malawi upholds the principle of equal rights for men and women and prohibits anydiscriminationbasedongenderormaritalstatus,includingintheworkplace.TheGenderEqualityAct(2013)re-affirmstheprincipleonnon-discriminationbasedongenderandcallsforpoliciesandproceduresaimedateliminating sexual harassment in the workplace; it also sets quotas for women’s participation in publicoffices. Several policies and programs tackle gender discrimination, as for example the National Gender
9Inkeepingwithnationallegislation,householdchoresisnotincludedintheanalysis.Nonetheless,forsakeofcompleteness,weanalyseinvolvementinhouseholdchoresinBox1.
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MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childrenaged5-13years 10
Programme by the Ministry of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare, the Gender Equality andWomen Empowerment (GEWE) Programme, Girls Empowerment through Education and Health Activity(ASPIRE)andmanyothers.Also thanks to these efforts, women political participation increased from 6% to 22% between 1994 and2009.MrsBandawasthefirstfemalepresident(2012-2014)andherassignmentalsoresultedinanincreasednumberofwomenintoprankingpositionssuchasthechiefjusticeandchiefsecretary.
Notwithstandingtheseprogresses,discriminationagainstwomenispervasive,andwomenhavesignificantlylower levelsof literacy,education,andhave limitedaccessto land,resourcesand inheritance.Womenaremorelikelythanmantobeinvulnerableemployment(66.6%and54.5%respectively);HIVprevalenceamongyoungwomen(15-24year-olds)standsat4.5%in2016,almosttwiceasfortheirmalecounterparts(2.2%).ViolenceagainstwomenandgirlsisarealpandemicinMalawi,anddomesticviolenceremainscommon:40%of women in a 2012 survey reported having experienced sexual violence in their lifetime, 30% havingexperienced physical violence and 44% having experience psychosocial violence. Forty-six percent of girlsmarriesbeforetheageof18and9percentbeforetheageof15.
The2013ViolenceagainstChildrenandYoungWomenSurvey(VACS)1revealedthatoneoutoffivefemalesaged18-24yearsexperiencedatleastoneincidentofsexualabusebeforeturning18yearsofage.Moreover,Inthe12monthsprecedingthesurvey,nearlyoneoutoffivefemalesandoneoutofeightmalesaged13to17 years experiencedat least one incidentof sexual abuse,withover threequarters of both females andmalesreportingmultipleincidents.Theaverageageoffirstincidentofsexualabusewas12-14years.Themain legislations andpolicies addressingdiscriminationandviolenceare contained in the:ChildCare,ProtectionandJusticeAct(2010);Marriage,DivorceandFamilyRelationsAct(2015);TraffickinginPersonsAct(2015);NationalPlanofActionforVulnerableChildren(2015-2019);NationalPlanofActiontoCombatGenderBasedViolence(2016-2021);NationalStrategytoEndChildMarriage(2018).
Source:UNWomenAfrica;TheWorldBank(WorldDevelopmentindicators),DemographicandHealthSurvey(DHS)2015;1ViolenceagainstChildrenandYoungWomenSurvey(VACS).FindingsfromaNationalSurvey,2013.MinistryofGender,Children,DisabilityandSocialWelfareoftheRepublicofMalawi,UnitedNationsChildren’sFund,TheCenterforSocialResearchattheUniversityofMalawi,andtheCentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.
25. Residenceandregion.Child labourextendstobothruralandurban locationsbut prevalence is higher in the former. Forty-two percent of all children in ruralareas are in child labour compared to 34%of children living in cities and towns.Therearealsoconsiderabledifferences inchild labouracrossregions,pointingtotheimportanceofarea-specificapproachestoaddressingit.TheSouthernregionstands out as having the highest level of child labour (46%), followed by theNorthern(40%)andCentralregions(36%)(Table2).26. Household poverty. Child labour is higher among children from poorhouseholds (Figure 5). Even amongbest-off households,more thanone in threechildren are in child labour. In policy terms, this result suggests that a strategicresponsebasedonpovertyreductionaloneisunlikelytobeeffectiveineliminatingchildlabour.27. Educationlevelofthehouseholdhead.Theeffectofthelevelofeducationofthehouseholdhead in reducing child labour and increasing school attendance isimportant.Ahighereducational levelofthehouseholdheadmakes itmore likelythat a child attends school and less likely to be engaged in child labour. Thesepatterns are confirmed by the econometric results controlling for income andother variables, indicating it is not merely a disguised income effect (AppendixTableA1andTableA2).
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childrenaged5-13years 11
Figure5. ChildlabouriscorrelatedwithhouseholdpovertyandhouseholdeducationlevelsPercentageofchildreninchildlabour,agegroup5-13,byhouseholdexpenditurequintileandhouseholdheadeducationlevel
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
28. Accesstobasicservices.Accesstobasicservices includingpipedwater indryseasonandcookingfuel(asopposedtorelianceonfirewood)isalsoveryrelevant:childrenfromhouseholdswiththesebasicservicesarelesslikelytoworkandmorelikely to attend school (Appendix Table A1 and Table A2). Basic services areimportantinlargepartbecausetheyinfluencethevalueofchildren’stimeoutsideof the classroom. In contexts where access to basic services is limited childrenmustoftenshoulderagreaterburdenfortaskssuchascarryingwaterandfetchingfuelwood.
3.2 Characteristicsofchildlabour29. Information on the characteristics of child labourers is necessary forunderstandingthenatureofchildren’sworkandchildren’sroleinthelabourforce.A breakdown of child labourers by industry and by status in employment isreported in order to provide a standardised picture of where children areconcentratedandadditional insightsintohowchildlabouriscarriedout.Averageworking hours is looked at as an indirect indicator of the possible health andeducationalconsequencesofchildlabour.30. The largestshareofchildren inchild labourworks inagriculture (65%)(Figure6a).Thepredominanceofagricultureisaparticularconcerninlightofthefactthatthissectorisoneofthethreemostdangerousinwhichtoworkatanyage(alongwith construction and mining), in terms of work-related fatalities, non-fatalaccidents and occupational diseases.10Domestic services is the second-mostimportant sector (accounting for30%of children in child labour). This is anothersector where children are particularly vulnerable to abuse, not least becausedomesticservicetakesplaceinisolationwithinprivatehomes,hiddenfrompublicscrutiny. Intermsofstatus inemployment,childrenarefoundoverwhelmingly inunpaidfamilywork(86%)(Figure6b).
10Forfurtherdetails,pleasevisitthe“Childlabourinagriculture”sectionoftheILO-IPECwebsite:http://www.ilo.org/ipec/areas/Agriculture/lang--en/index.htm.
47,1
40,4 39,938
34
41,6
36,1
30,1
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
Lowest 2 3 4 Highest . Primary Secondary TertiaryHouseholdexpenditurequintile . Householdheadeducationlevel
percen
t
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childrenaged5-13years 12
Figure6. Childreninemploymentareconcentratedinagriculturalworkwithinthefamilyunit
(a)Distributionofchildreninchildlabourbysectorofemployment,bysex (b)Distributionofchildreninchildlabourbystatusinemployment,bysex
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
31. Genderconsiderationsappeartoplayaroleintermsofthenatureoftheworkassigned to children. As reported in Figure 6a, girls aremore likely to be taskedwithworkintheservicessector,andlesslikelytobeinvolvedinfarmwork.Bothgirls andboys areoverwhelmingly employed in family basedwork arrangements(Figure6b).
Figure7. Thetimeburdenofchildlabourdifferslittleacrossthe5-13yearsagespectrumAverageweeklyworkinghours,byageandsex
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
32. Childrenaged5-13yearsinchildlabourloganaverageof11workinghoursperweek(Figure7). It isnoteworthythatworkinghoursdonotriseappreciablywithage; indeed, children as young as five and six years must shoulder roughly thesamenumberofworkinghours as childrenaged13 years.Not included in thesetotals are the additional hours that most children spend each week performingchoreswithintheirownhomes.
65,3 69,361,1
30,2 2634,6
3,1 2,9 3,1
Total Male Female0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
percen
t
Industry
Wholesaleandretailtrade
DomesticServices
Agriculture
86,1 84,8 87,6
9,8 10,5 94,1 4,8 3,4
Total Male Female0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
percen
t
Paidemployment
Selfemployment
UnpaidFamilyWorker
12,4 11,4 11,310 10,6 10,2 10,4
11,7 11,6 10,9
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 5-13
hours
ageinyears
Total
Male
Female
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childrenaged5-13years 13
Figure8. ChildlabourersaremorelikelytopresenthealthproblemsintheyearPercentageofchildrenaffectedbyhealthproblems,bychildlabourstatus(a)
Note:(a)Percentagesforeachsub-groupsumtomorethan100becausesomechildrenareaffectedbymorethanonehealthproblem;
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
33. Children in child labour are more likely than their non-working peers toexperiencehealthproblems(Figure8).Whilethesefiguresdonotspecifywhetherthehealthproblemsarerelatedtowork,11workislikelytobeanimportantfactorinexplainingthelargedifferenceinprevalenceofmosthealthproblemsbetweenchildlabourersandotherchildren.
11Unfortunately,MalawiNCLS2015didnotcollectinformationonwork-relatedhealthproblems.
37,2 38,3
25,814,1
19,1
12,6
15,8
13,9
12,9
7,8
8,8
3,2
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
Inchildlabour Notinchildlabour
percen
t
Other
Stomachproblems
Superficialinjuries
Fever
Coughorflu
Extremefatigue
MALAWIINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Childrenaged5-13years 14
Panel3. Childlabourandhouseholdchores
Manyboysandgirlsare involved inperforminghouseholdchores (seeFiguraA),acategoryofwork that isnotincluded inthediscussiononchild labour. Involvement inhouseholdchores increasessharplywithage; femalesaremorelikelythanmalestoperformhouseholdchores,butthedifferencebysexinthisregardisnotlarge.
FiguraA. Percentageofchildrenandadolescentsinvolvedinhouseholdchores
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
FiguraBandFiguraCshowhouseholdchoresinvolvementatextensiveandintensivemargin.Over87%percentofchildrenaged5-17are involved inhouseholdchores.Onaverage,childrenspend10hoursonhouseholdchoreseachweek,withnosignificantdifferencesingenderorresidentialarea.
FiguraB. Percentage of children and adolescents involved in household chores, by sex andresidence
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
FiguraC. Weeklyhours inhouseholdchoresperformedbychildrenaged5-17,bysexandresidence
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
50556065707580859095
100
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
percen
t
age
Male
Female
87,6 86,1 8983,1
79,387,188,3 87,3 89,3
50
60
70
80
90
100
BothSexes Male Female
percen
t Total
Urban
Rural
10,3 10,2 10,3
0
5
10
15
BothSexes Male Female
hours Total
Urban
Rural
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Adolescentsaged14-17years 15
Chapter4. ADOLESCENTSAGED14-17YEARS
34. Adolescentsaged14-17yearsareofinteresttoeffortsrelatingtobothchildlabour and youth employment. Even though this group is over theminimumworking age, they are still children in legal terms and still considered “childlabourers” under ILO Conventions Nos. 138 and 182 if the work they do ishazardous.Inotherwords,adolescentsarelegallypermittedtoworkbutonlyifthisworkisnothazardousinnature.Hazardousworkinadolescencecancreatehugebarriers–educational,physical,psychological,social–thatimpedeyoungpersonsfromtransitioningsuccessfullytoadultlifeandsecuringdecentwork.Akeygoalforpolicyeffortsinboththechildlabourandyouthemploymentfields,therefore, should be to protect adolescents from hazardous jobs. In thischapterweaddresstheextentofnatureofchildlabouramongchildreninthe14-17yearsagerange.
4.1 Involvementinchildlabour
35. Child labouramong14-17year-olds is veryhigh inMalawi.As reported inTable4,almost29%ofallchildren inthisagerange,morethan400thousandchildren,areengagedinchildlabour.Childlabourinthe14-17yearsagerangeaccounts for about one-fifth of all child labour inMalawi. This statisticmorethananyotherillustrateshowthebroadpolicygoalsofeliminatingchildlabourand improvingyouthemploymentoutcomes intersect for the14-17yearsagegroup. The fact that adolescents constitute an important component of theoverall child labour population means that it will not be possible to achievechild laboureliminationwithoutaddressing theemploymentoutcomesof thisgroup.
Table4. Childreninchildlabour,agegroup14-17years(a)
(a)Percentage
AgeSex Residence
TotalMale Female Urban Rural
14 25.3 27.9 26.9 26.6 26.7
15 29.1 25.4 14.8 29.3 27.2
16 35.1 25.2 27.4 30.9 30.2
17 35.4 28 18.2 34.9 31.7
Total14-17 30.7 26.5 21.6 29.9 28.6
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Adolescentsaged14-17years 16
Table4.Cont’d
(b)Number
AgeSex Residence
TotalMale Female Urban Rural
14 45,363 54,662 13,043 86,981 100,024
15 62,828 58,054 9,484 111,398 120,882
16 58,374 40,797 16,448 82,723 99,171
17 45,010 36,249 9,000 72,259 81,259
Total14-17 211,575 189,762 47,975 353,362 401,337
Notes:(a)Childlabourconstitutes(1)childrenworkingover40hoursperweek;(2)childrenworkingduringtheeveningornight;(3)andchildrenexposedtohazardousformsofworkirrespectiveofworkinghours.
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
36. Differences in involvement in child labour by sex and residence are alsopresent for the 14-17 years age group. Child labour among adolescents issomewhathigher formales–31%ofmale14-17year-oldsare inchild labouragainst 26% of same-aged females. As with younger children, child labouramong14-17year-olds isalsomorecommoninruralareas.Theshareofruralchildren in this age range in child labour (30%) is higher than that of urbanchildren(22%); inabsoluteterms,ruralchild labourersoutnumbertheirurbancounterpartsbyover300,000(Table4).1237. Anotherway of viewing the issue of child labour for the 14-17 years agegroup is its importance relative to overall employment for this age group. Inotherwords, the shareofemployedadolescents in this agegroup that are inchildlabour.InMalawi,thisshareisrelativelyhigh–almost42%ofthosewithjobsareinchildlabour(Figure9).Thehighincidenceofhazardousworkamongemployed 14-17 year-olds is one indication of the size of the “decent workdeficit”facingthisgroup.
12InMalawi,themajorityofthepopulationlivesinruralcontext,representingthe85percentofthetotal.
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Adolescentsaged14-17years 17
Figure9. Childlabourconstitutesasubstantialshareoftotalemploymentamongadolescentsaged14-17yearsininMalawiPercentageofemployedadolescentsaged14-17yearsinchildlabourandinotheremployment
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
4.2 Characteristicsofchildlabour38. Most employed adolescents are in a situation of child labour because oftheirexposuretohazardousconditions.13Asreported inFigure10a,hazardousconditions are experienced by 90% of all those in child labour, hazardousoccupationsby8.4%andthelonghoursby8.3%.Exposuretodustandfumesisbyfarthemostcommonhazard,experiencedbynearlytwo-thirds(63%)ofallthoseinchildlabour.Othercommonhazardsincludeexposuretoextremeheatand cold, experiencedby26%of those in child labour, exposure to flamesorfumes, affecting 23% of child labourers, and work with dangerous tools,affecting19%(Figure10b).
13RecallfromChapter2thatweconsideredanumberofcriteriainestimatinghazardouswork–hazardousconditions(beingexposedtohazardousworkingenvironment,carryingheavyloads,operatinganydangerousmachinery/equipmentatworkorbegging),hazardousoccupationsorindustries,nightworkandlonghours.
42,5 40,9 42,6 41,6 40,3 39,4 42,447,2
41,7
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Male Female . Urban Rural . 14 15 16 17 . TOTAL
Sex . Residence . Age . .
percen
t
Otheremployment
Childlabour
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Adolescentsaged14-17years 18
Figure10. Hazardousconditionsarethemostimportantcriteriaforchildlabourinthe14-17yearsagegroup(a)Percentageof14-17year-oldchildlabourersaffectedbyhazardousconditions,longhours,andnightwork,bysexandresidence(a)
(b)Percentageof14-17year-oldchildlabourersaffectedbytypeofhazardousconditions(a)
Note:(a)Percentagesforeachsub-groupsumtomorethan100becausesomechildlabourersmeetmorethanoneofthechildlabourcriteria.
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
39. More than four fifth (85%)ofadolescents in child labourare found in theagriculture sector (Figure 11a). A distant second in importance is domesticservices,accountingfortenpercentofadolescentchildlabour.Itisinterestingto note that this sectoral composition differs only slightly from that ofemploymentnotconstitutingchildlabourforthe14-17yearsagegroup.Figure11breportsthedistributionofchildlabourersandotheremployedadolescentsbystatusinemployment.Differencesbetweenadolescentsinchildlabourand
87,791,8
86,190,1 89,6
11 5,515,6 7,4 8,4
9,9 6,512,3
7,8 8,3
4,13,6
5,4
3,7 3,9
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
Male Female . Urban Rural . TOTAL
Sex . Residence .
percen
t
Nightwork
Hazardousindustries
Longhours
Hazardousoccupations
Exposuretohazardousconditions/Begging
63,7 62,655,6
64,5 63,1
22,129,9
21
26,9 26
20,125,5
18,9
23,5 22,8
18,4
19,3
21,4
18,4 18,96,6
6,2
2,8
7,0 6,4
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
150
Male Female . Urban Rural . TOTAL
Sex . Residence .
percen
t
Other
Dangeroustools
Flames,gas
Extremecoldorheat
Dust,fumes
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Adolescentsaged14-17years 19
other employed adolescents are much larger in this regard. Those in childlabouraremuchlesslikelytobeinfamilywork,andmuchmorelikelytobeinself-employmentandwageemployment,thanotheradolescentswithjobs.
Figure11. Childlabourersareconcentratedinagriculturalworkwithinthefamilyunit
(a)Distributionofadolescentsinchildlabourandotheremployedadolescentsbysectorofemployment
(b)Distributionofadolescentsinchildlabourandotheremployedadolescentsbystatusinemployment
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
82,4
84,9
9,611,4
3,93,73,8
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
ChildlabourOtheremployment
percen
t
Construction
Wholesale&Retail
DomesticWorkers
AgricultureForestryandFishing
67,5
89,6
23,6
7,68,92,8
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Childlabour Otheremployment
percen
t
Wageworker
Self-employed
UnpaidFamilyWorker
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Children’semployment,childlabourandeducation 20
Chapter5. CHILDREN’SEMPLOYMENT,CHILDLABOURANDEDUCATION
40. Thedegreetowhichworkinterfereswithchildren’sschoolingisoneofthemost important determinants of the long-term impact of early workexperience. Reduced educational opportunities constitute the main linkbetween child labour, on the one hand, and poor employment outcomes foryouth,on theother.Clearly, if theexigenciesofworkmean that childrenaredeniedschoolingaltogetherorarelessabletoperformintheclassroom,thenthese children will not acquire the education and life skills necessary forsuccessfully transitioning to adult life and decent work. This section looks atevidence of the impact of children’s work on their education. Links betweenchildlabour,humancapital levelsandyouthemploymentoutcomesinMalawiareexploredinmoredetailinChapter6ofthisreport.41. One way of viewing the interaction between children’s employment andschooling is by decomposing the child population into four non-overlappingactivity groups – children in child labour only, children attending school only,children combining school and child labour and children in neither. Thisbreakdown shows that 52% of children aged 5-13 years attend school only,while38%combinechildlabourandschool.Onlythreepercentofchildrenaged5-13yearsareexclusivelyinchildlabour,whiletheremainingsevenpercentareneitherstudyingnor inchild labour (althoughtheyare likely tobeengaged inotherproductiveactivities,suchashouseholdchores)(Table5).Ruralchildrenfaceadoubledisadvantageintermsofschooling:asmallerproportionattendsschool (89% versus 93%), and those that do attend school aremore likely tohavetoshouldertheburdenofworkatthesametime.
Table5. Children’sactivitystatus,5-13yearsagerange,bysexandresidence
(a)Percentage
Characteristics
Activity(a)&(c)Totalin
employment
(b)&(c)Totalinschool
(a)&(d)Totalout-of-
school
(a)Onlyin
employment
(b)Inschoolexclusively
(c)In
employmentandschool
(d)Neitherin
employmentnorinschool
SexMale 3.2 50.5 38.9 7.4 42.1 89.4 10.6
Female 3.1 53.4 37.1 6.4 40.2 90.5 9.5
ResidenceUrban 2.2 61.7 31.4 4.7 33.6 93.1 6.9
Rural 3.4 50.3 39.1 7.2 42.4 89.4 10.6
TOTAL 3.2 51.9 38 6.9 41.2 89.9 10.1
(b)Number
SexMale 67,950 1,058,889 815,204 155,092 883,155 1,874,093 223,043
Female 65,300 1,106,602 768,839 132,295 834,139 1,875,441 197,595
ResidenceUrban 12,793 359,588 182,808 27,387 195,600 542,395 40,180
Rural 120,457 1,805,903 1,401,236 260,000 1,521,693 3,207,139 380,458
TOTAL 133,250 2,165,490 1,584,044 287,387 1,717,294 3,749,534 420,637
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Children’semployment,childlabourandeducation 21
42. The interaction between work and school differs considerably foradolescents in the 14-17 years age group: a much smaller percentage (27%)onlystudiesandamuchhigherpercentage(14%)isinemploymentexclusively;54%combinebothactivitiesandninepercentneitherstudynorwork(Table6).Thesedifferencesbetweenthe5-13yearsand14-17yearsagecohortsarenotsurprising, as theageof14years correspondswith the time that adolescentsbegin their transition from school to working life. The difference in activitystatusbetweenruralandurbanchildrenisalsonoteworthyforthe14-17yearsagegroup.Again,ruralchildrenarelesslikelytobeinschooland,amongthosethatareinschool,morelikelytohavetoworkatthesametime.
Table6. Adolescents’activitystatus,14-17yearsagerange,bysexandresidence
(a)Percentage
Characteristics
Activity(a)&(c)Totalin
employment
(b)&(c)Totalinschool
(a)&(d)Totalout-of-
school
(a)Onlyin
employment
(b)Inschoolexclusively
(c)In
employmentandschool
(d)Neitherin
employmentnorinschool
SexMale 14.3 24.3 58 3.5 72.2 82.3 17.7
Female 14.3 29 50.6 6.2 64.9 79.6 20.4
ResidenceUrban 13.3 39.8 37.5 9.5 50.8 77.3 22.7
Rural 14.4 24.2 57.4 4 71.8 81.6 18.4
TOTAL 14.3 26.7 54.2 4.8 68.5 80.9 19.1
(b)Number
SexMale 98,136 167,450 399,192 23,755 497,328 566,642 121,891
Female 101,998 207,214 361,959 44,129 463,958 569,173 146,127
ResidenceUrban 29,436 88,200 83,188 21,004 112,624 171,389 50,441
Rural 170,699 286,464 677,963 46,880 848,662 964,427 217,578
TOTAL 200,135 374,664 761,152 67,884 961,286 1,135,816 268,019
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
43. Children in child labour do not appear disadvantaged in terms of theirability to attend school. Indeed, for the 5-13years old attendance is actuallyhigheramongchildreninchildlabour,whilethe14-17yearsoldinchildlabourshow lower attendance rate than their peers not in child labour. TheMalawiNCLS2015 survey does not provide information concerning learningachievement.Agrowingbodyofevidence fromelsewhere,however, suggeststhatthetimeandenergyrequiredforchild labourcanalsohaveanimportantnegative impactontheabilityofchildrentostudyandbenefit fully fromtheirtimeintheclassroom.
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Children’semployment,childlabourandeducation 22
Figure12. ChildreninchildlabourdonotappeardisadvantagedintermsoftheirabilitytoattendschoolSchoolparticipationbychildlabourstatusandage
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
44. Why are children outside of the school system? Feedback from childrenthemselvesinthecompulsoryschoolingagerangepointstotheimportanceofbothsupply-anddemand-sidefactors(Figure13).Forty-twopercentofchildrenreportbeingoutofschoolbecauseoftheabsenceofanearbyschool,pointingto the on-going challenge of extending the coverage of school facilities.Overone-thirdofallchildren,and39%ofgirls,statethattheyaretooyoung,despitethefactthattheyfallinthecompulsoryschoolingagerange,indicatingthelateentrance also remains a concern. About 17% of children are not in schoolbecause their familydoesnotallowthemtoattend,highlighting the fact thatnegative attitudes towards education still persist in somehouseholds. Finally,only about four percent of children are not in school becauseof theneed towork.
Figure13. PushandpullfactorsarebothimportantinexplainingoutofschoolchildrenMainreasonfornotattendingschoolinthecurrentyear,childreninthecompulsoryschoolingagerange
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
92,2
78,1
88,3
82,0
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
5-13 14-17
percen
t
agerange
ChildLabourers
Notinchildlabour
42,5 42,4 42,5
36,0 32,639,8
16,7 19,813,2
3,9 4,3 3,4
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Total Male Female
percen
t
Workforpay
Other
Familydidnotallow
Tooyoung
Noschoolnearby
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 23
Chapter6. YOUNGPERSONSAGED15-35YEARS
45. This chapter focuses on the labour market situation of Malawian youngpersons,agroupdefined for thepurposesof this reportaspeople falling intothe15-35yearsagerange.ThechapterfirstprovidesanoverviewoftheactivitystatusofMalawi's youngpersons and then looks inmoredetail at job accessandjobqualityandathowhumancapitallevelsinfluenceboth.ThedefinitionsofthekeylabourmarketindicatorsusedinthischapterarepresentedinPanel4.
Panel4. Youthemploymentdefinitions
Labourforceparticipation:Thelabourforceparticipationrateisdefinedasthelabourforceexpressedas apercentageof theworkingagepopulation. The labour force is in turn the sumof thenumberofpersonsemployedandthenumberofpersonsunemployed.
Employment:Apersonisconsideredemployedifheorsheworkedduringtheweekpriortothesurveyfor at least one hour for pay (or without pay), profit, in kind, or family business. A person is alsoconsideredtobeinemploymentifheorshewasnotworkingbuthadajobtogobackto.
Unemployment:Apersonisconsideredunemployedifheorshedidnotworkduringtheweekpriortothesurveybutisactivelyseekingworkandisavailableforwork.
Underemployment:Aperson isconsideredunderemployed ifheorshe isworking less than35hours.The underemployment rate is the underemployed expressed as a percentage of the total employedpopulation.Inactive:Aperson isconsidered inactive ifheorshe isnot in the labour force.The inactivity rateandlabourforceparticipationratesumto100.
NEET:ApersoniscategorizedasNEETifheorsheisnotineducation,employmentortraining.NEETisthereforeameasurethatreflectsbothyouthwhoareinactiveandoutofeducationaswellasyouthwhoareunemployed.
6.1 Youthlabourforcestatus:theoverallpicture46. Ninety-one percent of Malawi's youth is in the labour force and 28% iscontinuingwiththeireducation(Table7).Onlyasmallshareofyouth–3%–isabsentfrombotheducationandthe labourforce. Amongthose inthe labourforce, about three percent are unemployed. “NEET” youth,who include bothunemployed youth and youth absent from education and the labour force,makeup3.5%oftheyouthpopulation.Youngpeoplewhoareneitherattainingmarketableskillsinschoolnorinthelaborforce,areparticularlyatriskofbothlabour market and social exclusion. 14 At a macro-economic level, theyconstituteunutilizedproductivecapacityandaconstrainttogrowth.Otherrisksborne by unemployed youth are also well documented: unemployment canpermanently impair their productive potential and therefore negatively 14ILO(2013).GlobalEmploymentTrendsforYouth2013.InternationalLabourOrganization(ILO),2013,Geneva
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 24
influencelifetimepatternsofemployment,payandjobtenure.15Theseheadlinelabour force statistics for the 15-35 years age rangemask large variations byresidenceandsex,asalsoreportedinTable7anddiscussedintheremainderofthischapter.47. Thedefinitionof youth inMalawi, however, covers awider age spectrum(i.e., 15-35 years) and the headline labour force statistics for Malawi youthshouldbe interpretedwith thismind.Theyouth labour forcepicture changessomewhatifwerestrictourfocustothenarrower15-24years.AsreportedinTable7,labourforceparticipationislowerforthiscohort(87%)whileeducationparticipationismuchhigher(49%).RatesofNEET(6%)andunemployment(4%)arealsohigheramongyouthinthe15-24yearsagecohort.
Table7. Aggregatelabourmarketindicators,personsaged15-35years,byresidence,sex,andagerange
Populationcategory%ofpopulation %ofactive
population
Labourforceparticipation
Educationparticipation
Inactiveandoutofschool NEET(a)
Employmentratio
Unemploymentrate
Residence Urban 86.5 28.3 3.7 6.5 83.7 5.8
Rural 92.3 28.7 1.8 2.8 91.3 2.1
Sex Male 91.4 33.9 1.8 2.9 90.3 2.6
Female 91.1 23.9 2.4 4.0 89.5 2.9
Agerange 15-19 78.6 68.6 3.7 5.2 77.1 5.0
20-24 96.1 19.5 1.6 3.6 94.1 2.6
15-24 87.3 49.3 2.6 6.0 83.8 4.0
24-29 97.2 11.7 1.5 3.2 95.5 2.4
30-35 98.9 0.9 0.8 1.2 98.4 0.7
Region North 90.4 31.0 1.7 3.3 88.9 3.5
Center 91.6 25.7 2.3 4.1 89.7 3.4
South 91.2 31.1 2.0 2.8 90.4 1.7
Total 91.2 28.6 2.1 3.5 89.9 2.8
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS.
6.2 YouthaccesstojobsThissectionfocusesonyouth labourmarketchallengesasreflectedby lackofaccesstojobs.Twomaingroupsofyoungpeoplearelookedatinthiscontext:youth not in education and not in the labour force; and unemployed youth.Only a relatively small share of Malawian young people fall into these twogroups–twopercentofall15-35year-oldsareoutofeducationandoutofthelabourforce(Figure14)whiletheunemploymentrateforthisagegroupstandsatthreepercent(Figure15).Forboththesemeasures,percentagesarehighestforurbanyouth, thoseat the lowerendof the15-35yearsagespectrumandforfemales.TheshareofNEETyouthaccountsfor3.5%ofallpeopleinthe15-
15M.Ranzani,F.C.Rosati(2012).TheNEETtrap:adynamicanalysisforMexico.BackgroundpaperfortheWDR2013
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 25
35yearsagerange(Figure16).Again,NEETprevalenceisalsohighestforurbanyouth,femaleyouthandthoseatthelowerendoftheagespectrum.
Figure14. OnlyasmallshareofMalawianyoutharenotineducationorinthelabourforcePercentageofyoungpeople(15-35years)whoareinactiveandoutofeducation,bysex,agerange,andresidence
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
Figure15. UnemploymentaffectsonlyaboutthreepercentofyoungpeopleinthelabourforceUnemploymentrate,bysex,agerange,andresidence
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
2,1
3,7
1,8 1,82,4
2,9
4,4
1,52
3,7
1,6 1,50,8
0
2
4
6
8
10
TOTA
L .
Urban
Rural
Male
Female
Urbanm
ale
Urbanfe
male
Ruralm
ale
Ruralfem
ale .
15-19
20-24
25-29
30-35
. Residence . Sex . Residenceandsex Age
percen
t
2,8
5,8
2,1 2,6 2,9
5
6,6
2,1 2,2
5
2,6 2,4
0,7
0
2
4
6
8
10
Total .
Urban
Rural
Male
Female
UrbanM
ale
UrbanFem
ale
RuralM
ale
RuralFem
ale .
15-19
20-24
24-29
30-35
. Residence . Sex . Residenceandsex Age
percen
t
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 26
Figure16. LessthanfourpercentofallyoungpeoplefallintotheNEETcategoryPercentageofyoungpeoplewhoareNEET(a),bysex,agerange,residence
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
48. Thesefigures,takentogether,suggestthatjobaccessinastrictsenseisnottheprimarychallengefacingMalawianyoungpeople.Butobtaininga jobisofcoursean insufficientconditionforsuccessful labourmarketoutcomes.This isbecauseincountriessuchasMalawiwherepovertyiswidespread,manyyouthssimplycannotaffordtoremainwithoutworkaltogetherandmustaccept jobsregardlessoftheconditionsandpayassociatedwiththem.Policyconcernisnotlimitedtowhetheryoungpeopleareworking,butalsoextendstowhetherjobconstitutedecentwork,offerapathforadvancementandrouteoutofpoverty.Securing decent work rather than work per se, is the desired goal of thetransitiontoworkinglife,andweneedtoassessyouthjobsagainstbasicdecentworkcriteriaforamorecompletepictureof labourmarketsuccess.Youthjobcharacteristicsanddecentworkaretakenupinthenextsection.
6.3 Youthjobcharacteristics49. Effectivelymeasuringdecentwork is critical toassessing theemploymentoutcomesof youngpersons. Yet, themultifacetednature of the decentworkconcept–itcombinesaccesstofullandproductiveemploymentwithrightsatwork, social protection and the promotion of social dialogue – means thatmeasurement is a complex task. This section presents the few availableindicators of job characteristics in order to provide a partial picture of theextenttowhichyouthjobsconstitutedecentwork.
Panel5. ILOandDecentWork
Decent work sums up the aspirations of people in their working lives. It involves opportunities for work that isproductiveanddeliversafairincome,securityintheworkplaceandsocialprotectionforfamilies,betterprospectsforpersonaldevelopmentandsocialintegration,freedomforpeopletoexpresstheirconcerns,organizeandparticipateinthedecisionsthataffecttheirlivesandequalityofopportunityandtreatmentforallwomenandmen.TheDecentWorkconceptwasformulatedbytheILO’sconstituents–governmentsandemployersandworkers–asameanstoidentifytheOrganization’smajorpriorities.Itisbasedontheunderstandingthatworkisasourceofpersonal
3,5
6,5
2,8 2,94
4,8
8,1
2,43,1
5,2
3,6 3,2
1,2
0
2
4
6
8
10TO
TAL .
Urban
Rural
Male
Female
Urbanm
ale
Urbanfe
male
Ruralm
ale
Ruralfem
ale .
15-19
20-24
25-29
30-35
. Residence . Sex . Residenceandsex Age
percen
t
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 27
dignity, family stability, peace in the community, democracies that deliver for people, and economic growth thatexpandsopportunitiesforproductivejobsandenterprisedevelopment.PromotingDecentworkforallThe ILO has developed a DecentWork Agenda for the community of work. It provides support through integratedDecentWorkCountryProgrammesdeveloped incoordinationwith itsconstituents.PuttingtheDecentWorkAgendaintopractice isachievedthroughthe implementationof the ILO's fourstrategicobjectives,withgenderequalityasacrosscuttingobjective:Creating jobs – an economy that generates opportunities for investment, entrepreneurship, skills development, jobcreationandsustainablelivelihoods.Guaranteeingrightsatwork–toobtainrecognitionandrespectfortherightsofworkers.Allworkers,andinparticulardisadvantagedorpoorworkers,needrepresentation,participation,andlawsthatworkfortheirinterests.Extending social protection – to promote both inclusion and productivity by ensuring that women and men enjoyworkingconditionsthataresafe,allowadequatefreetimeandrest,takeintoaccountfamilyandsocialvalues,provideforadequatecompensationincaseoflostorreducedincomeandpermitaccesstoadequatehealthcare.Promoting social dialogue – Involving strong and independent workers’ and employers' organizations is central toincreasingproductivity,avoidingdisputesatwork,andbuildingcohesivesocieties.MakingDecentWorkaglobalgoalandanationalrealityTheoverallgoalofDecentWork istoeffectpositivechange inpeople’s livesatthenationaland local levels.The ILOprovides support through integrated Decent Work Country Programmes developed in coordination with ILOconstituents. They define the priorities and the targets within national development frameworks and aim to tacklemajorDecentWorkdeficitsthroughefficientprogrammesthatembraceeachofthestrategicobjectives.The ILOoperateswithotherpartnerswithinandbeyond theUN family toprovide in-depthexpertiseandkeypolicyinstruments for the design and implementation of these programmes. It also provides support for building theinstitutionsneededtocarrythemforwardandformeasuringprogress.Thebalancewithintheseprogrammesdiffersfromcountrytocountry,reflectingtheirneeds,resourcesandpriorities.Progressalsorequiresactionatthegloballevel.TheDecentWorkagendaoffersabasisforamorejustandsustainableframework for global development. The ILOworks to develop “decentwork”-oriented approaches to economic andsocialpolicyinpartnershipwiththeprincipalinstitutionsandactorsofthemultilateralsystemandtheglobaleconomy.Source:ILO(http://ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/decent-work-agenda/lang--en/index.htm).
50. Rates of underemployment,16 sometimes referred to as “hiddenunemployment”, are extremely high among young persons in Malawi. AsreportedinFigure17,underemploymentaffectsoverthree-fourths(76%)ofallMalawianyouthwithjobs.Theunderemploymentraterisesto84%foryouthinthe 15-19 years age range, suggesting that part-time work is common entrypointinthelabourmarketforyouth.Underemploymentismuchhigherinruralareas(75%)comparedtourbanones(60%).Theyouthunderemploymentratein the agriculture sector, where much of rural youth employment isconcentrated,standsat74%.
16Time-relatedunderemployment,astheonlycomponentofunderemploymenttodatethathasbeenagreedonandproperlydefinedwithintheinternationalcommunityoflabourstatisticians,isthebestavailableproxyoftheunderutilizedlabourforce.Thetime-related-underemployedasshareoftotalemploymentismeasuredasthosewhoworklessthan35hoursperweek.Theunderemploymentrateisdefinedhereasthenumberofemployedpersonsinsituationsofunderemploymentexpressedasapercentageoftotalpersonsinemployment.
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 28
Figure17. Underemploymentisalsoanissueforemployedyouth,especiallyinruralareasandinsomeprovincesYouthunderemploymentrate(a)(percentageofemployedpopulationaged15-35years),bysex,age,andresidence
Note:(a)Thetime-relatedunderemploymentrateisdefinedasthenumberofemployedpersonsinsituationsofunderemploymentexpressedasapercentageoftotalpersonsinemployment.Apersonisconsideredinasituationofunderemploymentifhe/sheworkslessthan35hoursaweek.
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
51. Youthareconcentratedoverwhelmingly in low-skill jobs,another indicatoroftheirdecentworkdeficit.Figure18reportsthedecompositionofyouthjobsby skills requirements based on the four standardised International StandardClassificationofOccupations(ISCO)skills. Itshowsthat45%ofyouthjobsfallsin the lowest skills category, requiring only the performance of simple androutinephysicalormanualtasks,andthat55%oftotaljobsfall inthesecond-lowest skill category, requiring the performance of tasks such as operatingmachineryandelectronicequipment.Only0.6%ofallyouth jobs,bycontrast,require higher level 3 or 4 skills. Manufacturing is the only sector with anappreciablesharehigherskill jobs;13%ofall jobsheldbyyouth inthissectorfall into the two highest skills categories. As discussed further in the nextsections, a large share (43%)of even themost educatedgroupof youthwithtertiaryeducationmanagestoonlysecurelow-skilljobs(inthelowesttwoskillscategories).
72,2
60,1
74,768,4
75,7
55,264,6
71,177,9
83,6
73,2 69,763,5
73,765,6
56,5
74,9
0102030405060708090
Total .
Urban
Rural
Male
Female
UrbanM
ale
UrbanFem
ale
RuralM
ale
RuralFem
ale
15-19
20-24
25-29
30-35
Agriculture
Constructio
n
Commerce
Domesticse
rvice
. Residence . Sex . Residenceandsex . Age . Sector
percen
t
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 29
Figure18. YouthareconcentratedinlowskilljobsSkilllevelclassificationofyouthjobs(%distributionofemployedyouth),bysexandsector
Notes:DefinitionsofeachofthefourISCOskilllevelsareasfollows:SkillLevel1.OccupationsatSkillLevel1typicallyrequiretheperformanceofsimpleandroutinephysicalormanualtasks.Theymayrequiretheuseofhandheldtools,suchasshovels,orofsimpleelectricalequipment,suchasvacuumcleaners.Theyinvolvetaskssuchascleaning;digging;liftingandcarryingmaterialsbyhand;sorting,storingorassemblinggoodsbyhand(sometimesinthecontextofmechanisedoperations):operatingnon-motorisedvehicles;andpickingfruitandvegetables.ManyoccupationsatSkillLevel1mayrequirephysicalstrengthand/orendurance.Forsomejobsbasicskillsinliteracyandnumeracymayberequired.Ifrequiredthese skillswould not be amajor part of the job; Skill Level 2.Occupations at Skill Level 2 typically involve the performance of tasks such asoperating machinery and electronic equipment; driving vehicles; maintenance and repair of electrical and mechanical equipment; andmanipulation, ordering and storage of information. For almost all occupations at Skill Level 2 the ability to read information such as safetyinstructions, to make written records of work completed, and to accurately perform simple arithmetical calculations is essential. Manyoccupations at this skill level require relatively advanced literacy and numeracy skills and good interpersonal communication skills. In someoccupations,theseskillsarerequiredforamajorpartofthework.Manyoccupationsatthisskilllevelrequireahighlevelofmanualdexterity.SkillLevel3.OccupationsatSkillLevel3typically involvetheperformanceofcomplextechnicalandpracticaltasksthatrequireanextensivebodyoffactual, technical and procedural knowledge in a specialised field. Occupations at this skill level generally require a high level of literacy andnumeracyandwelldeveloped interpersonal communication skills. These skillsmay include theability tounderstandcomplexwrittenmaterial,prepare factual reports and communicate with people who are distressed. Skill Level 4. Occupations at Skill Level 4 typically involve theperformanceoftasksthatrequirecomplexproblemsolvinganddecision-makingbasedonanextensivebodyoftheoreticalandfactualknowledgeinaspecialisedfield. Thetasksperformedtypically includeanalysisandresearchtoextendthebodyofhumanknowledge inaparticular field,diagnosis and treatment of disease, imparting knowledge to others, design of structures ormachinery and of processes for construction andproduction.Occupationsatthisskilllevelgenerallyrequireextendedlevelsofliteracyandnumeracy,sometimesataveryhighlevel,andexcellentinterpersonalcommunicationskills. Theseskillsgenerally includetheabilitytounderstandcomplexwrittenmaterialandcommunicatecomplexideasinmediasuchasbooks,reportsandoralpresentations.
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
52. Youth employment consists overwhelmingly of non-wage work in theinformal economy. As reported in Figure 19a, nearly nine out of every 10employedyouthareinnon-wagework,eitherasown-accountworkers(34%)oras unpaid family workers (56%). This figure rises to 94% among employedfemaleyouthandto92%amongruralyouth. Wage jobs,whicharegenerallyperceivedaspreferablebecausetheyaremorecommonlyassociatedwithfairincome, security in theworkplace, social security and other key decentworkattributes, account for only 10% of all youth jobs. The breakdown of youthemploymentbysector,reportedinFigure19b,highlightsthepredominanceofagriculture. Nearly 80% of all youth jobs are in agriculture, while domesticservice accounts for 11% of jobs, commerce 6% and construction and otherindustry the remainder. Agriculture, not surprisingly, plays a relatively moreimportant role in rural areas; domestic service and commerce account for arelativelylargershareofyouthjobsinurbanareas.
44,7 47,3 42,4 40,3 39,1
68,3
54,7 52,4 56,8 59,746,3
31,314,0
0102030405060708090100
Total
Male
Female .
Agriculture
Manufacturin
g
Services
. Sex . Sector
percen
t
Skilllevel4(highest)
Skilllevel3
Skilllevel2
Skilllevel1(lowest)
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 30
Figure19. Youthemploymentconsistspredominantlyofnon-wageworkintheinformaleconomy
(a)Statusinemployment(%distributionofemployedyouth),byresidenceandsex
(b)Sectorofemployment(%distributionofemployedyouth),byresidenceandsex
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
6.4 Humancapitalandyouthemploymentoutcomes
53. Levels of human capital are very low for most Malawian young people,compromisingtheirfutureprospects.Three-quartersofyoungpersonswhoarenot in school either have no education (9%) or only primary education(67%)(Figure 20). Low human capital is especially pronounced in rural areas,where71%ofyouthleaveschoolwithonlyprimaryeducationand9%havenoeducation at all. Female youth also face a relative disadvantage in terms ofeducation–theshareoffemaleyouthwithprimaryorlesseducationisabout10percentagepoints higher than that ofmale youth.By region, the shareofyouthwithprimaryor lesseducation ranges from80% in theSouth region to65% in the North region. These figures point to the importance of “secondchance” learning opportunities forMalawian youth aimed at equipping themwiththebasicskillsneededforworkandlife.
55,6
0
49,960,7
0
46,657,4
3434,6
33,5
34,2
34
10,4 15,55,9
19,38,6
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Total .
Male
Female .
Urban
Rural
. . Sex . Residence
percen
t
Paidemployment
Selfemployment(non-agricultural)
Unpaidfamilyworker
79,885,9
74,3
52,1
85,5
10,97,6
13,9
26,6
7,75,6 2,8 8,1
13,4
4
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Total
Male
Female .
Urban
Rural
. Sex . Residence
percen
t
Construction
Otherindustries
Commerce
Domesticservice
Agriculture
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 31
Figure20. EducationallevelsremainlowformanyMalawianyoungpersonsEducationalattainment,non-studentpopulationaged15-35years
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
54. Levels of education are clearly correlated with job outcomes. Figure 21reports thecompositionofyouthemploymentby levelofeducation. It showsthat the likelihoodofwageworkandofworkoutside theprimaryagriculturesector both rise consistently with more education. Involvement in wageemploymentrises from10%amongthosewith leasteducationto63%amongthose withmost education. At the same time, involvement agricultural workfalls from84%among thosewith leasteducation to64% for thosewithmosteducation,andinvolvementintheservicesectorrisesfrom15%to36%movingfromprimarytotertiaryeducation.Asdiscussedbelow,educatedyoutharenotsurprisinglyalsomorelikelytobefoundinjobsrequiringhigherskills,althoughaverylargeshareofeveneducatedyouthmustsettleforlow-skilljobs.
9,4 9,2 6,3 10 7,4 9,4 10 15,17,8 7,6 9,3 9,3
60,571,3
47,3
70,9
57,966,7 69,6
71
64,5 64,468,1 66,6
27,218,5
41,5
18
31,822,4 18,7
13,626,2 25,7 21 22,3
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100Male
Female .
Urban
Rural .
North
Center
South .
15-19
20-24
25-29
30-35 .
TOTA
L
Sex . Residence . Region . Ageclass . TOTAL
percen
t
Tertiary
Secondary
Primary
Noeducation
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 32
Figure21. Better-educatedyoutharemuchmorelikelytoenjoywageandtertiarysectoremployment
(a)Percentagedistributionofemployedyouthnotcurrentlyineducationbyeducationlevelandstatusinemployment
(b)Percentagedistributionofemployedyouthnotcurrentlyineducationbyeducationlevelandsectorofemployment
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
55. Education is associated with a substantial earnings premium. A wageequation was estimated in order to assess the importance of education andotherindividualandhouseholdcharacteristicsonearnings.Theresultsrelatingto education, reported in Figure 22 and Appendix Table A3, shows that thewagepremiumassociatedwithtertiaryeducationisespeciallylarge.Thosewithhigher education can expect to earn about 100%more than thosewith onlysecondaryeducationand133%morethanthosewithonlyprimaryeducation.The results also point to a significant gender gap in wages at all educationlevels.
Figure22. MoreeducationisassociatedwithasubstantialearningspremiumWagepremiumbysex,youthaged15-35years,withrespecttototalwithoutschooling
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS.Wagepremiumarecomputedthrougharegressionoflogofmonthlywageonthefollowingset of covariates: female, dummies for educational level (reference category: Primary), interactionbetween femaleandeducationdummies,secondorderpolinomialinage,numberofchildrenbelow5,numberofchildrenbetween5and17,numberofhouseholdmembersbetween18and 64, number of household members above 65, dummies for region (reference category: North). Coefficients and standard error of thisregressionarereportedinAppendixTableA3.Wagepremiaarecomputedbyrescalingthecoefficientattachedtofemale,educationandtheirinteractionsandconstrainingthewagepremiumofprimaryeducationforbothsexesbeingzero.
9,717,2
62,840,8
40,6
18,649,5 42,1
18,6
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Primary Secondary Tertiary
percen
t
UnpaidFamilyWorker
Self-Employed
Paid
83,971,6
64,2
15,227,5
35,8
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Primary Secondary Tertiarype
rcen
t
Industry
Service
Agriculture
0,00
0,33
1,33
-0,25
0,02
1,12
0,19
0,56
1,49
-0,4
0
0,4
0,8
1,2
1,6
Primary Secondary Tertiary
percen
t Total
Female
Male
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Youngpersonsaged15-35years 33
56. Skills mismatches appear significant among employed Malawian youngpeople.Thedecompositionofyouth jobsbyskills intensity, reported inFigure23, shows that young people across all education levels are concentratedoverwhelming in low-skill jobs. Almost all those with primary or secondaryeducation,and84%ofeventhosewithtertiaryeducation,areinjobsinthetwolowestskillclassifications.
Figure23. Asubstantialofevenwell-educatedyouthmustsettleforlow-skilljobsSkilllevelclassificationofyouthjobs(%distributionofemployedyouth)
Notes:DefinitionsofeachofthefourISCOskilllevelsareprovidedinFigure18
Source:UCWcalculationsfrom2015MalawiNCLS
28,8 33,918,2
71,1 64,6
65,8
15,2
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Primary Secondary Tertiary
percen
t
Skilllevel3+4
Skilllevel4(highest)
Skilllevel3
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Nationalresponsestochildlabourandyouthemploymentconcerns 34
Chapter7. NATIONALRESPONSESTOCHILDLABOURANDYOUTHEMPLOYMENTCONCERNS
57. Malawi has made a number of important commitments to address childlabour and youth employment, which are reflected in national and relevantsector policies, plans and strategies, programs and legislation. Thus, thischapterisdedicatedtoprovidingtheinstitutionalframeworkforaddressingthetwinchallengesofchildlabourandyouthunemployment.
7.1 Legalframeworkforchildlabour
58. Malawihasmadeanumberofimportantlegalcommitmentsintheareasofchild labour and children’s schooling. The Government ofMalawi (GoM) hasratifiedILOConventionNo.182(WorstFormsofChildLabour),ILOConventionNo. 138 (Minimum Age), and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child(CRC), the threemost important international legal standards relating tochildlabour.TheGovernmenthasalsoadoptedtheOptionalProtocoltotheCRConCombatingtheuseofChildreninArmedConflictandtheOptionalProtocolontheSaleofChildren,ChildProstitutionandChildPornography.Otherimportantinternational standards adopted by GoM include the ILO Convention No. 29(Abolitionofforcedlabour)andthePalermoProtocolonTraffickinginPersons,whichpromotestheprincipleenshrinedintheILODeclarationonFundamentalPrinciplesandRightsatWorkanditsFollow-upin1998,andtheILODeclarationonSocialJusticeforaFairGlobalization.59. As a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC),Malawi is party to the SADC Code of Conduct on Child Labour as well as asignatorytotheSADCCharteronFundamentalSocialRights.60. These international commitments are also ratified in a range of nationalstatutesandsupportingissuance.61. The Constitution ofMalawi (2002) contains relevant provisions regardingchildren. TheConstitution, through theamendmentact.of the14th February2017, defines children as persons below the age of 18 (the constitutionalprovision on the age of the childwas 16). The Constitution protects childrenfromeconomicexploitationoranytreatment,workorpunishmentthatis,orislikely to be hazardous, interfere with their education, or be harmful to theirhealthortotheirphysical,mentalorspiritualorsocialdevelopment inArticle23. While Article 25 entitles all persons to education, Article 26 prohibitsslaveryandservitude,forcedlabourandtiedlabourthatamountstoservitudeand, Article 27 prohibits forced labor. Finally, while Article 30 provides forspecialconsiderationofchildrenintheapplicationofrighttodevelopmentandtherefore enjoyment of economic, social, cultural and political development,Article31providesrightofStatetowithdrawlabour.
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Nationalresponsestochildlabourandyouthemploymentconcerns 35
Ofparticular relevanceare theEmployment (ProhibitionofHazardousWorkfor Children) Order (2012) and the Employment Act No. 6 (2000). TheEmploymentOrderincludesalistofprohibitedworkforchildren.Italsostatesthat“apersonbetweentheagesfourteenandeighteenyearsshallnotworkformorethanfortyhoursinaweek”andsetslowerlimitsforchildrenenrolledinschool. It also includes provision for night work and work in extremetemperature.TheEmploymentActNo.6ForcedLabor(Section4)andprovidesforMinimumAgeforWorkat14(Section21)inagricultural,industrial,ornon-industrialwork,andexcludesworkersinthird-partyhomes,suchasindomesticwork,ornon-commercial agriculture inwhichchildrenareknown towork. ItalsoprovidesforMinimumAgeforHazardousWorkat18(Section22).
Panel6. LegalframeworkrelatingtochildlabourinMalawi(inreversechronogicalorder)
TheTraffickinginPersonsAct2015:Addresseskeygapsthatexistedinthecountry’slegalframeworkinrelation to protecting all children under age 18 from trafficking in persons, including protection fromcommercial sexual exploitation regardless of gender. It prohibits Forced Labor (Section 15), ChildTrafficking(Section15)andCommercialSexualExploitationofChildren(Sections15and20).
Employment(ProhibitionofHazardousWorkforChildren)Order,2012prohibitsHazardousOccupationsorActivitiesforChildren(Sections1–9,andParagraph6,sections1–6).TheOrdersetstimelimitsforworkperformedbetween theages fourteenandeighteenofnomore than fortyhoursperweekand twentyhoursinaweekforchildrenenrolledinschool.Amendment to Penal Code 2011: Provides for upward adjustment ofminimumage for sexual consentfrom13to16years.Child Care, Protection and Justice Act of 2010 provides for Minimum Age for Hazardous Work at 16(Section2),prohibitsForcedLabor(Sections79and82),prohibitsChildTrafficking(Section79),prohibitsCommercialSexualExploitationofChildren(Sections23and84),prohibitsusingChildreninIllicitActivities(Section 23), defines age of criminal responsibility, sets alternative care guidelines, prohibits forcedmarriage,criminalizestheabductionofgirlsunder16,andprohibitsdiscriminationagainstwomen.The Constitution of Malawi (2002) contains relevant provisions regarding children. The Constitution,throughtheamendmentact.ofthe14thFebruary2017,defineschildrenaspersonsbelowtheageof18(the constitutional provision on the age of the child was 16). The Constitution protects children fromeconomicexploitationoranytreatment,workorpunishmentthatis,orislikelytobehazardous,interferewith their education, or be harmful to their health or to their physical, mental or spiritual or socialdevelopmentinArticle23. WhileArticle25entitlesallpersonstoeducation,Article26prohibitsslaveryandservitude,forcedlabourandtiedlabourthatamountstoservitude.Again,Article27prohibitsforcedlabor.Finally,whileArticle30providesforspecialconsiderationofchildrenintheapplicationoftheirrighttodevelopmentandthereforeenjoymentofeconomic,social,culturalandpoliticaldevelopment,Article31providesrightofStatetowithdrawlabour.TheEmploymentActNo.6of2000prohibitsForcedLabor(Section4)andprovidesforMinimumAgeforWorkat14 (Section21) inagricultural, industrial,ornon-industrialwork,andexcludesworkers in third-party homes, such as in domesticwork, or non-commercial agriculture inwhich children are known towork.ItalsoprovidesforMinimumAgeforHazardousWorkat18(Section22).
PenalCode:ProhibitsForcedLabor(Sections140–147and257–269),ChildTrafficking(Sections140–147and257–269)andCommercialSexualExploitationofChildren(Sections137–138,140,142,147,155and160A-G)andcriminalizesassault,rapeandattemptedrapebutexcludesmaritalrapeorforcedanalsexofmalesandfemales.DefenseForceAct:ProvidesforMinimumAgeforVoluntaryMilitaryServiceat18(Section19).
62. Finally, the national code of conduct provides guiding principles to theState, employers, organisations, parents and guardians, children and thecommunityintheireffortstocombatallformsofchildlabour.Specifically,theStateandemployersshouldtakeintoaccountviewsandopinionsofchildrenin
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Nationalresponsestochildlabourandyouthemploymentconcerns 36
allactionsconcerningharmfulandexploitivechildlabouraswellasdiscourageuseofharmfulandexploitivechildlabour.63. The Education Act (2013) and the Gender Equality Act (2013) are alsorelevant toefforts against child labour inMalawi. TheEducationActprovidesfreeandcompulsoryprimaryeducationuntiltheageof18years(Art.13).TheGenderEqualityActprohibitsdiscriminationandpromotesgenderequalityandequal integration in the society; it specifically promotes equality in access toeducationandtraining.
Panel7. TenancyandchildlabourinMalawi
Thetenancysystemwas introduced inMalawi intheearly1990smainlytosupporttobaccoproduction.Withinthetenancyregime,tenantsandtheirfamilymembersareemployedtoproducetobaccoonaplotallocatedbytheleaseholder/estateowner.Tenantsenterintoan(oftenoral)agreementwithestate/farmowners,whoprovideland,loanagriculturalinputsandstipendorfoodthatwillbedeductedfromfutureprofits.Thesecosts,togetherwiththoseoftherental,canbegreaterthantheincomefromtobaccosalesandthencanleadtosituationofdebtbondage.Themajorityoftenantsareinternalmigrants(77%),whomovefromthesouthernregiontothetobaccogrowing districts in the Central and Northern regions. Recruitment practices are highly informal andexposetenantsandtheirfamiliestoexploitationandabuse.Mostofthechildrenworkfor12hoursadayormore,especiallyduringtheharvestingseason.Theycarryouthouseholdchoresandtietobaccoleaves,which involves sitting and repeating the samemovements for long hours, and expose to occupationalpoisoninglikelytoharmtheirhealth.Moreover,duringharvestperiods,childrendonotattendschoolduetotheworkloadandthesituationisexacerbatedbytheabsenceofschoolsneartobaccofarmsandbyashortageofteachers.
TheGovernmentinMalawihasspreadeffortstoprotecttenantssince1992andtheMinistryofLaboururinitiatedtheprocesstodeveloptheTenancyLabourBilltoregulatetherelationsbetweenthetenantsandlandlords.Sincethen,severalversionsoftheBillhavebeenadoptedandrevised.Mostrecently,in2012,the Tenancy Labour Bill was revised and includes provision for recruitment and contracting, and itexplicitlyprohibitstheengagementofchildrenbelow18years.However, children are still employed in tobacco estates and enforcement is a critical issue. Beyondwithdrawingchildrenandsending themto school,measures shouldaddress the root causesof childrenexploitationandeconomicallyempoweringtenantswillbecriticaltobreaktheviciouscycleofpoverty.
Sources:KnyongoloN.R.andMussaR.(2015)ArapidassessmentofthetobaccosectorinMalawi.InternationalLabourOrganization
CentreforSocialConcer(2015).TobaccoproductionandtenancylabourinMalawi.Treatingindividualsandfamiliesasmereinstrumentsofproduction
7.2 Nationalpolicies,plansandstrategiesrelatingtochildlabour
7.2.1 Nationaldevelopmentframework
64. The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy is the country’soverarching strategy for theperiod from2017to2022, the third-cycleMalawiGrowth andDevelopment Strategy (MGDS III). It reflects the extent towhichchild labour issues have been mainstreamed into broader nationaldevelopment plans.MGDS III explicitly indicates the elimination of theworstformsofchildlabourasastrategytoensuringagainfulanddecentemploymentfor all. It recognizes that aneducatedand skilledpopulationwill helpMalawiachieve accelerated economic growth and attain the SDGs; the MDGS IIIthereforefocusesonimprovedaccessandequitytoall levelsoftheeducation
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systems. It also calls for strengthening national child protection systems toreduce vulnerability, violence and exploitation. Key actions to achieve theseoutcomesinclude,amongothers,reviewingandenforcingchildlabourlawsandregulation, conducting sensitization campaigns on child labour and children’srights and building institutional capacity at all levels, including the traditionalauthoritycourts.1765. The National Employment and Labour Policy (2014-2019) providesframework and guidance to country’s efforts towards promoting productiveanddecentemploymentandenterprisedevelopment;compliancewith labourstandardsbyemployers,investorsandworkers;andsocialprotectionandsocialdialogue. Relevant priority areas of the policy include Labour AdministrationandLabourStandardsaswellasAgriculturalSectorandEmployment.66. Malawi has also undertaken a number of measures aimed at expandingaccess to education since early 1990s, when the GoM introduced the FreePrimary School Education (FPE).18 The National Education Sector Plan(2008-2017)providesa framework forqualityand relevanteducation toMalawians.Centered on improving access, equity, quality, relevance, governance andmanagement of education especially through improvements in early childdevelopment (ECD), non-formal education and formal education (primary,secondary, technical and vocational training – tertiary and higher education,the Plan addresses key reform areas including (i) increasing accountabilitythrough providing grants to schools; (ii) reducing the rural urban disparity inpupilteacherratios;and(iii)promotionofdouble-shifting.Aimedatadvancinggirls’ education, the National Girls’ Education Strategy (2014) tackles thebarriers that girls face in terms of participation and access to education. Itprovidessupporttotheestablishmentofby-lawswithlocalleadersandChiefs’Councils as a means for ensuring that all eligible children attend schoolregularlybyimposingfinesonparentsorguardianswhodonotabidebythesetby-laws.67. The Complementary Basic Education (CBE) Programme (2006 To-date,GoM, DPs, NGOs, CSOs) was piloted from 2006 to 2010with financial andtechnicalsupportfromGIZ;theGoMtookfullownershipoftheprogrammein2011asan innovativetool for improvingeducationservicesandopportunitiesfor out-of-school children and youth. The programbrings back childrenwhodropped out of the formal education system, thereby providing themwith asecond chance to education and ultimately reduce child labour. CBE targetsout-of-schoolchildrenandyouthagedbetween9and17years,whomusthaveeither dropped out of primary school for a period of one year beforecompleting Standard 5 or have never entered school at all. With the broadobjectiveofencouraginglife-longlearningandenablingchildrentoparticipatefullyinsocietyanditsdevelopment,thethree-yearCBEcurriculumincorporatesthe essentials of the curriculumnormally taken from Standards 1 to 5 of theformalprimaryeducation system. Thecurriculumalso incorporates skills and
17MalawiGovernment(2017).TheMalawiGrowthandDevelopmentStrategy(MGDSIII,16thaugust2017)18Theinitiativeallowedlowincomehouseholdstosendtheirchildrenwhocouldnotattendprimaryschoolduetobudgetconstraints.Primaryschoolenrolmentincreasedfrom1.9millionin1993to3.2millionin1994.Source:NationalChildLabourSurvey,2015
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valuesneededtopromoteself-reliance. Assuch,onsuccessfulcompletionofthe programme, the CBE learners have the opportunity to either re-integrateinto the formal primary school education system or lead a productive life byusing the livelihoods, literacy, numeracy and life skills acquired from theprogramme.68. TheMinistry of Education, Science and Technology is also responsible forimplementing Girls and Boys Bursaries for all public secondary schools,targetingdoubleandsingleorphans,andchildren fromextremepoor familiesandchildheadedfamilies.69. Targeted Support to School Meals aims at reducing drop-out rates,promoting regular attendance, increasing enrolment and improving children’sabilitytoconcentrateandlearnbyprovidingchildrenwithadailymid-morningservingoffortifiedsupercereal(LikuniPhala)porridgeeachschooldayaswellas providing girls and orphan boys in standards 5 to 8 with amonthly Take-HomeRation(THR)ofmaizegrainduringtheleanmonthsofJanuarytoAprilonconditionthattheyattend80percentofschooldays.Theprogamme,undertheNSSP)isimplementedbytheMinistryofEducation,ScienceandTechnologyinpartnership with Forum for African Women Educationalists in Malawi(FAWEMA),Mary’sMeals,WorldFoodProgramme(WFP)andwithsupportofDFIDMalawiandGIZ.70. Malawi has also undertaken a number of measures aimed at extendingsocial protection for vulnerable families, also of direct relevance to reducingdependence on child labour as a household survival strategy. The NationalSocialSupportPolicy(NSSP2012)outlinesthenationalstrategyinthefieldofsocialprotection,which isoperationalized throughtheMalawiNationalPolicySupportProgramme(MNSSP).TheNSSPaimsatenhancingthequalityoflifeforthosesufferingfrompovertyandhungerandimprovingresilienceofthosewhoarevulnerable.TheFarm InputSubsidyProgramme (FISP,2005to-date)aimsat improving access to improved agricultural farm inputs by resource poorsmallholderssotoachievefoodself-sufficiencyandincreaseincomes.71. MalawiSocialCashTransferProgramme(MSCT,2006To-date,DPs,NGOs,CSOs) is executedaspartof theportfolioof theMinistryofGender,Childrenand Social Welfare and with policy oversight and guidance provided by theMinistry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development (MoFEPD). Theprogramaimsto fightpoverty,hungerandstarvationandhelpultra-poorandlabour constrained households send their children to school. Beneficiariesreceiveamonthlystipendthatmeetsminimumbasketofbasicgoods,servicesand socio-economic amenities, as well as child education bonuses based onprimary and secondary school enrolment. The Malawi Social Cash TransferProgramme,locallyknownastheMtukulaPakhomo,begunasapilotinMchinjidistrictin2006andwasthenscaleduptoreach18ofthe28districtsofMalawi.By December 2015, it had reached over 163,000 beneficiary households. Arecent evaluation found strong effects of the program on children’s schoolparticipation across all age ranges. These effects do not merely reflectincreased enrolment, but increased regular participation in school (i.e.participation without extended withdrawal during the school year). Althoughprogrameffectsonchildren’sparticipation inhouseholdchoresandeconomicactivities are limited, the program results in increased engagement in
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hazardousactivities(exposuretodust,fumes,orgas,andexposuretoextremeheat, cold or humidity). A possible explanation is the increase in householdinvestmentinproductiveactivities.1972. Implemented by District Councils and with support from various donorssuchastheEU/EC,thefive-yearIncomeGeneratingPublicWorksProgramme(IGPWP)aimsatcreatingemploymentopportunitiesfor incometransferwhileat the same time building economic infrastructure through labour intensiveactivitiessuchasbuildingroads,treeplanting,waterprovision.Resultsfromarecent UCW evaluation20 indicates temporary positive effects on schoolattendanceandnoreductioninchildlabour,pointingtotheneedofamendingpublicworkprogramstomakethemmoreeffectiveinpromotinghumancapitalinvestments.73. The Malawi Social Action Fund IV (2014–2018) provides loans forcommunity development and social support programs, including workopportunities,skill-building,andcashtransfers.74. TheNationalActionPlanforVulnerableChildren(NPA,2015-2019)hassixstrategic objectives aiming at improving access to essential services byvulnerable children for their survival, protection and development and atbuilding the capacity of families and communities to help children realizingtheirfullpotential.Italsoprovidesaframeworkforthedevelopmentofdistrictimplementationplans forassistingvulnerablechildren.ThePlanbuildson thefindings of the impact evaluation of the previous NPA for Orphans andVulnerableChildren(OVC)andontheOVCSituationAnalysis(2013).21TheChildProtectionStrategicPlan:ThePlanoutlinestheresponsibilitiesoftheMinistryof Labour, Malawi Police Service and the Ministry of Gender, Children,Disability, and Social Welfare to coordinate efforts towards combating childlabor.Malawi has also a number of measures directly aimed at eliminating childlabour.75. The Child Labour National Action Plan (2010-2016) was developed totranslate previous policy pronouncements into concrete programmes andactivities and to ensure effective coordination of the various institutions andtheirprogrammes. Specifically, thePlanassigned rolesand responsibilities toeach government ministry in charge of implementing child labor policies,providedacomprehensiveframeworktoreducetheworstformsofchildlabor,and proposed concrete activities to support policies to combat child labor.Prepared through a very consultativeprocess, thePlandepictedpotential fordemonstrable positive impact on child labour as it targeted common andfundamental contributing issues of child labour in Malawi, including bothsupplyanddemandsidefactors.
19UniversityofNorthCarolina(2016).MalawiSocialCashTransferProgrammeEndlineImpactEvaluationReport.20DeHoop,J.,andRosati,F.(2016).Labourintensivepublicworksandchildren’sactivities:thecaseofMalawi.UCWWorkingPaperSeries21GovernmentofMalawi(2015).NationalPlanofActionforVulnerableChildren
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76. The project Together Ensuring Children’s Security (TECS)22, aimed ataddressing the child labour situation in its root causes, mainly poverty, byimprovingthegenerallivingconditionsofchildrenandtheircommunitiesin20villages.Itaimsataddressingthechildlaboursituationinitsrootcauses,mainlypoverty, by improving the general living conditions of children and of theircommunitiesin60villages.77. TheprojectARISEII23targetsChildLabourReductionthroughimprovementsin education services and opportunities; increased economic empowermentand social mobilization of tobacco-growing communities to combat childlabour;and improvedregulatoryframeworkand institutionaldevelopmentfortheeliminationofchildlabour.
Panel8. Coordination,implementation,enforcementandmonitoringmechanisms
Thenationalcoordination,implementation,enforcementandmonitoringmechanismsforthepolicies,plans,strategies,programsandlawsoutlinedabovetakesintoaccountthemulti-dimensionalandmulti-sectoralnatureofchildlabour.Thus,thelistbelowincludesbothindividualandcross-sectoralinstitutionsthatplaykeyrolesandresponsibilitiesinchildlabourinthecountry.The Tripartite Labour Advisory Council (TLAC): Representing the necessary political will and buy-in of business, labour andgovernment,theCouncilisthehighestcoordinationbodythatadvisestheMinisterresponsibleforLabour,YouthandManpowerDevelopmentonalllabourandemploymentissues.TheNationalSteeringCommitteeonChildLabour(NSCCL):Comprisingpolicymakersfromgovernment,civilsociety,developmentpartners,employersandworkers,itisatripartitepluscoordinationbodywhichprovidespolicydirectionstotheMinistryofLabour,YouthandManpowerDevelopment.Itisalsoresponsibleforpolicydirectionandbuy-inaswellasresourcemobilization.The National Technical Working Group on Child Labour (NTWGCL): Comprising technical officers from key interest groupsincluding government, DPs, civil society, employers and workers, it is responsible for the provision of technical backstoppingservicesandcoordinationofchildlabourprogrammes.TheDecentralizedChildLabourStructures:IncludeDistrict,AreaandCommunityChildLabourCommitteesandareresponsibleforcoordination,implementationandmonitoringofchildlabouractivitiesatdistrict,areaandcommunitylevels,respectively.TheMinistryofLabour,YouthandManpowerDevelopment:ThisistheMinistrywiththeprimaryresponsibilityofcoordinatingtheimplementationofchildlabourpoliciesandalsoservesastheSecretariatfortheTLAC,NSCL,NTWGCLaswellaschairoftheNTWGCL.Aspartoftheenforcementmechanism,theMinistry,throughtheChildLaborUnit(CLU),alsomonitorsandimplementschildlaborlawcompliancethroughchildlabormonitoringvisits.Again,aspartoftheenforcementmechanism,theMinistryalsoperformsinspectionsandinvestigatesalllaborcomplaints,includingthoserelatedtochildlabor.DistrictLaborOffices:Theseenforcechildlaborlawsatthedistrictlevel.
MinistryofHomeAffairs:Enforceshumantraffickinglawsandprosecutestraffickinginpersons.Department of Child Development, Ministry of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare: Provides child protection anddevelopmentservices.Child development TechnicalWorkingGroup: Focus on increasing resources for early childhoodeducation, infant health andnutrition,parentingskillseducation.Social Welfare Technical Working Group: Promote social protection mechanisms such as conditional cash transfers, school-basedfoodprogrammes,age-basedpensioninitiatives,mentalhealthresources,sheltersandsafehomes.DistrictChildProtectionCommittees:Coordinateallchildprotectionactivitiesatthedistrictlevelandimprovelocalcoordinationonchildprotectionissues.MinistryofJusticeandConstitutionalAffairs:Prosecutescriminaloffenders
22Theprojectwasimplemented(2002-2006)inNgalaandDwangwaareasofDowaandKasungudistrictsbyILO/IPECwithsupportandfundingbytheEliminationofChildLabourinTobacco(ECLT)Foundation.23AchievingReductionofChildLabourinSupportingEducation,2015-2018,ILO,JapanTobaccoInternational(JTI)andWinrockInternational
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7.3 Legalframeworkforaddressingyouthemploymentissues
78. ThelegalframeworkforenforcingtheprovisionsofthepolicyandnationalplanninginstrumentsthatrelatetoyouthabovedrawsfromtheConstitutionofMalawiaswellas international instruments. However,whiletheConstitutionofMalawi(2002)generallycoversyoungpeople,itisnoteworthythatitmakesnospecific referencetotheyouthas itdoes forothercategoriesofpeopleofMalawi that require special consideration such as children andwomen. Theoversight may be explained by the fact that most of the relevant provisionsregardingchildrenintheConstitutionalsorelatetoyoungpeople.Intermsofinternational, continentaland/or regional commitments,Malawi is signatoryto, interalia, theCommonwealthPlanofAction forYouthEmpowermentandtheAfricanYouthCharter.AsamemberoftheSouthernAfricanDevelopmentCommunity (SADC), Malawi is party to the SADC Orphan and VulnerableChildrenandYouthPolicy.79. Thelistofrelevantnationallegislationincludesthefollowing:• GenderEqualityAct2013:Providesforthepromotionofgenderequalityin
areasofeducationandreproductivehealth.• Employment (Prohibition of Hazardous Work for Children) Order, 2012
prohibits Hazardous Occupations or Activities for Children (Sections 1–9,andParagraph6,sections1–6).
• ChildCare,ProtectionandJusticeActof2010provides forMinimumAgeforHazardousWorkat16 (Section2),prohibitsForcedLabor (Sections79and 82), prohibits Child Trafficking (Section 79), prohibits CommercialSexualExploitationofChildren(Sections23and84),prohibitsusingChildrenin Illicit Activities (Section 23), defines age of criminal responsibility, setsalternative care guidelines, prohibits forced marriage, criminalizes theabductionofgirlsunder16,andprohibitsdiscriminationagainstwomen.
• TheEmploymentActNo.6of2000prohibitsforcedLabor(Section4)andprovides for Minimum Age for Work at 14 (Section 21) in agricultural,industrial, or non-industrial work, and excludes workers in third-partyhomes, suchas indomesticwork,ornon-commercialagriculture inwhichchildren are known to work. It also provides for Minimum Age forHazardousWorkat18(Section22).
• Technical,VocationalandEntrepreneurialTrainingAct1999:Providesforthe promotion and coordination of technical, vocational andentrepreneurial education and training as well as establishment of theTEVETAuthorityandEmployerContributionTrainingFund.
• PenalCode:ProhibitsForcedLabor(Sections140–147and257–269),ChildTrafficking (Sections 140–147 and 257–269) and Commercial SexualExploitationofChildren(Sections137–138,140,142,147,155and160A-G)andcriminalizesassault,rapeandattemptedrapebutexcludesmaritalrapeorforcedanalsexofmalesandfemales.
• Defense Force Act: Provides for Minimum Age for Voluntary MilitaryServiceat18(Section19).
• National Youth Council ofMalawi Act of 1997: The Act provides for thepromotion, co-ordination and implementation of youth development
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programmesinMalawi.ItalsoprovidesfortheestablishmentofaNationalYouthCouncilofMalawi(NYCOM).
7.4 Nationalpolicies,plansandstrategies80. NationalpoliciesbytheGoMreflecttheextenttowhichyouthemploymentissues have been mainstreamed into broader national development plans.Specifically, recognizing that youth constitute a significant proportion ofMalawi’s population, the thematic area of Social Development inMGDS IIIincludeda sub-themeonyouthdevelopmentwhich, in turn, again fallsunderthe strategy’s priority area of Gender, Youth Development, Persons withDisabilityandSocialWelfare.Recognizingthateducationiskeytocreatehumancapital and hence to socio-economic development and industrial growth, theMGDSIIIcallsforareformoftheeducationsystemtoincludeentrepreneurshipand skills development in order to improve employability of the youngMalawiansandreduceyouthemployment.81. With the overall goal of creating an enabling environment for all youngpeopletodeveloptotheirfullpotentialandcontributesignificantlytopersonaland sustainable national development, the National Youth Policy(2013)provides a framework that guides youth development andimplementation of all youth programmes. While the policy defines youth asthosebetweenages10-35yearsandcontainsstrategiestargetingyouthinages10to35,itallowsflexibilityinthisdefinitiongiventhemyriadparametersthatcan be used in categorizing the youth such as educational and trainingopportunitiesaswellaseconomicempowermentinitiatives.Thepolicyfurthercalls upon adults, guardians and parents to ensure provision of qualityeducationtoyouthandthetimetodedicatetotheirschoolattendanceaswellasprotectyouthfromexploitation,includingchild-labourandchildsexwork.82. TheNationalEducationSectorPlan(2008-2017)providesaframeworkforqualityandrelevanteducationtoMalawians,includingprovidingtechnicalandvocationaltrainingandeducationforyouth.83. NationalEmploymentandLabourPolicy:coveringtheperiodfrom2014to2019, the policy provides framework and guidance to the country’s effortstowards promoting productive and decent employment and enterprisedevelopment; compliance with labour standards by employers, investors andworkers; and social protection and social dialogue. Relevant priority areas ofthe policy include Youth Employment, Skills Development and LabourProductivity, Labour Administration and Labour Standards as well asAgriculturalSectorandEmployment.84. The Technical, Entrepreneurial and Vocational Education and TrainingPolicy(TEVET)promotes the development of formal and informal skills in thepublic and private sectors. It focuses on four priority areas as follows: accessandequity;qualityandrelevance; researchanddevelopmentandgovernanceand management. The Policy contributes to attain the national growthobjectivesthroughthecreationofskilledandcompetentworkforce.
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7.4.1 Programsaddressingyouthemploymentissues
85. Malawi has a number of programs aimed at tackling youth employmentissues.86. The Competitiveness and Job Creation Support Project (CJCSP)(October2012–November2017,GoM,ADB)isimplementedbytheMinistryofIndustryandTradewithatotalbudgetofUA11.18millionofwhichUA10million(US$15million) was ADF loan and UA1.18 million (US$2.7 million) was Governmentcontribution, the project aimed at contributing towards poverty reductionthrough sustainablepro-pooreconomicgrowthand improved socio-economicdevelopmentledbytheprivatesector.TheNationalLabourForceSurvey,withabudgetofUS$123,000,wasconductedunderthisproject.87. The Malawi Jobs for Youth Project (2017-2020, GoM and AfricanDevelopment Bank) is executed by theMinistry of Labour, Youth, Sports andManpowerwithabudgetofUA9.70million.Theprojectseekstoeconomicallyempoweryoungwomenandmenbypromotingentrepreneurshipandaccesstofinance,marketand information,developing technicalandbusinessskills,andinvolvingtheprivatesector.88. WithatotalbudgetofUS$50.9,theSkillsDevelopmentProject(SDP)(June2014 – June 2019, GoM, World Bank) aims at increasing access, marketrelevanceandresultorientationofsupportedskillsdevelopmentinstitutionsinagreed priority areas. Among other beneficiaries, the project targetsunemployed youth, students in universities and low artisans. The projectincludes carrying out a program of specific activities at the Technical,Entrepreneurial and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TEVETA) tobroadentherangeofmarketorientedskillsprograms.89. Malawi’s Action for Adolescents and Youth project, 2016, UNICEF: Theprojectprovidedfunctionalliteracyprogrammesfor5,000adolescentmothers.
Panel9. Coordination,implementation,enforcementandmonitoringmechanisms
The institutional arrangement for implementing youth policies, plans, strategies and programs involvesvariousstakeholdersatbothindividualandcross-sectoralinstitutionallevelsasfollows:The Sector Working Group on Gender, Youth Development and Sports (SWGGYS): Involving policymakers from relevant government agencies,DPs,NGOs, CSOand theprivate sector, this is thehighestpolicycoordinationbodyonyouthissues.TechnicalWorkingGrouponYouth(TWGY):Comprisingtechnicalofficersfromrelevantinstitutions,itisresponsiblefortheprovisionoftechnicalbackstoppingservicesandcoordinationofyouthprogrammes.The Ministry of Labour, Youth and Manpower Development: This is the Ministry with the primaryresponsibilityofcoordinatingtheimplementationofyouthpoliciesandalsoservesastheco-chairfortheSWGGYSandchairandsecretariatfortheTWGY.TheNationalYouthCouncilofMalawi:ThisisastatutoryinstitutionestablishedundertheNationalYouthCouncilActof1996to,amongother things, contribute towardsyouthempowermentanddevelopmentthrough the promotion and coordination of activities of youth organizations. It is an advisor of theministryresponsibleforyouthissuesonmattersrelatingtoyouthparticipationanddevelopment.The Decentralized Youth Structures: The Youth Technical Committees (YTC) is an inter-agencycoordinationstructureatdistrictlevelwhichworkswithalldistrict-levelstructuresintheyouthsector.DistrictYouthOffices: Thesecoordinate, implementandmonitoryouthactivitiesat thedistrict level incollaborationwithDistrict,AreaandCommunityYouthCommitteesand/orClubs/Networks
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Chapter8. ADDRESSINGCHILDLABOURANDTHEYOUTHDECENTWORKDEFICIT:POLICYPRIORITIES
90. Thischapterdiscussespolicyrecommendationsforaddressingchild labourand theyouthdecentworkdeficitdrawingon theevidencepresentedabove.Child labour and youth employment are closely linked, underscoring theimportance of addressing the two issues hand in hand, following a lifecycleapproach. The figure below illustrates key components of an integratedresponse.Asetofchild-centredpoliciesareneededtopromoteschoolingasanalternative to child labour, and, following from this, to ensure that childrenenteradolescencewiththebasicandlifeskillsneededforfurtherlearningandpracticalliving.Thisfoundationisinturncrucialtothesuccessofactivelabourmarketpolicies forpromoting improvedyouthemploymentoutcomes,and toensuringthatyouthsuccessfullytransitionfromeducationintodecentworkinthe labourmarket. This causal chain can alsowork in the opposite direction:successfulyouthlabourmarketoutcomescanincreasehouseholdincentivestoinvestinchildren’seducationearlierinthelifecycle.
Figure A1. An integrated response to child labour and youth employment problems
Transition from childhood to working life
Policies for promoting schooling as alternative to child labour· Ensuring access to quality basic education · Ensuring adequate social protection and
access to social services· Communication, social mobilisation and
advocacy · Ensuring adequate legislation as a
foundation for action
Youth employment (15-35 years)
Child labour and youth employment (15-17 years)
Successful youth labour market outcomes increase household incentives to invest in children’s education earlier in the lifecycle
CHILDREN ENTER ADOLESCENCE WITH THE BASIC AND LIFE SKILLS NEEDED FOR FURTHER LEARNING AND PRACTICAL LIVING
Policies for promoting improved youth labour market outcomes
· Skills development· Job search support· Entrepreneurial support and job creation
YOUTH SUCCESSFULLY TRANSITION FROM EDUCATION INTO DECENT WORK IN THE LABOUR MARKET
Child labour (5-17 years)
Policies for responding to child labour and the decent work deficit in the 15-17 years age group· Removal from hazardous work and provision of “second chance”
education and social reintegration· Risk mitigation in sectors or occupations that are not designated
as hazardous
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8.1 Addressingchildlabour:childrenaged5-14years
91. ChildlabourinMalawicontinuestoaffectalmost2.1millionchildrenaged5-17 years, or 38% of all children in this age group. These stark figuresunderscorethedistancethatthatthecountrymuststilltraveltoachievechildlabourelimination,andhighlightstheneedforacceleratedactiontoreachthisgoal in the nearest possible future. Child labour is a complex phenomenonrequiring a policy response that is integrated and cross-sectoral in nature.Evidence from Malawi and elsewhere point to a set policy pillars that areparticularlyrelevantinthisregard–basiceducation,socialprotectionandchildprotection services, public awareness, social mobilisation and advocacy –buildingonthefoundationprovidedbycomprehensivechild labour legislationandasolidevidencebase.
8.1.1 Educationaccessandquality92. There is broad consensus that the singlemost effective way to stem theflowofschool-agedchildren intowork is toextendand improveschooling,sothatfamilieshavetheopportunitytoinvestintheirchildren’seducationanditis worthwhile for them to do so. School attendance needs to be made anattractive prospect for children and parents both by addressing the costs ofschool attendance and by ensuring that schooling is inclusive and relevant.Providing schooling as an alternative to child labour is importantnotonly forthe individual children concerned,butalso for societyas awhole, as childrenwhogrowupcompromisededucationallybychildlabourareinapoorpositiontocontributetothecountry’sgrowthasadults.93. LevelsofhumancapitalareverylowformostMalawianyoungpeople,withrural and female youthbeing relatively disadvantaged, suggesting that schooldropoutisaseriousconcerntotheeducationsector.Evidencefromelsewhereindicatesthatonly58.5%ofchildrencompletedtheir4thyearinschoolandthenationalaveragedrop-out rate isat10.5%.24Femalechildrenareatparticularriskofdroppingout,duetoearlymarriagesandpregnancies.94. AccordingtoUNICEFandUNESCO,theeducationsectorfacesanumberofchallenges such as lack of qualified teachers, inadequate classrooms, andshortageofteachingandlearningmaterialsandpoorsanitationfacilities.2595. There is therefore need to improve school access and quality, within theframeworkprovidedbytheNationalEducationSectorPlan(2008-2017)andtheNationalGirls’EducationStrategy(2014).96. Ensuringaccesstoearlychildhoodeducation(ECD).Evidencefromarangeof developing countries suggests that early childhood developmentprogrammes can promote learning readiness, increase school enrolment andschoolsurvival,andhelpchildrenkeepawayfromworkintheirearlyyears.TheGovernmentofMalawi has dramatically increased the scope and coverageof
24UNICEF:https://www.unicef.org/malawi/development_15943.html25UNESCO,Malawi,http://uis.unesco.org/country/MW;UNICEF:https://www.unicef.org/malawi/development_15943.html
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essentialEarlyChildDevelopmentservicesinhealth,nutrition,educationsincethe1990s.26Freepre-primaryeducationisprovidedfor3to5year-oldschildren(but it is not mandatory) by the community or by private organizations.However, service delivery suffers from poor quality and the absence of anexplicit ECD law and corresponding budget is an obstacle to effectiveimplementation of established ECD policies and services. But despite theincrease in the number of children benefitting from ECD services, only 40 ofchildrenaged1 to5yearsparticipated inorganized learning (oneyearbeforethe official primary entry age).27 Access remains particularly difficult in somelocations,particularlyinruralorremoteareas,whereyoungchildrenmayhaveto travel long distances to attend school. The national Early Childhood CareDevelopment Policy provides the broad framework for national efforts inaddressingthesechallenges.97. Promotingeducationaccessandquality.Continuedeffortsareneededtoremove access and quality barriers to schooling for all children. Increasingschool access is a particular challenge at the upper end of the compulsoryschoolagespectrum.Tenpercentofallchildrenareoutofschoolattheageof14years,risingthereafter.Foremostamongthefactorsforbeingoutofschoolisdistance,togethercitedbyover42%ofoutofschoolchildren,andbeingtooyoung, cited by a further 36% of out-of-school children. School quality alsoremains an important challenge. As mentioned above, overcrowding,inadequatewater and sanitation facilities, poorly-trained teaches and limitedtextbooksuppliesareamongtheamongtheissuesaffectingthequalityoftheeducation received by Malawian students.28 Measures addressing schoolaccessandqualityfeatureprominentlyintheMalawiGrowthandDevelopmentStrategy(MGDS)IIIandintheNationalEducationSectorPlan(2008-2017)butneedtobeoperationalisedacrosstheeducationsystem.
8.1.2 Socialprotection98. The importance of social protection in reducing child labour is well-established. Social protection instruments serve to prevent vulnerablehouseholdsfromhavingtoresorttochildlabourasabufferagainstpovertyandnegative shocks. There is no single recipe for expanding social protectionprogrammestoreducehouseholdvulnerabilityandchildlabour.Unconditionaland conditional cash transfer programmes, including various forms of childsupport grants, family allowances, needs based social assistance and socialpensions,areallrelevanttoensuringhouseholdlivelihoods,supplementingtheincomes of the poor and reducing household dependence on child labour.Publicworksschemescanserveboththeprimarygoalofprovidingasourceofemploymenttohouseholdbreadwinnersandthesecondarygoalofhelpingtorehabilitate public infrastructure and expand basic services, both being
26TheECDsystemisguidedbytheNationalPolicyonEarlyChildhoodDevelopment(2006)andtheNationalStrategicPlanforEarlyChildhoodDevelopment(2009-2014).27MalawiGovernment.TheMalawiGrowthanddevelopmentstrategy(MCDS)III28UNESCO,Malawi,http://uis.unesco.org/country/MW;UNICEF:https://www.unicef.org/malawi/development_15943.html
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potentially relevant in terms of reducing reliance on child labour.Micro-loanschemescanhelpeasehouseholdbudgetconstraintsandmitigatesocialrisk.99. TheGovernmenthasprioritizedsocialprotectionexpansionandtheMDGSIIIcallstoscaleupsocialprotectiontocoverthemostvulnerable.Inparticular,it is planned to expand the Social Cash Transfer Programme from 18 to 28districts (covering319,000households).Results fromevaluationsof theSocialCashTransferandofthePublicWorkProgrammes,asdiscussedinSection8.2,pointtotheneedofamendingthemtomakethemmoreeffectiveinpromotinghumancapitalinvestmentsiftheyaremeanttoaddresschildlabour.100. These and other efforts, taken together, provide key protection forvulnerablefamiliesbutdonotyetconstituteacompletebasicsocialprotectionfloor.Furtherinvestmentisneededevaluatingtheirimpact,and,onthisbasis,extendingthemosteffectiveapproachestoreachallvulnerablehouseholds.29
Panel10. HIV/AIDSandChildLabour
MalawihasoneofthehighestHIVprevalenceintheworlddespitetheimpressiveprogressthecountryhasmadeinrecentyears. The Malawi Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment (MPHIA 2015 – 2016)30 showssignificant progress towards the globally endorsed targets of 90-90-90.31 HIV incidencedeclinedfromapeakof110,000/yearin1998to85,000/yearin2004,beforedroppingtoanestimated28,000/yearin2016,coincidingwithanincreaseinanti-retroviraltherapycoverage.The assessment also indicates that an estimated 979,896 people were living with HIV inMalawi, of whom 104,093 are children younger than 15 years old.32HIV prevalence amongadultsages15to64yearsis10.6%,withanannualincidenceof0.37%(approximately28,000newcasesofHIVannually)33,whileamongchildrenHIVprevalenceis1.6%.HIV prevalence remains higher among females than males in all age groups, and it isparticularly disproportionedamong the25-29 yearsold age group,whereHIVprevalence isthreetimeshigherforfemales(14.1percent)thanmales(4.8percent).34
EndingAIDSepidemicismorethanahumanright,italsorepresentsadevelopmentchallenge.Evidence shows thatHIV/AIDS strikesworking-age adults duringwhat should be theirmostproductiveworkingyears.Forchildren,oneofthemostdevastatingimpactsofHIVistheloss
29TheILOSocialProtectionFloorsRecommendation(No.202)of2012providesakeyframeworkforeffortsinthisregard.TheRecommendationsetsoutthatSPFsshouldcontainbasicsocialsecurityguaranteesthatensurethatallinneedcanaffordandhaveaccesstoessentialhealthcareandhaveincomesecurityatleastatanationallydefinedminimumleveloverthelifecycle.SeeILO,2011.Resolutionandconclusionsconcerningtherecurrentdiscussiononsocialprotection(socialsecurity),InternationalLabourConference,100thSession,Geneva,2011,inRecordofProceedings(Geneva,2011),No.24:ReportoftheCommitteefortheRecurrentDiscussiononSocialProtection.2011b,paras.4and5.Availableat:http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/@ed_norm/@relconf/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_152819.pdf.30Thechallengeofsustainability:TheimpactofDREAMprogramonthesocial,economicandworkingconditionsofpatientswithHIV/AIDS.ThisisthefirstsurveyinthecountrythatmeasurednationalHIVincidence,pediatricHIVprevalence,andviralloadsuppression.3190-90-90isanambitioustreatmenttargettohelpendtheAIDSepidemic.By2020,90%ofallpeoplelivingwithHIVwillknowtheirHIVstatus,90%ofallpeoplewithdiagnosedHIVinfectionwillreceivesustainedantiretroviraltherapyand90%ofallpeoplereceivingantiretroviraltherapywillhaveviralsuppression.32MalawiCountryOperationalPlan2017.StrategicDirectionSummary.April2017.www.pepfar.gov/documents/organization/272017.pdf33Malawipopulation-basedHIVimpactAssessment-MPHIV2015-2016,December2016.34Malawipopulation-basedHIVimpactAssessment-MPHIV2015-2016,December2016.
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ofoneorbothparents.Childrenaredirectlyaffected inseveralways.Theymay liveathighriskofHIV,theymay leavewithachronically-illparentandberequiredtoworkorputtheireducationonholdastheytakeonhouseholdandcaregivingresponsibility35.EvenifwehavenodirectevidenceforMalawiontheimpactofHIVpandemiconchildlabour,resultsfromothercountriesindicatethatchildrenbelongingtoHIV/AIDSaffectedhouseholdsaremorelikelytobeinvolvedinchildlabourtosubstituteforparents’work.Orphanchildrenareevenmorevulnerableandmorelikelytowork.36
An evaluation of the impact of the HIV/AIDS treatment administered by DREAM program37shows that the treatment has a significantly positive impact on the overall health status(basedonclinicalandvirologicalparameters)aswellasonthesocio-economicconditions.Inparticular, theevaluation findsapositive impactonproductivityand income,an increase inhoursworked (+25% in the lastweekonesand+31% in lastmonth).Consequently, incomegenerated in the last week increased by 85%, while income generated in the last monthincreasedby80%.
Source:AddressingtheHIV/AIDSpandemicis,therefore,essentialtotacklehouseholdvulnerabilities,whichareamongtherootcausesofchildlabour.
8.1.3 Strategiccommunication
101. Strategic communication is needed as part of efforts to build a broadconsensus for change. Child labour is a clear example in which both socialnorms and economic considerations are important, and strategiccommunication efforts need to be designed with this in mind. Householdsrequire information concerning the costs or dangers of child labour andbenefits of schooling in order tomake informed decisions on their children’stime allocation. But factors which influence decisions concerning children’sschooling and child labour can extend well beyond economics or workconditions. Cultural attitudes and perceptions can also direct householddecisions concerning children’s schooling and child labour, and thereforeshouldalsobetargetedinstrategiccommunicationefforts.102. Communicationeffortsareneededatbothnationalandlocallevels.Amixof conventional (e.g., radio, television and print media) as well as of non-conventionalcommunicationchannels (e.g., religious leaders, school teachers,health care workers) is important in order to achieving maximum outreach.Socialmediarepresentsanother increasingly importantcommunicationtool inthe context of both national awareness raising and global campaigns againstchild labour abuses. Baseline information on local knowledge and culturalattitudes towards child labour is needed to tailor communication messages,and toevaluatechanges inawarenessandattitudes followingcommunicationactivities. Providing information on relevant national legislation, presented intermsthatareunderstandabletothepopulationsandcommunitiesconcerned,isanothercommunicationpriority.Forgirlsinparticular,thereisalsoaneedto 35ChildrenaffectedbyAIDS,Africa’sOrphanedandVulnerableGenerations,August200636L.Guarcello,S.Lyon,F.C.Rosati,Orphanhoodandchildvulnerability,Malawi.UnderstandingChildren’sWorkProjectWorkingPaperSeries,September2004.37TheDREAMprogrammixesantiretroviraltherapywitharangeofcorrelatedservicessuchaspsycho-socialsupport,healtheducationandnutritionalsupport.
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educatefamiliesonwhatareacceptabledomesticchoresforchildrenandwhatare not.While doing light chores around the house can be important for thesocialization of children, research shows that children are working very longhoursinthehomeandhavelittletimeforrest,studyorleisure.
8.1.4 Socialmobilisationandadvocacy
103. Achieving sustainable reduction in child labour requires social consensuswellbeyondthelevelofthehousehold.Policyresponsestochildlabourarealsounlikelytobeeffectiveintheabsenceoftheactiveparticipationofcivilsocietyandofsocialpartnersinimplementingthem.Similarly,lawstoprotectchildrenfromchild labourareunlikely tobeeffective if theyarenotbackedbybroadsocial consensus. Social mobilisation is therefore critical to engaging a broadrange of social actors in efforts against child labour. Various social actors,including, for example, NGOs, faith-based organisations, teachers’organizations, the mass media, trade unions, employers’ organizations, haveimportant roles to play in a broader societal effort against child labour. TheNational Steering Committee on Child Labour (NSCCL), whose membershipincludes various Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs),civil society organizations, workers’ organizations, employers groups anddevelopment partners,has a particularly important potential role to play insocialmobilizationefforts.104. Several national and community advocacy and awareness raisingcampaignsaimedatsensitizingmassesagainst theevilsofemployingchildrenhavebeenconducted.TheFightAgainstChildLabourProgrammeimplementedwith financial assistance from the Norwegian Government and technicalassistancefromUNICEFhasbeeninstrumentalinintegratingchildlabourissueswithinthebroaderchildprotectionframework,thusnotonlycreatingsynergiesandeconomiesof scalebutalsoenhancing the impactof theprogrammesonchildlabourandprotection.AdvocacyprogrammeshavebeenimplementedbytheMalawiCongressofTradeUnionsaswell.
8.1.5 Childlabourlegislation,inspectionsandmonitoring
105. Achieving sustainable reductions in child labour requires a supportivepolicyandlegislativeenvironmentwhichisinlinewithinternationalstandardsand effectively mainstreamed into national development plans andprogrammes. This has the important effect of signaling national intent toeliminatechildlabourandprovidingaframeworkinwhichthiscanbeachieved.106. Whilesignificantprogresshasbeenmadeindevelopingacomprehensivelegal framework (see discussion in Section 8.1.1), this framework is not yetcomplete and discrepancies exist between national and internationallegislation,aswellasamongnationallegislation.Forinstance,accordingtotheILOConventionNo.138(MinimumAge)theminimumworkingageshouldnotbe lower than the age of completion of compulsory education. While theprovisionincludedintheArticle13oftheEducationAct isconsistentwiththeILO convention, the Article 23 of the Constitution protects children fromexploitationundertheageof16years.Likewise,Section21oftheEmployment
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ActNo.6alsostates foran inconsistentminimumageforemploymentatage14.107. Legislative gaps are also those relating to specific sectors: for example,inspections in private homes or privately owned farms are not in the legalframework for labour inspectionasprovidedby theEmploymentAct (Section21).Similarly,despitediscussionson the tenancysystem(used in the tobaccoproduction and exposing children to debt bondage), Malawi lacks legalprotectionfortenantsandtheirfamilies.108. Finally,Malawiwould go a longway towards eliminating child labour byapproving and implementing the already draftedNational Child Labour Policy(NCLP).109. The effectiveness of legislation in protecting children from child labouralsodependsonestablishingandstrengtheningmechanismsformonitoringandenforcing laws, including provisions for inspections and for the removal childlabourers to safe places. Expanding the Government’s actual capacity tomonitor formal workplaces remains a major challenge, and unregisteredbusinesses in the informal economy are largely outside formal inspectionregimes.The labour inspectorateneedstobestrengthenedsothat inspectorscan effectively enforce labour legislation and workplace safety standardsrelating to child labour. But given the extent of child labour and resourceconstraints,itwilllikelycontinuetobedifficultfortheformalinspectionsystemalone to be effective in protecting children from workplace violations. Thishighlights the importance of establishing effective community-based childlabour monitoring systems as a mechanism for identifying children who areinvolved or at risk of engaging in child labour, referring them to appropriatesocialservices,andtrackingthemtoensurepositiveoutcomes.
8.1.6 Improvingtheevidencebase
110. Effective and well-targeted responses to child labour demand a strongbodyofknowledgeontheissue,includinganunderstandingofhowmanychildlabourers there are, which sectors and geographical areas they work in, thedemographiccharacteristicsofthechildreninvolved,andthetypeofworkthatthey carry out. Despite recent national household surveys, data quality andcomparability are uneven and significant information gaps remain, affectingunderstandingofthechildlabourphenomenonandtheabilityofpolicy-makerstoaddress it.Betterdata isespeciallyneededonprogrammeimpact, inorderto identify good practices from the large number of child labour initiativesundertaken in the country, and, following from this, approaches with mostpotential for broader scale implementation. More evidence is also needed,inter alia, on the worst forms of child labour, recognizing that “the effectiveelimination of the worst forms of child labour requires immediate andcomprehensiveaction”,38andonchildmigration(in-countryandcross-border). 38Preamble,Convention182 -WorstFormsofChildLabourConvention, InternationalLabourOrganization,1999.
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8.1.7 Ensuringenforcementandmonitoring
111. Acritical assessment of the existing coordination, implementation,enforcement andmonitoringmechanism shows limited enforcement capacityduetoresourceconstraints.Moreover,coordinationofchildlaboureliminationinMalawihassofarbeendonethroughalooseallianceofstakeholders.112. Although Malawi has programs that target child labor, the coverage oftheseprogramsisinsufficienttofullyaddresstheextentoftheproblemandtotacklespecificsectors,suchasagricultureandfishing. Aboveall,theresourceenvelopislimited,withresourcecommitmentsandactualdisbursementsbelowtheresourcerequirementsinmostcases.Forinstance,whiletheprogrammaticresponse through the Decent Work Country Programme, whose preparationinvolved all relevant stakeholderswas commendable, the program’s resourcegapofUSD27million threeyearsafter its launchandstakeholdersare facingdifficultiesinmobilizingthenecessaryresources.113. National commitment and political will through adequate resourceallocations are critical for ensuring the sustainability of the interventions andprogrammes. In a context of limited resources, this implies prioritizing childlabourandthedecentworkagendawithinthenationaldevelopmentstrategy.114. The key legislative gaps in existing legislation will still hamperimplementationprogressevenwhenthechildlabourprogramsareadequatelyresourced. Some of the gaps promote piecemeal and limit comprehensiveapproaches for fighting child labour. It is noteworthy that piecemealapproachesare inconsistentwith themulti-layeredchallenges thatchildren ingeneralandchildlabourersface.Forinstance,whilethereisalegalframeworkfor labour inspection, including child labour, in areas such as commercialagriculture, the framework does not cover inspection in private homes orprivatelyownedfarms.Thus,itwouldbenecessaryextendingthecoverageofthe legal framework to these sectors. Likewise, Malawi a separate legalframeworkforthetenancysystemwouldhelpprotectingchildrenfromtodebtbondage.115. Thecoordination,implementation,enforcementandmonitoringfunctionsoftheMinistryofLabourareweakenedbythelackofanationalpolicyonchildlabour.TheNationalChildLabourPolicy(NCLP),developedbytheGovernmentincollaborationwithstrategicstakeholders,isyettobeapproved.39116. Likewise,giventhecomplexityofthechildlabourissue,thereisaneedtofinalize and fully implement key policies protecting children from the worstformsof child labor, including theChildProtectionPolicy, aswell asexplicitlymainstreamingchildlabourintorelevantpoliciesandplanssuchastheNationalEducationSectorPlan.117. This is suggestive of weak enforcement mechanisms for existinglegislation, particularly within the Ministry of Labour, Youth and ManpowerDevelopment.Finally,apartfromfinancialconstraints,theMinistryofLabour,
39TheNCLPaimstodeepenthepolicyenvironmentandprovideadequateguidanceandframeworkforchildlabour elimination. The policy will guide and promote sustainable interventions by the state, employers,workers organizations, parents and guardians, children, the community and others in their efforts toeliminateallformsofchildlabourinthecountry.
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Youth and Manpower Development suffers from weak enforcementmechanismsduetolackshumancapacityandstructuralbottlenecks.118. Finally, the access of child laborers and their families to existing socialsupport and services has mostly been indirect and limited to-date due toseveral reasons. Aboveall, importantnationalsocialsupportdocumentssuchas the National Social Support Policy and Programme do not specify childlaborers and their families as direct beneficiaries. In addition, the MoL’sinvolvement and/or membership in such important national structures asMalawiVulnerabilityAssessmentCommittee (MVAC)whichareverycritical indetermininglocationofservicesaswellasspecificbeneficiariesiseitherabsentorinactive.Further,theMoLcontinuestodepictelementsofweakcapacitytoadministerservicesthatshoulddirectlybenefitchildlaborersandtheirfamilies.Nowonder TEVET servicesweredisplaced fromMoL toMoESTafterbarely 1year,therebybringingbacktotheforetheMinistry’sweakcapacity.
8.2 Addressingchildlabour:adolescentsaged14-17years
119. Even though young people aged 14-17 years are over the minimumworkingage theyare still considered“child labourers”under ILOConventionsNos.138and182andnational legislation iftheworktheydoishazardous.AswesawinChapter5ofthisReport,childlabouramong14-17year-oldsisveryhighinMalawi,affectingalmost29%ofallchildreninthisagerange,or401,000childreninabsoluteterms.Childlabourersinthe14-17yearsagerangeaccountfor aboutone-fifthof total child labourersof all ages inMalawi.At the sametime, almost 42% of all 14-17 year-olds in employment are in child labour.Adolescentsaged14-17yearsarethereforeofcommoninteresttoprogrammesaddressing child labour and the decentwork deficit faced by youth, but theyhavenottodatebeenaccordedpriorityattention ineither.Whilethepoliciesarticulatedabove foryoungerchildrenarealso largely relevant for combatingchild labour in the 14-17 years age range, there is also a need for additionalpolicy measures tailored specifically to the unique challenges posed by childlabourinthisagegroup.
8.2.1 Removingyouthfromhazardousworkinorderthattheyareprotectedandaffordedsecondchancesforacquiringdecentwork
120. Ininstancesinwhichadolescentsinthe14-17yearsagerangeareworkinginsectorsoroccupationsthataredesignatedashazardousorwherethereisnoscopefor improvingworkingconditions,thepolicyrequirementisclear–theymustbe removed from thehazardous job. In these instances, it is imperativethatthereisaneffectiveinspectionsandmonitoringsystemforidentifyingtheadolescents concerned and a strategy in place for providing withdrawnadolescents with adequate support services and opportunities for socialreintegration. Community-based mechanisms close to where the childlabourersarelocatedareparticularlyrelevantinthisregard.121. Empiricalevidencepresentedaboveoneducationalattainmentandworkconditions indicates that school enrolment declines sharply as children enter
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the14-17yearsagerange,andmanyofthoseleavingtheschoolsystemendupin hazardous jobs.Options for reaching disadvantaged, out-of-school childrenwith second change learning opportunities includes mainstreaming (i.e.,providing returning childrenwith special remedial support within the regularclassroom)and“bridging”education(i.e.,separateintensivecourses,deliveredwithin or outside the formal school system, designed to raise academicproficiencypriortoreturningtotheregularclassroom).Secondchancepoliciesneed to take placewithin the context of a broader effort improve secondaryschooling access and quality, in order to make secondary schooling a moreviableandattractivealternativetohazardouswork.122. Forout-of-schoolchildrenwhosecircumstancesmeanthattheyareunableto re-enter basic education, experience in a range of countries suggests thattargetedpackagesofactivelabourmarketpoliciescanbeeffectiveintermsofproviding withdrawn adolescents (and other vulnerable youth) with secondchancesforsecuringdecentwork.Manyoftheelementsdiscussedinthenextsection of this chapter are relevant in this context, including vocational andtechnical training, apprenticeships, job search training and support, andentrepreneurialsupport,withthecriticaldifferencebeingthattheyaretailoredto the special needs of this group of particularly vulnerable youth. Notinfrequently,adolescentswithdrawnfromexploitativesituationsmayalsoneeda range of social services: emergency shelter, medical care, psychosocialcounseling,legalsupport,familytracingandassessmentandpost-reintegrationfollow-up.
8.2.2 Mitigatingriskinordertoensurethatyoutharenotexposedtohazardsintheirworkplace
123. Risk mitigation is a strategic option in instances where adolescents areexposed to hazards in sectors or occupations that are not designated ashazardous in national hazardous work lists and where there is scope forchangingwork conditions. Such a strategy involvesmeasures to remove thehazard, to separate the child sufficiently from the hazard so as not to beexposed,orminimisetheriskassociatedwiththathazard.124. The ILO speaks of this as “identifying hazards and reducing risks”.Strategies aimed at improving the working conditions of adolescent workersinclude various types of protectivemeasures: hours ofwork can be reduced;workatnight,ortraveltoandfromworkatnight,canbeprohibited;workplacepoliciesagainstharassment canbeestablishedandenforced;adolescents canbebarredfromusingdangeroussubstances,toolsorequipment;andadequaterestperiodscanbeprovided.125. Especially important in the context of risk mitigation is training andawareness-raising on occupational safety and health for employers and theiryoung workers, including on adequate and consistent supervision. Anotherpriority is the implementation of adequate monitoring mechanisms. Tradeunions, business associations, chambers of commerce, community
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organizations, social protection agencies – when properly trained and linkedwiththelabourinspectorate–canmonitorminimumageguidelines,thesafetyoftheworkplaceanditsadolescentworkers.40Riskmitigationshouldbeseenaspartofabroaderefforttoensurethatyoungpersonsreceiveequaltreatmentand areprotected fromabuse andexposure tohazards.41Theenforcementoflabour laws and collective agreements should be strengthened, and theparticipationofyoungpeople inemployers’andworkers’organizationsand insocialdialogueshouldbeenhanced.
8.3 Addressingthedecentworkdeficit:youngpersonsaged15-35years
126. The results presented in this Report highlight a number of challengesfacing Malawian young people entering the labour market. Levels of humancapital remain low for many Malawian young people, compromising theirfuture prospects. Seventy-six percent of young persons not in school haveeithernoeducation(9%)oronlyprimaryeducation(67%).Aboutfourpercentofallyoutharenotineducation,employmentortraining(NEET)andthereforeat risk of socialmarginalisation. Youth employment is dominatedby low-skill,unremunerating jobs in the informal economy offering fewer chances forupwardmobility.Underemployment,or “hiddenunemployment”, affects72%of employed youth. These results point to the need for active labourmarketpolicies42aimedat improvingyouth labourmarketoutcomes,buildingontheknowledge foundation acquired during childhood through improved basiceducationandpreventingchildlabour.
8.3.1 Skillsdevelopment
127. A variety of TVET programmes are in place in the country under theadministrativeumbrellaoftheTechnicalandVocationalEducationandTrainingPolicy(TEVET). Notable among them, beyond the public TEVET offered bytechnical colleges, are the Skills Development Project the Skills and TechnicalEducationProgramme(STEP)andtheWork IntegratedLearning.Theseeffortshaveledtoprogressintermsofincreasingaccesstotrainingforyoungpersons,butboththequalityandcoverageoftrainingnonethelessremain limited.The 40Itisimportanttonotethatwhilewearefocusinghereonchildren,neitherishazardousworkacceptableforadultworkers.TheILOConventionsonoccupationalsafetyandhealth(OSH)andonlabourinspectionofferprotectionforallworkers.Infact,nearlyhalfofallILOinstrumentsdealdirectlyorindirectlywithOSHissues.Ithaslongbeenrecognizedinthiscontextthatactionagainstchildlabourcanalsobeactionfordecentworkforadults.Inthecaseofhazardouswork,whereeconomicnecessityordeeplyingrainedtraditionblocksattemptstoimproveconditionsforadultworkers,itissometimesthecalltostopchildlabourthatcanbetheentrypointtochange.Eliminatinghazardousworkofchildrencanhelpimprovesafetyandhealthofallworkers–theultimategoal.41Arecentlearningpackagetosupporttradeunions,employmentservices,educationandtraininginstitutions,aswellasyouthorganizations,intheirinitiativesaimedatraisingyoungpeople'sawarenessoftheirrightsatwork,seeILO(2014):Rights@Work4Youth:Decentworkforyoungpeople:Facilitators’guideandtoolkit(Geneva).42Activelabourmarketpoliciesaredesignedtoimprovelabourmarketoutcomesforyoungpeoplewithinexistinginstitutionalandmacro-economicconstraints;thebroaderstructuraleconomicreformsneededtoreduceyouthunemploymentinthelongrunarebeyondthescopeofthisReport.
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fact that the majority of young workers are under-qualified for their jobs(Figure23)isevidenceofunmettrainingneeds.Ensuringtrainingopportunitiesextend to vulnerable youthwith limited levels of formal education remains aparticularly important challenge facing the TVET system. This group ofvulnerable youth includes those whose education was compromised byinvolvement in child labour.Access is alsoespecially limited for female youthandfortheruralpoor.128. This discussion points to the importance of continued investment inproviding“secondchance”opportunitiestoformerworkingchildrenandothercategoriesof vulnerableyouth foracquiring the skills and trainingneeded forworkandlife. Empiricalevidencepresentedaboveoneducationalattainmentindicates that such policies are particularly relevant in the Malawi context:manystudentsleavethesystempriortotheendoftheprimaryeducationcycleandmanyof thoseoutof school lack theminimumamountof school timeasnecessaryforacquiringbasicliteracyskills.129. TheMGDSIIIputsyouthattheforefrontofgrowthanddevelopment.Asfar as skills development is concerned, it focuses on improved access andequity in skills development training, improvedqualityof labour forceandenhancedworkforcecapacitiesandsupportivesystems.130. Therearealreadyanumberofsecondchancelearninginitiativesactiveinthe country, as for example, the UN Joint Programme on Girls education(UNJPGE) providing functional literacy and numeracy skills to both in andout of school girls. Effectively coordinating these wide-ranging efforts, andsuccessfullyextendingthembasedonneeds-basedcriteriatoensuretheyreachall unserved groups of vulnerable youth, however, remain key priorities.Integrating informal training and apprenticeships into the formal system isanother priority. Currently, the array of informal training and apprenticeshipsdo not lead to formal certification or qualifications, although NationalApprenticeship Programme (NAP) is aimed in part at linking informalapprenticeships with formal TVET institutions. Additional investment is alsoneededinevaluatingtheimpactofexistingeffortsandintracinglabourmarketoutcomes of participants, in order to identify the approaches with mostpotentialforexpansion.
8.3.2 Jobsearchsupport131. Thehigh levelsofskillsmismatchamongMalawianyouth (seediscussioninChapter7) issuggestiveofaneedforfurtherinvestmentinjobsearchskillsand in formal mechanisms linking young job seekers with appropriate jobopenings. Itwillagainbeespecially importanttoensurethatat-riskyouthareable to access these employment services programmes. This can be difficultbecausemost at-risk youth live in eithermarginal urbanor rural areas,whilemostemploymentservicesareofferedinmorecentrallocations.Onecriticismof employment services programmes elsewhere has been that those whobenefit from the programmes are typically more qualified and connected tobeginwithand thereforemore likely tobecomeemployed.Thispoints to theimportance of targeting job search support to disadvantaged young peoplemostinneed.
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8.3.3 Publicworksprogrammes
132. Thehighpercentageof youthwhoarenot in education, employmentortraining (NEET) and who are underemployed (see discussion in Chapter 7)pointstotheneedfordemand-sidemeasuresaimedatimprovingemploymentopportunities for young people. Labour-intensive public works programmestargetingyoungpersonsrepresentoneimportantpolicyoptioninthiscontext.Such programmes can provide both qualified and unqualified young peoplewith an entry point into the labour market within broader efforts to reducepovertyanddevelopruralservicesinfrastructure.133. TherearearangeofpublicworksprogrammesalreadyinplaceinMalawi,includingtheMalawi’spublicworkprogramoperatingundertheMalawiSocialAction Fund.43 These programmes do not explicitly target youth andopportunitiesforyouthparticipationinemploymentcreationprogrammesarelimited. This discussion underscores the need to effectively “mainstream”vulnerable youth into public works programmes as part of broader strategypromoting youth employment. Experience from public works programmestargeting youth outside Malawi indicate that adding mandatory technical,behavioural skills, financial literacy, or job search training to thepublicworksinitiatives can further increase their impact in terms of improving youthemploymentoutcomes.
8.3.4 Youthentrepreneurship134. Promoting youth entrepreneurship represents another importantdemand-side strategy for expanding youth employment opportunities andimprovingemploymentoutcomes for the largeproportionofMalawianyouthcurrentlyunderemployedoroutsideofemploymentandeducation.135. These efforts notwithstanding, there remains a number of outstandingpriorities for expanding youthentrepreneurshipopportunities, particularly forvulnerable youth. Priorities in this context include supporting anentrepreneurialculturebyincludingentrepreneurshipeducationandtraininginschool. Easing access to finance, including by guaranteeing loans andsupportingmicro-creditinitiatives,isalsocritical,asamajorstumblingblockforyoungentrepreneursisthelackofaccesstocreditandseedfunding.Expandingaccesstoeffectivebusinessadvisoryandsupportservices,andthecapacitytodeliverthem,isanotherkeyelementinpromotingyouthentrepreneurship,asisolation and lack of support prevent many potential young entrepreneursexperiencefromgainingafootholdinthebusinessworld.Theformationofself-help groups, including cooperatives, by young people would also allow forbetteraccesstosupplies,creditandmarketinformation.
43ThekeycomponentofWorldBank-GovernmentofGhanafundedGhanaSocialOpportunitiesProjectaimedatprovidingshort-termemploymentforverypoorandusuallyunskilledpersonsinruralcommunitiesduringtheoff-agricultureseason.Areasofemploymentincluderehabilitationandconstructionworksonruralinfrastructure,afforestation,amongothers.
MalawiINTER-AGENCYCOUNTRYREPORT|Addressingchildlabourandtheyouthdecentworkdeficit:policypriorities 57
8.3.5 Prioritizingyouth136. Theyouthsubsectorsystemsand institutionsatnationalandsubnationallevels in Malawi remain underdeveloped and efforts to improveimplementation continued in 2016. Specifically, UNICEF supported theGovernment to revitalize the implementation of the youth policy and of amedium-term sector strategic plan which comprehensively and holisticallyaddressesadolescentandyouthissuesforthefirsttime.Theoverallsub-sectorreorganization and prioritization were accelerated by the first-ever nationalyouthconferencethatprovidedapolicyframeworktoaddressissuesfromtheMalawi Youth Status Report 2016. Thus, it is fair to attribute the limitedimplementationprogresstotheunderdevelopedyouthsubsectorsystemsandinstitutionsatnationalandsubnationallevels.137. In addition, internal factors inherent within the implementationmechanismand the respective cross-sectoral bodies exacerbate the situation.Aboveall,thevariousprogrammesfacelimitedresourceallocationsinrelationto the magnitude of youth issues in the country. Given the nascent youthSWAP,oneofthemajorchallengestosectorexpansionandincreasingaccessofyouth to adolescent friendly services in 2016 was limited resources. Forinstance, while advocacy efforts by partners such as UNCEF resulted in anincreasedallocationrisefrom0.3percentin2012ofthenationalbudgetto0.6in2015/16,thebudgetallocationfortheyouthsectorremainedcomparativelylower than other sub-sectors. Consequently, at least US$4 million wasleveragedfromotherUNagenciesin2016.138. In addition, the legislative gaps cited above continue to weaken theimplementation progress, thereby promoting piecemeal and contradictoryapproaches foraddressingyouthemployment issues. Moreover,according tothe NYP, the national legislation lacks adequate enforcement and citeslegislationaffectingyoungoffendersliketheChildrenandYoungPersonsActaswell as the Liquor Licensing Act. In addition, despite existing provisions ofrelevant legislation,corporalpunishment,marriagesbelowthe legalageof18arestillthenorm,accordingtotheMalawiYouthStatusReportof2016.
8.3.6 Addressinglegislativegaps139. Article10(2)(c)oftheConstitutionwhichcallsfortheinterpretationoftheconstitution with due regard to current norms of international law ensuresconsistency of national legislation with international and regional youthcommitments. As such the domestication of the international conventionsensuresconsistencyofnationallegislationwithinternationalchildlabournormsthrough the process of initiating, enacting and implementing policies andlegislationintheinterestofthepeopleofMalawialsoasprovidedforinArticles7–9oftheconstitution.However,keylegislativegapsstillexist.140. Inconsistencies in the age definitions of children and youth among theconstitution (child<16years) and theNYP (youthbetweenages10-35years),LiquorAct(youth<18years),ChildrenandYoungAct(child<14andyouth14oraboveand<18)bringsconfusionandcomplicateseffortstounderstandthelink
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between child labour and youth unemployment. Second, the overlapcontradictssomeoftheeffortstoaddressyouthunemployment.Forinstance,the Liquor Act, which prohibits employment of young persons from anyactivities related to selling liquor, is indeed contradictory to these efforts.Finally,thenationallegislationlacksadequateenforcement.Forinstance,whilesomeofthelawscontainadequateprovisions,theyarenotenforced.ExamplesincludethoseaffectingyoungoffendersliketheChildrenandYoungPersonsActaswellastheLiquorLicensingAct,accordingtotheNYP.
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APPENDIXADDITIONALSTATISTICS
TableA1. Childemploymentandschoolattendance-age5-13(Probitregression,marginaleffectsreported)
(1) (2) (3) (4)VARIABLES ChildrenEmployment se SchoolAttendance se
Female -0.020 (0.013) 0.018** (0.008)
Age 0.096*** (0.022) 0.163*** (0.012)
AgeSquare -0.002* (0.001) -0.008*** (0.001)
Urban -0.008 (0.022) 0.022 (0.015)
Childrenbelow5yearsold 0.003 (0.009) -0.003 (0.005)
Childrenbetween5and17yearsold 0.014** (0.007) -0.011*** (0.004)
Familymembersbetween18and64yearsold -0.024*** (0.008) -0.003 (0.005)
Elderlymembersabove64yearsold 0.015 (0.019) 0.002 (0.012)
Femaleheadedhousehold 0.034* (0.018) 0.016 (0.011)
Headhouseholdwithsecondaryeducation 0.018 (0.019) 0.054*** (0.012)
Headhouseholdwithtertiaryeducation -0.088* (0.051) 0.012 (0.037)
Cookingwithfirewood 0.107*** (0.031) 0.029 (0.021)
Electricity -0.032 (0.021) 0.024* (0.014)
Pipedwater -0.086*** (0.030) 0.051** (0.021)
Quintile2 -0.051*** (0.018) -0.014 (0.011)
Quintile3 -0.065*** (0.020) 0.016 (0.012)
Quintile4 -0.059*** (0.021) 0.026** (0.013)
Quintile5 -0.078*** (0.025) 0.011 (0.015)
Center -0.039** (0.016) 0.009 (0.009)
South 0.051*** (0.015) 0.015* (0.009)
Observations 6,986 6,986
Standarderrorsinparentheses ***p<0.01,**p<0.05,*p<0.1 Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
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TableA2. Mutualexclusivework-studycategories-age5-13(probitregression,marginaleffectsreported)
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
VARIABLES WorkOnly se StudyOnly seWorkandStudy se Nothing se
Female -0.003 (0.005) 0.037*** (0.014) -0.017 (0.013) -0.015** (0.007)
Age -0.040*** (0.008) 0.085*** (0.022) 0.148*** (0.022) -0.109*** (0.010)
AgeSquare 0.002*** (0.000) -0.007*** (0.001) -0.005*** (0.001) 0.005*** (0.001)
Urban -0.006 (0.008) 0.023 (0.023) -0.001 (0.022) -0.014 (0.013)
Childrenbelow5yearsold 0.008*** (0.003) 0.005 (0.009) -0.004 (0.009) -0.006 (0.004)
Childrenbetween5and17yearsold 0.003 (0.003) -0.024*** (0.007) 0.011 (0.007) 0.007** (0.003)
Familymembersbetween18and64yearsold -0.001 (0.003) 0.022** (0.009) -0.023*** (0.008) 0.004 (0.004)
Elderlymembersabove64yearsold 0.004 (0.006) -0.007 (0.020) 0.012 (0.019) -0.006 (0.010)
Femaleheadedhousehold 0.005 (0.006) -0.015 (0.019) 0.029* (0.018) -0.024** (0.010)
Headhouseholdwithsecondaryeducation -0.014* (0.007) 0.018 (0.019) 0.031* (0.018) -0.038*** (0.010)Headhouseholdwithtertiaryeducation(a) -- -- 0.076 (0.054) -0.066 (0.050) 0.010 (0.028)
Cookingwithfirewood -0.013 (0.013) -0.098*** (0.031) 0.127*** (0.030) -0.016 (0.019)
Electricity -0.023** (0.009) 0.037* (0.022) -0.016 (0.021) -0.003 (0.011)
Pipedwater -0.052** (0.020) 0.091*** (0.032) -0.064** (0.030) -0.021 (0.018)
Quintile2 0.013** (0.006) 0.054*** (0.019) -0.066*** (0.018) -0.003 (0.009)
Quintile3 -0.007 (0.007) 0.077*** (0.021) -0.059*** (0.020) -0.012 (0.010)
Quintile4 -0.003 (0.008) 0.083*** (0.022) -0.057*** (0.021) -0.025** (0.011)
Quintile5 0.013 (0.009) 0.104*** (0.025) -0.090*** (0.024) -0.028** (0.013)
Center 0.006 (0.006) 0.051*** (0.017) -0.045*** (0.016) -0.016** (0.008)
South -0.002 (0.006) -0.039** (0.016) 0.054*** (0.015) -0.012 (0.007)
Observations 6,849
6,986
6,986
6,986Standarderrorsinparentheses.
Notes:(a)Thecoefficientfortertiaryeducationforthe"WorkOnlyspecificationwasnotestimatedbecauseoffewobservationsinthissub-group.Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
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TableA3. Wageregressionoflogmonthlywageonitsdeterminants,agerange15-35(OLS)
coeff. se
Female -0.435*** (0.089)Secondary 0.375*** (0.113)Tertiary 1.303*** (0.222)FemaleXSecondaryEducation -0.105 (0.156)FemaleXTertiaryEducation 0.061 (0.466)Age 0.318*** (0.064)AgeSquare -0.005*** (0.001)Urban 0.530*** (0.094)Childrenbelow5yearsold 0.016 (0.049)Childrenbetween5and17yearsold -0.082*** (0.025)Familymembersbetween18and64yearsold 0.019 (0.037)Elderlymembersabove64yearsold -0.127 (0.148)Center 0.100 (0.077)South -0.321*** (0.076)Constant 4.233*** (0.808)
Observations 2,700R-squared 0.211
Robust standard errors in parentheses *** p<0.01, ** p<0.05, * p<0.1
Source: UCW calculations based on 2015 Malawi NCLS
Table A4. Aggregatelabourmarketindicatorsforadolescentsandyouthaged15-24
LaborForce(employedandunemployed) Ineducation
Inactivenotattendingschool NEET
EmploymentRate
UnemploymentRate
TOTAL 85.5 49.3 2.9 4.6 83.8 4.0
Sex Male 86 57.1 2.5 3.9 84.6 4.0
Female 85 42 3.3 5.2 83.1 4.0
Residence Urban 77.3 48.7 5.4 8.5 74.2 7.9
Rural 87.3 49.5 2.4 3.8 85.9 3.2
Ageclass 15-19 78.6 68.6 3.7 5.2 77.1 5.0
20-24 96.1 19.5 1.6 3.6 94.1 2.6
Region North 84.8 51.4 2.2 4 83.1 4.9
Center 85.6 46.4 3.2 5.4 83.4 4.9
South 85.6 51.6 2.9 4 84.5 2.7
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
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Table A5. Percentageofinactive,unemployedandNEETaged15-24byresidencesexageclassandregion
Sex
Residence SexandResidence Ageclass
Total Male Female Urban RuralUrbanMale
UrbanFemale
RuralMale
RuralFemale 15-19 20-24
Inactivenotattendingschool 2.9 2.5 3.3 5.4 2.4 4.4 6.3 2.1 2.7 3.7 1.6
UnemploymentRate 4.0 4.0 4.0 7.9 3.2 8.1 7.6 3.2 3.2 5.0 2.6
NEET 4.6 3.9 5.2 8.5 3.8 7.2 9.6 3.3 4.2 5.2 3.6
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
FigureA1. Percentageofyouthinunderemployment,age15-24,bysexandresidence
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Male Female Urban Rural UrbanMale UrbanFemale
RuralMale RuralFemale
Total Sex Residence SexandResidence
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Figure A2. Percentageofyouthinunderemployment,age15-24,byagegroupandsectorofemployment
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
TableA6. Classificationofskilllevelsbysexresidenceandsectorofemployment
Sex Residence Sector
Total Male Female Urban Rural
AgricultureForestryand
Fishing Industry Services
Level3+4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Level4 0.2 0.3 0.1 0.2 0.2 0 4.4 0
Level3 0.1 0.1 0 0.4 0 0 0 0.3
Level2 29.5 22.4 36.2 30.6 29.2 29.8 51.1 22.5
Level1 70.3 77.2 63.7 68.8 70.6 70.2 44.5 77.2Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
15-19 20-24 AgricultureForestryand
Fishing
Construction Wholesale&Retail
DomesticWorkers
Otherindustries
Agegroup SectorofEmployment
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TableA7. Youthenmploymentbysectorandtypeofemployment(age15-24)
Employmentbysectorandtype
AgricultureForestryandFishing 77.3
Construction 1.9
Wholesale&Retail 4.5
DomesticWorkers 14.4
Otherindustries 1.9
Employee 7.6
Self-Employed 22.3
UnpaidFamilyWorker 70.1Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
TableA8. Sectorandtypeofemploymentofadolescentsandyouthaged15-24byresidenceandsex
Total Urban Rural Male Female
AgricultureForestryandFishing 77.3 43.9 83.5 79.5 75.2
Construction 1.9 2.2 1.9 2.6 1.3
Wholesale&Retail 4.5 11.7 3.2 3.8 5.2
DomesticWorkers 14.4 37.3 10.1 11.9 16.8
Otherindustries 1.9 4.9 1.3 2.2 1.6
Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS
TableA9. Sectorandtypeofemploymentofadolescentsandyouthaged15-24byresidenceandsex
Total Urban Rural Male Female
Employee 7.6 14.6 6.3 9.8 5.5
Self-Employed 22.3 20.4 22.7 20.9 23.6
UnpaidFamilyWorker 70.1 65.1 71 69.2 70.9Source:UCWcalculationsbasedon2015MalawiNCLS