Exploring the Socioǧeconomic Determinants of Child Labor Exploitation, Gondar, North West Ethiopia

Vol 4, Issue 3, 2016 ISSN - 2347-5544 Research Article EXPLORING THE SOCIOǧECONOMIC DETERMINANTS OF CHILD LABOR EXPLOITATION, GONDAR, NORTH WEST ETHIOPIA KELEMU FENTA GEBEYEHU1*, ALEMAYEHU MULAT2, BEWKETU DEREJE3, MASTEWAL ABAWA4 1Department of Sociology, Gondar University, Gondar, Ethiopia. 2Department of Sociology, Debremarkos University, Debre Marqos, Ethiopia. 3Department of Sociology, Wolayita Sodo University, Wolayta Sodo, Ethiopia. 4Department of Psychology, Gondar University, Gondar, Ethiopia. Email: [email protected] Received: 23 May 2016, Revised and Accepted: 24 May 2016 ABSTRACT Objective: The issue of child labor abuse and exploitation becomes a serious problem at local, national and international level, and in our context, children are engaged in laborious and seriously exploitative working condition due to various socio-economic challenges. Hence, the main objective of this study was conducted to explore the major socio-economic determinants of child labor exploitation in Gondar town in the case of Arada area. Methods: In doing this, we have employed mixed research method of survey for quantitative and key informant interview for qualitative research methods. The data were collected from 25 respondents (20 children, 2 residents, and 3 non-governmental organizations) which were taken from purposively selected area. Results: The data collected revealed that parental and communal positive attitude toward child labor, low educational status of their family, poverty, early marriage, divorce, lack of community awareness toward child rights, and illegitimacy of child labor, death of parents, migration and the presence of abusive working condition at home is the major socio-economic determinants of child labor exploitation in the study area. Conclusion: Child labor exploitation is the result of various socio-economic situations of children themselves, their families and the surrounding community. Keywords: Child labor Exploitation, Socio-economic determinants, Mixed Approach and Child. INTRODUCTION Employing children for their labor is commonly practicing in the capital and different provincial areas of Ethiopia. Among different regional Both in developed and developing nations, children face different places Gondar with its neighborhood rural areas, is the one in which menaces that potentially harm their social, physical, psychological, the practice of child labor is prevailing in the form of written agreement and behavioral developments [1]. In developing countries like between child’s parents and the employer [5]. This is because the social Ethiopia problems of poverty, malnutrition, and social instability, value attached to children is considered as an instrument to meet the or disorder create problems of far-reaching impacts for the proper economic needs of households, and poverty leads children to engage in utilization of children as a resource requires, at a minimum adequate work above their capacity and for longer hours, and in an environment provision of health, education and child and family welfare services. which brings danger to their physical, social, and psychological health. For those poor nations, these provisions are hardly existent and children at a high degree of risk with regard to their welfare and According to Addisu [1], in Gulele subcity of Addis Ababa, child labor overall development [1]. abuse is caused by poverty, unemployment of parents, migration, the education system, HIV/AIDS and family disintegration, and affect More specifically, in the developing world where Ethiopia belongs children’s health, physical, psychological and intellectual developments. to have the largest bulk of child laborers. Child labor refers to labor In North Gondar in general and in Gondar town in particular, there are performed by a child who is under the minimum age of 18 years which reports of exploitation and abusive activities on children in various specified in a national legislation for the kind of work and labor that ways like labor, sexual, and mental. jeopardizes the physical, mental or moral well-being of child [2]. Child labor was first conceptualized as a social problem during To protect children from hazardous work and working conditions industrialization in Great Britain and the reason was related to the governments and international organizations like UN and ILO provide need of cheep unskilled labor factors and new moral concerns about law of activities and in what type of activities they have to participate child labor (ibid) [2]. child, irresponsible parent and marriage breakdown. However, the problem usually is that governments of countries who have the problem It is usually assumed that child labor abuses and exploitation in of child labor are not able to give adequate funding for watching over contemporary industrialized or post-industrialized society do not places where children work [6]. work and that child labor abuse is a problem in developing world and majority of them are engaged in all forms of work, in shop, in agriculture, Although the above studies and efforts explain child labor exploitation, in factories, marketplace, street corner and household which are they did not show the specific determinant factors of child labor extremely dangerous situation exploitative and abusive condition [3]. exploitation comprehensively at the local context. Therefore, this research claims its own uniqueness due to the reason that it is an The 1995 ILO estimate indicated that two-three hundred million initial scientific attempt that assesses the determinants of child labor children are in laborious employment around the world, a third of exploitation in Gondar town. Thus, this research was done to fill this was the share of Africa – the largest proportion in the developing those gaps through exploring the major determinants of child labor world [4]. exploitation in Gondar town in the case of Arada area via addressing Gebeyehu et al. Innovare Journal of Social Sciences, Vol 4, Issue 3, 2016, 3-6 the following research question; what are, family and community- RESULTS related factors that cause children to engage in laborious work? What are the potential socio-economic factors that force children to engage Parental conditions and community attitude on child labor in laborious work? exploitation Table 2 indicates respondents’ parental employment condition. METHODS Accordingly, self-employed fathers accounted 35%; informally employed constitute 10%; formal employed in governmental sectors accounted Study design only 5%, and 2 respondent children’s fathers are unemployed. The study was cross-sectional mixed (quantitative and qualitative) research which was completed in 4 consecutive months from February Table 2 also shows employment condition of mother of respondent up to May. From quantitative census survey method was used to get data, child laborers. As the Table 2 shows, 7 (35%) of children’s mothers are with little cost and short period of time, from children who are working in self-employed; whereas, 1 (5%) of children’s mother are informally laborious working conditions. From qualitative key informant, interview employed, besides unemployed and other cases like death and working methods were employed to get rich, detail, and qualitative information in marginal works such as baking Enjera, spinning cotton and daily on the issue-child labor exploitation from local residents and concerned work together accounted about 60%. non-governmental organizations. In terms of its purpose, the study was descriptive to understand the existing problem in detail. From this Table 2, it can be deduced that majority of parents of working children are either self-employed in their own farms since most of Study area laboring children are from surrounding rural areas, or engaging The research was conducted in Gondar town around Arada area, where in marginal and low-income generating jobs. Moreover, there are the bus station and marketplaces are actual places where contact with also unemployed parents specially mothers of child laborers which informant children was made. Here, the respondents of the study accounted 30% of cases. were children who are working as a shoeshine, children who sell gum, bread, kolo, soft, newspaper (venders) or petty traders, and children Table 3 indicates the education level of respondents’ father in which who carry baggage and different commodities in the bus station and illiteracy accounted 45%; 6 (30%) of respondents fathers are in marketplaces (porters). elementary level; and junior secondary and higher secondary school, Sampling techniques respectively, accounted 5% and 10%. The study used both non-probability and probability sampling techniques specifically purposive and simple random sampling Table 3 also shows the education level of respondents’ mother and techniques, respectively, were used to select appropriate informants illiteracy accounted about 50%, whereas, 35% of them are within the from the study areas (child laborers) and key informants from local elementary level and 15% are in other cases. residents and non-governmental institutions. Table 3 indicates those respondents’ parents are mainly illiterate in Sample size which their fathers and mothers, respectively, accounted 45% and The study was conducted based on 20 children who were selected mothers’ 50%. In addition, the 2nd highest proportion is an elementary with census survey method and the remaining 5 are key informants level which accounted 30% of fathers and 35% mothers. Therefore, it taken from the community members

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