Effects of Public Policy on Child Labor : Current Knowledge, Gaps, and Implications for Program Design

Dammert, Ana C. ; de Hoop, Jacobus ; Mvukiyehe, Eric ; Rosati, Furio C.

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: child labor;    education;    international labor standards;    human capital;    public policy;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-7999
RP-ID  :  WPS7999

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Many policy instruments can be used toaddress or affect child labor, even if they are implementedto achieve other objectives. From a theoretical point ofview, however, the impact of these policies on child laboris undetermined. This paper discusses the evidence generatedby rigorous evaluations on the impact on child labor oflabor market programs, conditional and unconditionaltransfers, and microcredit, among other social programs andinterventions. The study finds that although transferprograms generally tend to reduce child labor, otherpolicies risk increasing child labor, especially if theyaffect households' productive opportunities. Thefindings also point to knowledge gaps that should beaddressed in future evaluations. While progress has beenmade over the past decade, there is still much to learnabout the effects of public policy on the laborparticipation of many children in developing countries.