Editing Child labour (section)

=== Africa ===
{{main|Child labour in Africa}}
[[File:Kamerun children weaving.jpg|thumb|Child labour in the former German colony of [[Kamerun]], 1919]]
Children working at a young age has been a consistent theme throughout Africa. Many children began first working in the home to help their parents run the family farm.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=11}} Children in Africa today are often forced into exploitative labour due to family debt and other financial factors, leading to ongoing poverty.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=11}} Other types of domestic child labour include working in commercial [[plantation]]s, begging, and other sales such as boot shining.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=15}} In total, there is an estimated five million children who are currently working in the field of agriculture which steadily increases during the time of harvest. Along with 30% of children who are picking coffee, there are an estimated 25,000 school age children who work year round.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=16}}

[[File:Child labour in Shamwana Katanga, Congo.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Little girl carrying heavy items. Katanga region, DRC; Congo, Africa.]]
What industries children work in depends on whether they grew up in a [[rural area]] or an [[urban area]]. Children who were born in urban areas often found themselves working for street vendors, washing cars, helping in construction sites, weaving clothing, and sometimes even working as exotic dancers.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=15}} While children who grew up in rural areas would work on farms doing physical labour, working with animals, and selling crops.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=15}} Many children can also be found working in hazardous environments, with some using bare hands, stones and hammers to take apart [[Cathode-ray tube|CRT]]-based televisions and computer monitors.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.muntaka.com/children-of-agbogbloshie/|title=Urban Outcasts: Children of Agbogbloshie|last=Chasant|first=Muntaka|date=2020-02-17|website=MUNTAKA.COM|access-date=2020-02-17}}</ref> Of all the child workers, the most serious cases involved street children and trafficked children due to the physical and emotional abuse they endured by their employers.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=15}} To address the issue of child labour, the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child Act was implemented in 1959.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=12}} Yet due to poverty, lack of education and ignorance, the legal actions were not/are not wholly enforced or accepted in Africa.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=17}}

[[File:Against child labor.jpg|thumb|Young street vendors in [[Benin]]]]
Other legal factors that have been implemented to end and reduce child labour includes the global response that came into force in 1979 by the declaration of the International Year of the Child.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=17}} Along with the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations, these two declarations worked on many levels to eliminate child labour.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=17}} Although many actions have been taken to end this epidemic, child labour in Africa is still an issue today due to the unclear definition of adolescence and how much time is needed for children to engage in activities that are crucial for their development. Another issue that often comes into play is the link between what constitutes as child labour within the household due to the cultural acceptance of children helping run the family business.{{sfn|Agbu|2009|p=18}} In the end, there is a consistent challenge for the national government to strengthen its grip politically on child labour, and to increase education and awareness on the issue of children working below the legal age limit. With children playing an important role in the African economy, child labour still plays an important role for many in the 20th century.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The incidence of child labour in Africa with empirical evidence from rural Ethiopia |url=https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/84748/1/zef_dp32.pdf}}</ref>