Child labour in Nepal
The incidence of child labour in Nepal is relatively high compared with other countries in South Asia. According to the Nepal Labour Force Survey in 2008, 86.2% of children who were working were also studying and 13.8% of the children were working only.
| Year | Total | Male | Female | Area of Residence | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Urban | Rural | ||||
| 1996 | 41.7 | 36.1 | 47.6 | 23.0 | 43.4 |
| 2004 | 32.0 | 30.2 | 32.5 | 12.4 | 33.9 |
| 2008 | 33.9 | 30.2 | 37.8 | 14.4 | 36.7 |
| 2010 | 44.0 | 41.0 | 48.0 | 31.0 | 46.0 |
Most children (60.5%) worked up to 19 hours in 2008, while 32.2% worked 20 to 40 hours a week and 7.3% worked for more than 40 hours in a week. This trend is consistent in both rural and urban areas. In the 2003/2004 Nepal Living Standards Survey Statistical Report Volume II, it was found that the poorest consumption quintile has the highest percentage (18.7%) of child laborers who for more than 40 hours a week as compared with the rest of the consumption quintile. Also, according to Edmonds (2006) female children work more hours than their male siblings. In the same study, Edmonds states that the majority of child labourers work in the agricultural sector and in domestic labour.
According to Ray (2004), child schooling and child labour force participation rates are negatively correlated, as there is a trade-off between the two variables. Thus, an increase in labour hours would mean lesser time for schooling, and lesser work hours equals to an increase in time spent for schooling.