Editorial
Working for Survival
Appalling lot of the ultra poor children
IT is sad commentary on the socio-economic condition of a country whose more than 52 percent of the children have to work for a livelihood. What it means is that these children, who belong to the extremely poor and marginalised families, have no scope to go to school, being able
neither to afford the time nor the money for that. This has emerged from a study conducted by BRAC Development Institute and Save the Children, UK, over a period of five years on the trend of child labour and children involved in economic activities in Bangladesh.
It is a bleak reality in country that is seeking to get more and more of its young population enrolled in schools. And this cannot bode very well for the future of the country given the daunting prospect that Bangladesh would have to contend with in the next two decades, when this group joins the ranks of the youth, with half of them, that are supposed to be contributing to the country's development and growth, remaining illiterate and virtually in the backwaters of national life.
Herein is a serious dichotomy for the government which it must address seriously and urgently. The issue is related to the matter of child labour and child rights which the government, as not only a signatory to international charters and instruments like the United Nations Charter on the rights of Child, but also upholder of its own laws related to child labour, cannot afford to ignore.
We are happy to learn that the government is going to finalise the draft National Children Policy soon, which we hope, will ensure that they are no longer marginalised, downtrodden and vulnerable to exploitation. And as some experts aver, the socio-economic and cultural factors that stand in the way of the elimination of child exploitation are removed.
This matter assumes special significance in view of the fact that the government is trying to make education at all levels, particularly at the primary and secondary, more inclusive and accessible. The PM's remarks on government's plans as related to the primary education under the PEDP-II is encouraging since it attempts, through various measures like midday meal etc, to encourage more and more enrolment in primary schools, which at present extreme poverty discourages.
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