1.5 million children in Colombia subject to child labor .

1.5 million children in Colombia subject to child labor .
Thursday, 23 August 2012 14:09 Courtney Scott

Colombia's government statistics agency said Thursday that 13% of the country's children are involved in child labor.

Colombia’s National Statistics Department (DANE) reported that approximately 1.5 million children between the ages of five and 17 were dedicated to labor activity in 2011, sometimes along with school and chores at home.

This is a large increase from the last poll that was taken in 2009, showing a 9.2% rate of child labor. According to newspaper El Espectador, 10.7% of child labor takes place in cities and 19.1% in rural areas, the majority of the labor occurring in commercial shops and agriculture.

Jorge Bustamante, director of DANE, said that most of the minors are also involved in household chores including running errands, going to the market, cleaning and maintenance. Allegedly, the principle reasons that the child population works is "to have their own money" and "to participate in the economic activity of the family." However, he also reported that 23% of working children don't attend school.

More:
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