Getting children out of risky jobs
Friday, 12 September 2008
The government has announced to distribute Tk 10,000 to each of 30,000 children, who are engaged in different hazardous jobs. According to a newspaper report, the government allocated Taka 300 million to its Hazardous Child Labor Elimination Project for distribution among the families of these children.
We believe that this effort will certainly help, if not all of the 30,000 children, but many of them to get out of hazardous work in different sectors. The initiative came out of the government's commitment to gradually withdraw child labour from risky works.
But to withdraw the children from risky jobs, the government has to provide more support to their families. Giving them money cannot ensure that their parents would stop sending the children again to hazardous jobs. The families can misuse the money if they do not get proper avenues to invest it. It would mean they would get back to square one. Parents usually send their children to take up risky jobs because of poverty.
Under the project, these children are expected to get the opportunity for non-formal education and skill development training. But, it is also necessary to tag their parents into income-generating activities to overcome poverty.
Shahida Chowdhury
Mohakhali
Dhaka
We believe that this effort will certainly help, if not all of the 30,000 children, but many of them to get out of hazardous work in different sectors. The initiative came out of the government's commitment to gradually withdraw child labour from risky works.
But to withdraw the children from risky jobs, the government has to provide more support to their families. Giving them money cannot ensure that their parents would stop sending the children again to hazardous jobs. The families can misuse the money if they do not get proper avenues to invest it. It would mean they would get back to square one. Parents usually send their children to take up risky jobs because of poverty.
Under the project, these children are expected to get the opportunity for non-formal education and skill development training. But, it is also necessary to tag their parents into income-generating activities to overcome poverty.
Shahida Chowdhury
Mohakhali
Dhaka