DIPLOMATIC ACADEMY OF VIETNAM

ENGLISH FACULTY
---------------*---------------

ACADEMIC WRITING

TOPIC: CHILD LABOUR IN AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITIES

FINAL

Student : Nguyen Khanh Vi

Class : TA45C

Student’s code : TA45C – 093 – 1822

Lecturer : M.A Le Van Khanh

Ha Noi, 2020

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INTRODUCTION
Child labour has always been one of the most concerning issue that
illegally exploits children under the age of 18. According to the
Minimum Age Convention No. 138 (1973) held by the International
Labour Organization (ILO), the general minimum age for children to
work is 15 years old and 18 years old for hazardous work. Children
falling below this age limit will not be allowed to involve in any type of
work forcefully. But not all work done by children can be called as child
labour. Children’s participation in work that develop their self-esteem
and provide them with useful skills and experience, is usually considered
beneficial for their future. In contrast with “child labour", it is generally
defined as hazardous work that mentally, physically, socially and
morally harmful to children, it deprives children from their childhood,
potential and dignity (ILO, 2021). It also affects children’s opportunity
to attend school, forcing them to leave school early or try to balance
school attendance after an excessively long and heavy work. Child
labour will eventually lead to futher child exploitation, mental and
sexual abuse, and human trafficking.

A number of 152 million children are in child labour globally - 73

million children in absolute terms - are in hazardous work that directly
affects their rights, health, and moral development. (ILO, 2017). Child
labour in agricultural activities have been one of the most crucial and
oldest form of work but very common in under-developed and
developing countries, which includes farming (small, medium and large-
sized), fishing, aquaculture, forestry and livestock. The majority of
children participate in agricultural activities accounts for almost 71%,
which is almost one in ten of all children in the world (ILO, 2017). It is a
very concerning issue that the United Nation Member States have agreed

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to set targets in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to resolve,
related to goal 3 and 4 : promote good health and quality education, goal
8 to take immadiate actions to end modern slavery and human trafficking
as an essential step to provide decent work for all and secure economic
growth (UN, 2015). Children’s participation in agricultural activities
mainly due to poverty, limited access to quality education, tradition
attitudes towards children’s participation in agricultural activities. In
addtion, although they can earn a small amount of money for their
families but the negative impacts are more concerned.
Based on the aforemetioned reasons, the research would like to
focus on studying the following three questions:
1. What are the main reasons that lead children to participate in
agricultural acitivies ?
2. What are the consequences of child labour in agricultural activities
?
3. What are the solutions to resolve child labour ?

METHOD
Participants
There are 50 participants with different occupational statuses
including employee, student and freelancers, from 21 to 40 years of age.
All 50 participants answered the survey in English.

Material
A Google form formatted survey was sent to all participants to
answer 11 questions focusing on the topic such as causes of child labour
in agricultural acitivities, working conditions that affect children as well
as solutions to tackle the problem.

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 The survey was designed using factual, multiple choices and short-
answer questions in both general and core section of the survey.

Procedures
A survey was posted on the author’s Facebook and Instagram to
catch attention. All participants who willing to answer and give opinions
are welcomed to answer the survey via emails, Facebook and Instagram.
As soon as 50 participants were selected, the author closed the survey
and started to analyze the collected data.

RESULT
The following analysis is based and developed from the collected
data.

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 Graph 1: Reasons that lead to child labour in agricultural activities1
I have named out some reasons that lead to child labour in the
survey, the majority of the participants agreed that poverty to support
family income (88%), limited access to quality education (84%) and
children are considered to be more docile and easily managed than
adult (80%) were possible factors that lead to child labour in agricultural
activities. In addition, the percentage of agreement in child labour
perpetuate across generation and cheap labour were also very high, at
about 70% and 74%. It can also be seen as negative factors contributing
to the increase in the number of children in agricultural activities.
Trafficking of children (68%) and poor access to decent work (64%)
were recognized as nearly possible factors that lead to child labour.

The majority of participants said that child labour often appears in

rural areas, further information that they noted were families in rural
areas usually have more children (main reason) and a lower income level
compared to urban families, parents in these families typically let (or
force) their child to drop out of school early to work and earn living.
Some of them also mentioned that there is a big gap in the income
between rural and urban areas, because rural areas are less supervised by
the government and the people have to suffered poverty.

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What are the main reasons that lead children to participate in agricultural
activities ?

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 Unfairly treated 35

Work-related injury 43

Physical abuse 44

Be exposed to pesticides and harmful insects 41

Child malnutrition 32

Lack of education 38

Sexual abuse 27

Risk behaviors )smoking and drugs use) 30

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

Problems that children encountered in agricultural activities

Graph 2. Impacts of child labour on children in agriculture2

As can be seen from the bar chart, we can easily notice that people
are more worried about child’s physical health while they are working in
agricultural activities. Work-related injury, physical abuse and be
exposed to pesticides and harmful insects are among the highest
percentage that most of the participants agreed to be the major problems
of child labour in agriculture, occupied 86%, 88% and 82%. Lack of
education ranked after, accounting for approximately 76%. Only 54% of
the responders believed that children may caught in sexual abuse while
working in agricultural activities.
2
What problems can children encountered in agricultural activities?
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Promote improves technologies, practices and agriculture-related education for families in rural areas

Poverty reduction in rural areas

64%

54%
Stop hiring children below the minimum age

64%
Protect children from human trafficking

68%
Encouraging vocational training for adults and older children

68%
_x0008_Providing accessible and free education for children in rural areas

56%
Reducing barriers to school access

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

Not helpful Neutral Helpful

Graph 3. Solutions to tackle child labour in agricultural activities3

The question focused on asking participants about the solutions to

tackle child labour in agricultural activities. According to the survey, the
figures for Helpful option were comparable, at about 60%. An
overwhelming majority of participants chose Encouraging vocational
training for adults and older children and providing accessible and free
education for children in rural areas as helpful solutions to overcome
the situation, with each category equally registering 68%. Following
closely is Promoting improves technologies, practices and agricultural-

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What are the solutions to resolve child labour ?

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related education for families in rural areas with approximately 66%.
More than two-third of the participants believed that poverty reduction
in rural areas and child protection from human trafficking may also be
the solutions to tackle child labour in agricultural activities.

DISCUSSION
Firstly, the results of the survey were comparable with those
studies. Glory and Nsikak-Abasi (2013) pointed out that “child labour is
one of the faces of poverty”. Similarly, the participants seemed to agree
that poverty to support family income is the most possible factor behind
child labour. Children need to wok to earn more money to raise money
for their schooling and household supplement. Also, limted access to
quality education is the consequence of poverty, poor family tended to
keep their children away from school to work (Glory & Nsikak-Asabi,
2013). 80% of participants deemed that docile children is one of the
main reasons behind child labour in agricultural activities but evidence
shows to a strong link between child labour perpetuates poverty across
generation (ILO, 2021).

Additionally, according to B. Suresh Lai (2019), children are

exposed to accidental and other injuries at work. The majority of
participants also believed that children’s general health may easily be in
danger, especially injuries while working like cut, burns and physical
abuse that involves emotional maltreatment and corporal punishment.
Moreover, child labour in agricultural activities cuts children off from
schooling and health care, restricting their fundamental rights and
threatening their futures (UNICEF, 2021).

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 Lastly, the strategies to eliminate hazardous child labour involve
both downstream direct action and upstream government policies.
According to ILO (2021), prevention is the primary long-term aim.
Parents and government need to keep children out of potential risk and
hazardous work. In addition, parents must be able to see investment in
schooling as viable option for their children. Futhermore, providing them
with accessible and free education and vocational training are the options
that the participants and the studies also deemed as one of the most
effective solutions for children to get out of child labour in agriculture.

LIMITATION
The report is an educational and informative research. However,
due to the limited number of participants, the report cannot cover all of
the aspects surrounding this subject. Therefore, it is recommended that
further studies are conducted with various subject and more participants,
hence increasing the external validity of the study.

(1451 words)

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REFERENCES
B. Suresh Lai (2019). Child labour in India: causes and
consequences.
International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 8(5),
2204-2205.
file:///Users/vy/Downloads/ChildLabourinIndia_CausesandCo
nsequences.pdf

Glory. E. Edet & Nsikak-Abasi A. Etim (2013). Child labour in

agriculture among poor rural households: some issues and
facts. European Journal of Physical and Agricultural Sciences,
1(1), 2-5.
https://www.idpublications.org/

ILO. (1973). C138 – Minimum age convention, 1973 (No.138).

https://www.ilo.org/

ILO (2006). Tackling hazardous child labour in agriculture.

Guidance on policy and practice. https://www.ilo.org/

ILO. (2017). Global estimates of child labour: Results and trends

(2012-2016). https://www.ilo.org/

ILO. (2021). What is child labour? https://www.ilo.org/

UN. (2021). Take action for the sustainable development goals

https://sdgs.un.org/goals

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 UNICEF (2021). Child labour. https://www.unicef.org/

APPENDIX
Survey
Child labour in agricultural activities

Hello, my name is Nguyen Khanh Vi from class TA45C - Diplomatic

Academy of Vietnam. For the time being, I am working on a report on
“Child Labour in Agricultural activities” and I really need your help in
this matter by answering this platform.

Child labour in agriculture has been one of the oldest forms of work,
including hazardous work that mentally, physically, socially and morally
harmful to children, it deprives children from their childhood, potential
and dignity. In order to obtain information that supports the analysis of
the main reasons why children end up in child labour, the consequences
of underage children engaged in agricultural activities as well as the
solutions to tackle child labour, I would like to ask you some questions
related to this issue. Please feel free to express your opinion, your
responses will be kept confidential and reserved for this research only.
Thank you so much for your cooperation.

1. Select your age group

a) 15-20
b) 21-25
c) 26-30
d) 30-40

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 2. What is your current employment status?
a) Unemployed
b) Employer
c) Student
d) Freelance

3. Is child labour common in your country?

a) Yes
b) No
c) I don’t know

4. Do you know the legal minimum age for children to be employed?

a) 14
b) 15
c) 16
d) 17
e) I do not know 

5. In your opinion, in which area is child labour often seen?

a) Rural area
b) Urban area

6. Why do you think there are big differences between rural and
urban areas? Please specify your answer

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 7. What are the main reasons that lead children to participate in
agricultural activies according to your level of agreement (1:
Agree, 2: neutral, 3: disagree)
a. Poverty: support family income
b. Limited access to quality education
c. Child labour perpetuate across generation in agriculture
d. Migrant and refugee children uprooted by conflict and
disaster
e. Children Trafficking
f. Poor access to decent work
g. Cheap labour
h. The ability to learn quickly
i. Children are considered to be more docile and easily
managed than adult

8. Do you think that the working environment is safe and healthy for
children? 
a) Very healthy
b) Generally healthy
c) Neutral
d) Generally unhealthy
e) Very unhealthy

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 9. What problems can children encountered in child labour in
agriculture?
a. Unfairly treated
b. Work-related injury (cut, burn, infection, illness…)
c. Physical abuse
d. Be exposed to pesticides and harmful insects for a long time
cause brain issues and lung issues
e. Child malnutrition
f. Lack of education (illiterate)
g. Sexual abuse
h. Risk behaviors (smoking, drugs use,...)

10. What are the solutions to resolve child labour according to your
rank of helpfulness (1: not helpful, 2: neutral, 3: helpful,)
a. Reducing barriers to school access
b. Providing accessible and free education for children in rural
areas
c. Encouraging vocational training for adults and older
children
d. Protect children from human trafficking
e. Stop hiring children below the minimum age
f. Poverty reduction in rural areas
g. Increase decent work
h. Promote improved technologies, practices and agriculture-
related education for families in rural areas

11. Is there any question you would want to give to the author of this
survey?

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