Why Child Labour Exists

Why does a child work? Is poverty the only contributing factor to this practice? Few have already been indicated, directly or indirectly, in the preceding sections. However, an attempt is made here to identify and group these factors under major categories. The child labour could take place because of; (i) unemployment, underemployment and poverty, (ii) educational institutions and education system, (iii) indifferent attitude of parents and society, (iv) absence of any formal social security mechanism, and (v) misdirected spendings.

Source: Poverty Alleviation in Pakistan: Present Scenario and Future Strategy, Mohibul Haq Sahibzada. Republished with permission.