The Place of Child Labour within the Framework of Economic

Development in Cameroon
By Nyanshi Mbua
Introduction
Labour forms the backbone of economic development of countries. Theorists and scholars like
Karl Marx have given it a central role in production. Among the factors of production, labour
stands out as an element that other factors of production rely on. If a country must develop, a
proper look needs to be given to its labour force, for a skilled, sane and intelligent labour force
takes a country up the development ladder.
Nonetheless, despite the strength labour has in vitalising the economy, child labour constitutes a
huge part of the labour force in many countries. Based on the data estimates of child labour trends
of 2012-2016, from the International Labour Organization (ILO), there are about 152 million child
labourers (aged 5-17) in the world; 75 million work in hazardous conditions often termed as worst
forms of child labour. Some of these worst forms of child labour manifest in drug trafficking,
prostitution, armed conflict, pornography, and other illicit activities.
Africa with its numerous economic challenges has been affected by child labour. ILO’s Statistical
Information and Monitoring Program on Child Labour (SIMPOC) in 2002 reported that, sub-
Saharan Africa has 23% of economically active children. According to ILO estimates of child
labour trends of 2012-2016, it is the highest region with the prevalence of child labour, with 19.6%
followed by Asia and the Pacific with 7.4%. The Maplecroft1 Map on the Global Crisis on Child
labour supports these facts, as it exhibits Africa as a red zone. Some scholars have qualified child
labour in Africa as a cultural problem and unique to developing countries. But can one actually
concur to this?

In sub-Saharan Africa, it is widely believed that Cameroon is one of those countries whose
economy has been hugely impacted by child labour. Considering that the country finds itself in a
transit point with conflict stricken countries in Central and West Africa, it sometimes serves as a
source, transit point and even destination for child labour. Agriculture, manufacturing and services
in the country, have had an overwhelming usage of this labour force. Cameroon’s National
Institute of Statistics in a study in 2007 stated that, 40% of children aged 6 to14 are victims of
worst forms of child labour in Cameroon.

However, enormous efforts have been made institutionally and normatively by state and non-state
actors in the fight against this practice in the country. Despite these efforts, the practice still
continues. The bone of contention thereof, is to examine the current tides of child labour in the
country through a proper research and assess the impact it has on the economy of the country

1
Maplecroft is a British consulting firm
Research Goals
 This Research seeks to bring out contemporary facts on child labour in the country and
prudently analyze the impact it has on the economy.
 To showcase in details normative and institutional frameworks of child labour in the
country
 To analyze the motivating factors of Child Labour in Cameroon. The research will
particularly dwell on parental, consumer and institutional factors that promote child labour
in the country.
 To bring out short and long term consequences of Child labour in the economy by
analyzing health, education and psychological impacts of child labour on children vis-à-
vis its effects on the economy.

Main Research Question

 To what extent does child labour affect the economy of Cameroon?

Secondary research Question

 How does child labour affect the economy of Cameroon?

Main Hypothesis

 Child labour is significantly used in the economy of Cameroon, and it affects the economy
negatively.

Sub Hypothesis

 Child labour promotes unskilled labour and exploitation which is detrimental to the
economy

Implementation or Research Methodology

a. Data collection: Qualitative and quantitative Research.
A mixed research method was utilised. Interviews were conducted with national and international
stakeholders in the domain of child labour or other related fields. Focus groups were made use of.
These focus groups were in Yaoundé and Douala. Observation was one of the key methods used
in collecting data for this study. A handful of questionnaires were equally employed to test specific
indicators on education, health and psychology.
A good proportion of secondary data was used.
 b. Method of Data Analysis
Content analysis and survey were used. The content analysis was employed to guide us as we
analyze all primary and secondary data, with the objective of extracting useful information; be it
from reports, publications, interviews and participatory observation. Data collected from survey
was treated; that is to say, it was coded with a code guide developed for the task. Data entry
followed suit on the latest SPSS programme. The aftermath of data entry was cleaning, which was
proceeded by statistical running in the light of frequencies and cross tabulation.

Understanding Child Labour and Child Work

The notion of child labour and child work have often been confused. A lot of people tend to read
child labour as child work, especially in Africa. In Cameroon particularly, a line needs to be drawn
between these two distinct concepts.

According to the International Labour Organisation, Child labour is work that deprives children of
their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental
development. ILO list some elements of child labour;

- Mentally, physically, socially and morally dangerous and harmful to children; and
- Interferes with their schooling by:
- Depriving them of the opportunity to attend school;
- Obliging them to leave school prematurely; or
- Require them to attempt to combine school attendance with excessively long and heavy
work

ILO Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour, 1999 (No. 182) Article 3, defines The Worst
Forms of Child Labour (WFCL) to be:
- all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of
children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including forced or
compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict;

- the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of
pornography or for pornographic performances;

- the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the
production and trafficking of drugs, as defined in the relevant international treaties;

- work, which by its nature, or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm
the health, safety or morals of children.
The framework which sets the scope of child labour is the International labour Organisation
Conventions on the Minimum Age of Employment, 1973 (No. 138), and the ILO Convention on
the Worst Forms of Child Labour, 1999 (No. 182). ILO Convention No. 138 article 2 paragraph
3, demands from States to institute a minimum working age, which should not be below the age
for finishing compulsory schooling (primary education), and it should not be below 15 years.
However, paragraph 4 of article 2 of this Convention gives room for flexibility, granting States the
freedom to cut down the minimum working age to 14, if their “economy and educational facilities
are insufficiently developed.” Article 3 paragraph 1, sets 18 years as minimum age for hazardous
work, which is capable of jeopardizing the health, safety or morals of a child. Children at 12 and
older may do light work. Nonhazardous work is allowed for children of 15 and older.

Cameroon Labour Law states that no child shall be employed in an enterprise, even as an
apprentice before the age of 14 years, except as otherwise authorized by an Order of the Minister
of Labour, taking account of local conditions and the jobs which the children may be asked to do.

Child work, on the other hand, is light work done by children that is healthy for the child’s
development and that does not interfere with their schooling. Usually, child work consist of chores
done around the home to help parents clean the house or in their businesses. Child work is usually
considered as light work. The ILO uses the following indicators to judge if work is harmful or not.
- duration of work
- conditions under which the work is done
- effects of the work on the child
- effects on school attendance, among other factors.

However, these indicators open the door for criticisms as there is no universal operational guidance
for assessing these factors. This makes it hard to qualify a work as light work; taking into
consideration the degree of relativity of today’s world.

The Normative and Institutional Framework of Child Labour in Cameroon

National Laws related to Child Labour

Standard Related Legislation

Minimum Age for Work Section 86 of the Labour Code

Minimum Age for Hazardous Articles 9–23 of Order N° 017 on Child Labour; Section 86
Work of the Labour Code

Prohibition of Hazardous Articles 9–23 of the Order on Child Labour

Occupations
and/or Activities for Children
Prohibition of Forced Labour Sections 1–6 of the Law Relating to the Fight Against
Trafficking in Persons and Slavery; Articles 11, 292, 293,
 342, 352, and 353 of the Penal Code; Section 2 of the Labour
Code
Prohibition of Child Trafficking Sections 1–6 of the Law Relating to the Fight Against
Trafficking in Persons and Slavery; Articles 11, 352, and 353
of the Penal Code
Prohibition of Commercial Articles 265 and 343–347 of the Penal Code; Articles 76, 81,
Sexual and 82 of the Law on Cybersecurity and Cybercriminality
Exploitation of Children
Minimum Age for Voluntary Article 2 of the Decree Fixing the Conditions and
Military Service Recruitment and
Admission to Military Schools
Compulsory Education Age Preamble of the Constitution; Articles 9 and 16 of the Law
Orienting the Education System
Free Public Education Articles 46 (2), 47, and 48 of the Decree on the Organization
of Public Schools
Source: United States Department of Labour’s Bureau of International Affairs

International Instruments and Ratification Dates in Cameroon

Instrument Ratification
Date
International Labour Organisation Conversion on Minimum Age of 13th August 2001
Employment, 1973 (No. 138)
International Labour Organisation Convention on the Worst Forms of Child 5th June 2002
Labour, 1999 (No. 182)
United Nations Conversion on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) 11th January
1993

UNCRC Optional Protocol on Armed Conflict 4th February 2013

African Chatter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child 5th September
1997
Source: Author

National Policies Related to Child Labour in Cameroon

Policies Description
PANETEC (2014–2016) Aimed to eradicate the worst forms of child labour by 2016
while reinforcing a long-term institutional framework for the
abolition of child labour. Aimed to harmonize national laws
with international standards, provide quality universal primary
 education, and allocate additional resources to the labour
inspectorate. Establishes responsible agencies, actions to be
taken, timelines, and concrete measures related to preventing
child labour and child trafficking.
Trafficking in Persons Action Outlines efforts to prosecute and convict human trafficking
Plan offenders, educate law enforcement personnel and social
workers, develop and enact legislation prohibiting the
trafficking of adults, and train enforcement personnel on how to
use the human trafficking database
National Action Plan for the Addresses all forms of human rights, including children’s rights.
Promotion and Protection of Aims to combat child trafficking by disseminating standard
Human operating procedures for the National Referral System, raises
Rights in Cameroon (2015– awareness about how to identify and report cases of child
2019)† trafficking, establishes a collaboration mechanism on human
trafficking, increases punishments for offenders, builds the
capacity of labour inspectors, and accelerates the ratification of
relevant ILO conventions. Additionally, addresses gaps in the
education sector, including the shortage of teachers and
classrooms, a lack of legal framework to regulate parent-teacher
associations, and a low rate of educational attainment for girls
Decent Work Country Incorporates child labour concerns into the strategy for work.
Program
(2014–2017)
SPGE (2010–2020) Includes the overall goals of poverty reduction; increased access
to health and social services; and improved infrastructures, such
as education
Country Programme Action UNICEF and government-implemented programmes that
Plan address the full development of young children and build on the
(2013–2017 previous Country Programme Action Plan. Aims to improve
access to quality education, expand employment opportunities,
and promote active participation of youth in society.
National Gender Policy Coordinated and managed by the IMC, aims to promote access
Document to education for girls, increase access to training for adults and
(2011–2020 youth, improve access to health services, and strengthen the
institutional framework for gender promotion. Specifies
responsible agencies and actions to be taken within the
timeframe.
Source: United States Department of Labour’s Bureau of International Affairs
Child Labour Programmes in the country

Programmes Description
Global Action USDOL-funded project implemented by the ILO in approximately
Programme 40 countries to support the priorities of the Roadmap for Achieving
on Child Labour Issues the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour by 2016,
(GAP) established by The Hague Global Child Labour Conference in 2010.
In Cameroon, aims to build the capacity of the National Government
to develop strategic policies to address the elimination of child
labour and forced labour, and to strengthen legal protections and
social services delivery for child domestic workers. In 2015,
included a protective policy framework document on the elimination
of child labour in domestic work and the protection of domestic
workers of legal age in a revised PANETEC.
National Referral MINAS project with IOM support that implemented standard
System operating procedures to provide assistance to vulnerable children and
victims of exploitation. Provides shelter, medical care, psychological
support, and reintegration services. In 2015, removed at least 20
children from living on the street and placed them in government-
funded shelters.
Project to Fight the MINAS-funded program that gathers information on street children
Phenomenon of Street and offers health care, education, and psychosocial care. In 2015,
Children identified 120 street children and reunited 72 of them with their
families.
Centers for Children in MINAS- and MINPROFF-operated shelters for women and children
Need in need. MINAS-run shelters are located in four regions of
Cameroon and MINPROFF operates at least one shelter in every
region that provides vocational and educational training for girls and
women. Victims of child trafficking are placed in MINAS-run
shelters and are given lodging, food, health care, psychological care,
education, vocational training, and family tracing as appropriate.
Direct Cash Transfer Government program that provides limited direct cash transfers to
street children on an ad hoc basis
Source: United States Department of Labour’s Bureau of International Affairs
Institutional Framework of Child Labour in Cameroon

Organisation/ agency/ Role

committee
Ministry of Labour and Lead efforts to enforce child labour laws, promote decent
Social Security (MINTSS) working conditions, and fight against child trafficking in
cooperation with other government bodies, including the
ministries of Social Affairs, Employment and Vocational
Training, Justice, Women’s Empowerment and Family,
Territorial Administration and Decentralization, and Tourism.
Primarily concerned with the welfare of vulnerable groups,
including women, children, and indigenous groups. Advocate on
behalf of victims, present complaints to court, and provide social
services to victims of child labour.
Ministry of Justice (MOJ) Contribute to investigations through police and gendarmes, and
through the prosecution of offenders as appropriate.
Ministry of Social Affairs Lead Government efforts to combat human trafficking, including
(MINAS) by raising awareness. Provide social services and protection to
victims of child trafficking, including education, vocational
training, and shelter. Maintain a hotline for reporting child
trafficking cases or child labour complaints as part of the
National Referral System. Coordinate repatriation for victims of
human trafficking in cooperation with the Ministry of External
Relations. In the case of the Directorate of Social Protection of
the Child, oversee 10 regional delegations; the Operational
Technical Unit provides social services and maintains Centers for
Social Action. In the case of the Minors Brigade, work within the
public security sections of local police stations to investigate
reports of child trafficking and the use of children in hazardous
work.
Ministry of Women’s Enforce criminal laws against forced child labour, commercial
Empowerment and Family sexual exploitation, and the use of children in illicit activities.
(MINPROFF) Promote the protection of children’s rights.
Ministry of Defense’s Enforce criminal laws against child trafficking and investigate
National violations of child labour laws throughout the country in both
Gendarmerie (SED) rural and urban areas
 National Commission on Promote and protect human rights and investigate human rights
Human Rights and Freedoms abuses.(64, Report wrongdoing, advocate for victims, and assist
victims of human trafficking with settling lawsuits
National Committee to Coordinate government efforts to combat child labour, propose
Combat measures to harmonize Cameroon’s legal framework to
Child Labour (CNLCTE) international standards, and implement the National Plan of
Action to Combat Child Labour and Trafficking in Children
(PANETEC). Led by MINTSS. (75) In 2015, updated statistical
data on child labour with the National Institute of Statistics,
reviewed proposed hazardous work list revisions, drafted a
media plan in coordination with the Ministry of
Communication, and revised PANETEC to include the
protective policy framework on child labour in domestic work.
Inter-Ministerial Committee Coordinate government efforts to combat trafficking in persons,
(IMC) including by training stakeholders, proposing legislation, and
ratifying international instruments. The Secretary General of the
Office of the Prime Minister chairs the Committee, which
includes members of eight ministries, law enforcement
personnel, civil society organizations, and NGOs active in anti-
trafficking work. Oversee three Regional Taskforces on
Trafficking in Persons that carry out the Government’s anti-
trafficking efforts at the local level in Northwest, Southwest,
and Littoral provinces. In 2015, only the Southwest and
Northwest Regional Taskforces were active, raising awareness
of child trafficking issues through radio broadcasts.
Source: United States Department of Labour’s Bureau of International Affairs

Motivating Factors of Child Labour in Cameroon

An array of determinants account for child labour in Cameroon. Below, some of these factors will
be examined.

Parental Factors
In Cameroon, parents have contributed directly or indirectly in the promotion of child labour. The
economic strength, social trends, and parental educational attainment play a primordial role in
determining whether a child is prone to child labour or not.

Child labour is grossly ingrained in the fabrics of poverty. According to World Bank2, the Poverty
headcount ratio at $1.90 a day in 2007 was 29.3%, and in 2014 it stood at 23.8%. The per capita
income was 1446.7 $ in 2017. To buttress the poverty state in Cameroon, World Food Programme3

2
See http://povertydata.worldbank.org/poverty/country/CMR
3
WFP Cameroon Country Brief March 2018
reported that, forty percent of Cameroon’s 23.7 million people live below the poverty line. This
highlights the financial stress some parents in Cameroon face.

Amidst the absolute and relative poverty in Cameroon, two stakes are involved; the welfare of the
child and the welfare of the household. The welfare of the child is often sacrificed for the welfare
of the household. In order to ensure a better household welfare, Laurent Ndjanyou and Sébastien
Djiénouass4, state that Child labour is introduced to the child.

Children who come from poor homes are forced, not by choice, to go out and work in order to
sustain their households. E. Kongnyuy, A. Kongnyuy, & E. Richter5 reported that in Cameroon,
14.7% of children aged 5 to 14 years in the lowest income quintile, carry out economic activity
without any schooling, compared to 1.5% of children from the highest income quintile. Similarly,
they stated, 7.6% of children from the lowest income quintile work and go to school, compared to
0.4% of children from the highest income quintile. This shows that, there is a symbiotic
relationship between poverty and child labour.

Nonetheless, two different child labour approaches are used by different households in Cameroon.
The first approach deals with a tradeoff of the child’s leisure time to the pursuit of income. And
the second approach is trading the child’s leisure’s time plus his or her school or other meaningful
self-development time for income.

The educational Level of parents also contribute to child labour in Cameroon. Ignorance to what
is child labour is prevalent among parents with little or no education. Child labour is often mistaken
for child work by these parents. Moreover, little importance is given to education by them.
Emerson and Souza6, point out that the human capital of parents (which is often determine by the
level of education), determines whether a child will be sent to school or to the labour market. They
noted that parents with high human capital will send their children to school rather than to the
labour market.

Parents with no or low educational attainment, for example, think work is good for the character-
building and skill development of children, even if it interferes with their school. Many less
educated parents in Cameroon also share the view that girl children are less in need of education
than boys, which causes them to be taken out of school at an early age and placed to work at homes
or other ventures, or sold into domestic employment or sex work.

4
Characteristics and Determinants of Child Labour In Cameroon Laurent Ndjanyou and Sébastien Djiénouass CSAE
Conference: Economic Development in Africa 21st - 23rd March 2010, St Catherine's College, Oxford. UK
5
E. Kongnyuy, A. Kongnyuy, E. Richter. Child labour in Cameroon. The Internet Journal of World Health and Societal
Politics.2007 Volume 5 Number 1.
6
P. Emerson, A. P. Souza, From childhood to adulthood: the effect of child labor activities on adult earnings in
Brazil Vanderbilt University Department of Economics Working Pape, 2002.
Social trends nurse an environment that nurtures child labour in Cameroon. The social trend in
some communities in Cameroon holds that a child is considered hardworking and is respected
when he fends for himself and the family, even if the working hours, condition of the work and its
effects are detrimental to the child. Preference is given to that child who goes out and works. This
is typical in the northern and east regions of the country. Some parents expose children to child
labour, not because they need the income he or she brings, but because they believe the child will
have the virtue of hard work, discipline and skills in financial management.

Consumer Factors
Child labour products and services are heavily consumed in Cameroon due to the ‘advantages’ that
come with them, for example, their cheap prices. Tremendous volume of products and services
made out of this labour are used in great quantity every day. The consumption of child labour
products or services is a push factor for this vice.

In the course of this research, 86% of respondents stated they prefer to hire children to carry their
waste (which is hazardous) to dumping sites, rather than adults. To them, children are cheaper to
hire. They do so to encourage the children’s zeal to work harder. This consumer attitude accounts
for the prevalence of child hawking all over the country; as goods sold by these children are always
bought, thereby encouraging whoever sends them to the streets to continue doing so.

Within the urban city, it is a common phenomenon to see people paying for goods or services
produced or distributed using child labour. Most children below the age of 15, who are exposed to
physical, mental or psychological damage in the streets, are congratulated and encouraged to
continue with what they term “the spirit of hard work.”

In the rural setups, petty traders buy agricultural produce from children, who totally or partially
use their school hours to farm. The buyers prefer that of the child because it is cheaper, compared
to that produced by an adult labour force.

Miranda Morley writes that, to effectively sell a product or a service, producers or suppliers have
to know how consumers behave with regards to their goods. If they notice consumers buy their
products or services, then, there is no need to stop; which is the case in Cameroon with child
labour.

Avoiding the usage of child labour products or services will reduce the practice. It can go a long
way to make the supply chain mainstream ethical principles in their business activities.

Institutional Factors
Cameroon has a number of institutions which are in charge of safe guarding the interest of children,
yet, they are largely inefficient in their task. There is a disconnect between policies and
implementation. State institutions don’t adequately drive child protection policies to its entire
population. For example, Cameroon Labour Law states that no child shall be employed in an
enterprise even as an apprentice before the age of 14 years, except as otherwise authorized by an
Order of the Minister of Labour. This law in all ramification, hasn’t been respected. Children less
than this age, are still being used in business ventures as apprentice or employees. State and non-
state plantations make use of these children. This weak social compact between state and society
has greatly affected the weed-out of child labour in the fabrics of the society.

Traditional or local institutions in some parts of the country promote child labour. In some cases,
child labour is deeply ingrained in local customs and habits, that neither the parents nor the children
themselves realize that it is against the interests of children and is illegal.

Child Labour and Economic Development in Cameroon

A brief summary of Cameroon’s economy
The socio-economic situation of Cameroon warrants extreme desperation of its citizens to work.
CIA World Factbook reports that, 30% of the population lives below the poverty line. Although
Cameroon is a diverse economy, and one of the most prominent within the Central African
Economic and Monetary Community CEMAC region, its economy has been weary due to the
petroleum shock; as over 40% of its exports is oil. Agriculture constitute 70%, industry 13%, and
services 17% of the economy. Public debt in 2016 was 34.1% of the country’s GDP, making its
risk of debt distress high. Growth rate in 2017, according to Africa Development Bank, was 3.4
and growth in 2018 stood at 4.1 and 4.8 in 2019. Unrest in the Anglophone regions of the country
has led to great economic lost as companies, businesses have been shut down. Cameroon
Development Corporation, which employs close to 22000 people, making it the second employer
in the country after the state, has been witnessing turbulence as about 10 of their estates are not
functional due to the crisis.

The Impact of Child Labour vis-à-vis the effects on the Economy of Cameroon.
Eric V. Edmonds,7 states that “Child labour impacts growth, but it is also an artifact of a lack of
growth, especially among the very poor.” This statement within the Cameroon context has proven
to be true, as child labour has enormous effects that hamper the economy. Education, Health and
psychological impacts of child labour will be analysed vis-à-vis their impacts on the economy of
Cameroon.

Impact on Education vis-à-vis the Economy

There is a wide array of literature that has highlighted the importance of education to the economy.
The variables, education and economic growth, have been examined by different scholars and
given different correlational perspectives. Castelló and Doménech8 postulated that “human capital

7
Eric V. Edmonds, (2016) Economic Growth and Child Labour in Low Income Economies GLM|LIC Synthesis Paper
No. 3 pp. 4
8
Castelló, A., and Doménech, R. (2002). Human capital inequality and economic growth:
Some new evidence. The Economic Journal, 112(478), C187-C200.
[education] negatively influences economic growth rates, not only through the efficiency of
resource allocation but also through reduction in investment rates.”

Hanushek9 emphasized the importance of school quality on economic growth. He makes a

relationship between test scores and individual productivity and economic growth. “One standard
deviation difference on test performance is related to one percent difference in annual growth rates
of per capita GDP [gross domestic product]”10 (Hanushek, 2002, p. 12).

There is also a strong negative association between school test scores and child employment, even
for the most common forms of work. Beyond its impact on attendance, work reduces the child’s
time available for study and the child’s capacity to devote attention to school or homework. Some
of the weightiest evidence on this comes from Brazil, where Patrick Emerson and co-authors11 did
a unique micro panel dataset of Brazilian students to investigate the impact of working while in
school on learning outcomes. They picked two children with equivalent educational backgrounds;
both are in the same year and have identical performance measures. The child who starts working
while still attending school does test as well; the working child’s lower test scores are equivalent
to one quarter to three fifths of a year less knowledge accumulation than the child who did not start
working.

Perhaps as a result of reduced test scores and disruptions to school attendance, working children
tend to have substantially diminished school progression. Ranjan Ray12 observes that an additional
hour of wage work in Ghana is associated with more than a year's less completed educational
attainment. George Psacharaopoulos13 notes that children in wage work in Bolivia complete nearly
a year less schooling than non-working children. He also discovers that working children in
Venezuela have almost two years less attainment than their non-working counterparts. Thus, the
more prevalent child labour in a country, the less educated its future workers will be. This applies
to Cameroon as well.
The table below provides key indicators on children’s work and education in Cameroon

9
Hanushek, Eric A., 2002. "Publicly provided education," Handbook of Public Economics, in: A. J. Auerbach & M.
Feldstein (ed.), Handbook of Public Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 30, pages 2045-2141 Elsevier.
10
Ibid 9
11
Emerson, Patrick M. and Ponczek, Vladimir P. and Portela Souza, Andre, Child Labour and Learning (June 1, 2014).
World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 6904. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2445750
12
Ray, Ranjan. "The determinants of child labour and child schooling in Ghana."Journal of African
Economies 11.4 (2002): 561-590.
13
Psacharopoulos, George. "Child labor versus educational attainment Some evidence from Latin
America." Journal of population economics 10.4 (1997): 377-386.
Table 1: Statistics on Children’s Work and Education in Cameroon

Children Age Percent

Working (% and 5-14
population) yrs. 56.2
5-14
Attending School (%) yrs. 79.7
Combining Work
and School (%) 7-14 yrs 52.7
Primary Completion
Rate (%) 72.9
Source: Data from 2012, published by UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2014. (10)
Given that 52.7% of children in Cameroon combine work and school, shows that children are
trading off their school hours (education) for work. This affects the adoption of new skills,
especially technological. A lot of jobs today and in the future, require intensive training on
particular skills. Considering that some of these kids are throwing off their schools hours, means
so much unskilled labour is, and will be pumped into the economy. This unskilled labour pushes
shortage of skill intensive technology adoption in the country and therefore has deleterious
consequence for economic growth.

Impact on Health vis-à-vis the economy

Many scholars have often undervalued the importance of health to the economy. Most at times,
they connect economic growth with education, and not health. David E. Bloom and co-authors14
put it this way; “Macroeconomists acknowledge the contribution of human capital to economic
growth, but their empirical studies define human capital solely in terms of education.”

For production output to be maximized, human capital needs to be intact. This consist of all the
components that make it possible for it to be in its best shape. This includes health. The health
condition of workers is a determinant of economic growth. Poor health might lead to the loss of
humans and the input they provide to the economy.

Child labour fundamentally jeopardizes the health of children, who happen to be the future human
capital of the economy. Child labour exposes the child to physical and mental health outcomes
later in life.
Eric V. Edmonds 15 throws lights on child labour and health as he penned down that;

There are many avenues through which work while young can impact health. Work
induced illness and injury may directly worsen the health status of child laborers.

14
David E., David Canning and Jaypee Sevilla. "The Effect of Health on Economic Growth: A Production Function
Approach." World Development 32, 1 (2004): 1–13.
15
Eric V. Edmonds, (2016) Economic Growth and Child Labor in Low Income Economies GLM|LIC Synthesis Paper
No. 3 pp. 9
 Machinery designed for adult bodies and minds can be particularly dangerous for
children. Working children typically face greater caloric demands than nonworking
children. When these are not met with increased nutrient intake (either because of
the circumstances of the child’s work, the parent’s lack of awareness about nutrition
related concerns, or a lack of adequate and nutritious food), work may leave the
child more vulnerable to illness, injury, and a lifetime of health issues. Working
children may also suffer health consequences by foregoing the health and
nutritional knowledge usually acquired in school.

Ana Lucia Kassouf and co-authors16 presented some persuasive evidence on a link between
child labour and long-term negative health consequences in Brazil. Their result was that
individuals who start work earlier have worse self-reported health status as adults. Peter
Orazem and Chanyoung Lee17 concur to this by showing that some of the worst self-
reported health status owes to a lack of education, but that working while young is
associated with back problems, arthritis, and reduced strength and stamina in adulthood
beyond work’s impact on education.

Although not all work is harmful to the child, one should not neglect the destructive side
of child labour to child development and the repercussion it can have on Cameroon’s
economy; reasons being that, the country might have weak or frail labour force as a result
of bad health from labourers.

Impact on Psychological vis-à-vis the Economy

A strong and positive psyche is important for a productive labourer. Child labour destroys
the morale of kids, hence, negatively affects their emotional and mental state of mind. From
focal group discussions, many kids who are engaged in child labour in Cameroon, strongly
laid claims of losing their integrity. Some of them who are hawkers, talked of sexual
harassment and lynching. The different destructive ordeals faced by these kids, have
tampered with their confidence, trust, motivation and commitment.

With such a psyche from the future human capital stock, optimum production might not be
achieved, hence there will be slower economic growth. If Cameroon is to grow
economically, a strong, positive and sane mindset is required from its labour force.

Conclusion
So many elements that deter economic growth have been looked at over the years by development
and economic experts, yet very few articles related these elements to child labour. Child labour
has an educational, health and psychological impact on any economy. Bringing into lamp light

16
Kassouf, Ana Lúcia, Martin McKee, and Elias Mossialos. "Early entrance to the job market and its effect on adult
health: evidence from Brazil." Health Policy and Planning 16.1 (2001): 21-28.
17
Orazem, Peter, Lee, Chanyoung. “Lifetime Health Consequences of Child Labor in Brazil.” Research in Labor
Economics 31, (2010): 90-133.
these impacts, is a call for concern that it should be looked into, especially in Cameroon which
happens to be a developing country.

Unlike Harrod-Domar model, which states that Capital Stock (total amount of physical capital in
an economy such as. machines, buildings, computers and industrial machinery), is the only
ingredient for economic growth, the Solow Neoclassical Growth Model18 describes the economic
growth of a nation as a function of technology, labour and capital. Child labour has a great
influence on two of these elements; technology and labour. Hence, the presence of child labour in
Cameroon leaves the economic growth of the country in jeopardy.

18
Solow Robert (1956). “A Contribution to the Theory of Economic Growth”, Quarterly Journal of Economics Vol.
70, Oxford University Press, February
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