“Most of children in Armenia are employed in the agricultural sector, but some of them are working in small businesses, such as in car repair workshops, vehicle operation, construction; are collecting scrap metal and bottles for the purpose of selling them for recycling. You can see them in Yerevan streets selling flowers and paintings,” such facts are recorded in our country by the UN Children’s Fund Armenia office.
To their observation, although in 2006 Armenia has ratified International Labour Organization Convention No. 138 regarding the minimum age of child labor, and Convention No. 182 regarding the worst forms of child labor, however, many teenagers are involved in various activities ranging from shepherd’s work, ending with toil as worker in construction, and loader in trade.
Research has found that some children are employed without the consent of their parents. These children have come from families whcih are not covered by the family benefits system.
According to Armenia’s Demographic data and Health Surveys, generally, 4% of children in our country, aged 5-14, are engaged in child labor, and 4.7 per cent – mainly in family businesses.
The Foundation is suggesting the responsible authorities of our country’s social sector to create cross-sectoral cooperation mechanisms to identify and assist school children who often are absent from schools or are left out of school because of work. The United Nations, in particular, sees the solution of this problem through family’s social protection measures.
Lusine BUDAGHYAN
