A recently released Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) report showed the Philippines has seen a drastic decline in child labor from the 2.316 million reported in 2007 to 1.344 million in 2017.
The youngest demographic, those aged between five and nine years old, saw the largest drop, falling 52.5 percent from approximately 120,000 to around 57,000.
The Labor Force Survey, the source of the data, was conducted by PSA as a means of supporting International Labor Organization advocacy in seeking equitable, inclusive, and sustainable development, which includes abolishing child labor.
According to a Department of Labor and Employment order, child labor is defined as any work performed by a child that subjects them to any form of exploitation or is harmful to their health and safety or physical, mental, or psychosocial development.
Last year, the Department of Interior and Local Government-Region VI named La Castellana among the “Most Child Friendly” local government units.
La Castellana Mayor Rhumyla Nicor-Mangilimutan noted the town’s reduction in child labor, health services for children, and daycare feeding program.
She added, the town has seen their child development rating rise to 98 percent./WDJ