A key hurdle which is blocking the progress of primary education in Cambodia is the wide spread numbers of child labourers.
A report constituted by ILO, UNICEF, and World Bank states:
Children forced out of school and into labour to help their families make ends meet are denied the opportunity to acquire the knowledge and skills needed for gainful employments, thereby perpetuating the cycle of poverty.
More than 50% of the children, below 14 years old are forced to do manual jobs, thereby putting an end to their dreams of getting better educations. Most of these children are engaged in the agricultural sector but they are not paid sufficiently even for their work.
An estimated report states that nearly 90% of the children works as unpaid laborers along with the other members of the family.
Despite many opportunities provided by the government in the educational sector, the country has so far failed to enforce the child labour laws.
Via: ABC ASIA PACIFIC
