Child Labor in Peru

Introduction 

           Peru population is about 30 million, which are 42 of world rank. More than two million children and adolescents work in Peru. Peru is multiethnic country formed by the amalgamation of different cultures and ethnicities over thousands of years. Peru is rich in copper, silver, lead, zinc, and oil and gold. The country experienced an economic boom in the 2000s, and in 2011, Peru was said to have one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. The Peruvian economy, which is the seventh largest in Latin America, has experienced a structural change in the past three decades. Currently, the services sector is the main contributor to the country’s GDP, with nearly 60% of GDP stemming from this sector. Telecommunications and financial services are the main branches of the services sector; together they account for nearly 40% of GDP. However, the country still has a long way to go toward the modernization and competitiveness of its service sectors.

Body 

          The story is about domestic workers, many of the population see it as a normal step for girls preparation for marriage, and there are lots of girls age 9 to 15 work as a baby sitter, they work for 8 to 12 hours a day and some of them received nothing or only received a dollar or two a day, some of them were stay in and because of that some workers were sexually abuse and treated badly. They cannot enjoy their childhood because they are busy babysitting while doing the households, it means that they cannot play with their friends or hang out with them, they also cannot go to school because they don’t have time to go because of their works.

Conclusion 

            In 2000, the country established the legal minimum age for child workers at only 12 years old, the youngest minimum age in all of Latin America. In Latin America, one in 10, or 14 million, children work mostly in agriculture. The majority live in poverty. And according to the International Labor Organization, the problem is more serious in Peru. 28% of all girls and boys in Peru have to work for a living. The government wants to get the children off work and into full-time education. Farmers will be helped to boost their income by improving their crop yields, so that they will no longer need their children to work in the fields. Through support and education, the government hopes to persuade rural families not to send their kids to work. However, it also knows that getting rid of child labor will not be easy unless it can improve the income and employment opportunities for the millions of Peruvians who live in poverty. A girl who is a child labor in Peru said that government initiatives to raise the minimum wage and improve education are welcome, but they should get rid of extreme poverty, not child labor. “Working makes us more responsible and confident,” she also said. Peru aims to end child labor but in fact some see case for work. Peru’s labor ministry launched the project which it says will improve access to education in rural areas. Children should not work. I think that what helps children to fit in the society and be responsible adults is not work, but education. 

I’m not sure how to end of child labor completely, but education is the key to breaking the bad circle of poverty.

Thank you for reading:)