Government Policies and Programs to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor
The Government of Peru has been a member of ILO-IPEC since1996.[3458] ILO-IPEC programs in Peru include the first and second phase of a USDOL-fundedregional program to eliminate child labor in small-scale traditional miningsectors, and a USDOL-funded regional program to eliminate child domestic labor.[3459] In addition, a USDOL-funded project to promote access to quality basiceducation in the small-scale mining zones of the department of Puno waslaunched in September 2002.[3460] ILO-IPEC also provides support to remove children from dangerous work in stonequarries.[3461]
In 2003, the Ministry of Education issued a directive toestablish night classes and lengthen matriculation periods for youth employedas domestics in private homes.[3462] In 2002, the Ministry of Women and Social Development [3463]produced the National Action Plan for Children and Adolescents 2002 – 2010. The plan focuses on the elimination of the worst forms of child labor forchildren aged 6 to 11 years, and promotes control over working conditions foradolescents at or above the legal working age as part of its strategicobjectives.[3464] Also in 2002, the Ministries of Labor, Health, Energy and Mines, and Educationcreated a system that allows the government to monitor and verify progress inthe elimination of child labor in small-scale mining for a 10-year period(2002-2012).[3465]
The Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion offers aprogram to underprivileged youth aged 16 to 24 years that provides them withvocational training and access to apprenticeships and employment opportunitiesin the private sector.[3466] In July 2002, the Office of Child Protection, Safety and Health in theWorkplace was created within the Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion toprotect the rights of minors in the workplace.[3467] The National Institute of Family Well-Being has a program that provides avariety of services to working youth, including school support, housing,reintegration into the public school system, reintegration into the family, andvocational training.[3468] The Ministry of Health’s School and Adolescent Health Program provides freemedical coverage to children throughout the country beginning at age 5 with theaim of promoting healthy behavior.[3469] Since 1995, the National Police has been operating a Division for MattersConcerning Children and Adolescents to address cases concerning the rights ofchildren and adolescents.[3470]
The Ministry of Education is implementing a basic educationprogram that aims to improve the quality and infrastructure of educationthroughout the country and strengthen teacher’s skills and technologicalinnovation, especially in rural areas.[3471] The Ministry is also implementing a distance-learning program using computertechnology to provide children with access to school throughout the country.[3472] Since 2002, USAID, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, hasexpanded a girls education initiative to provide technical assistance, developmodels of education decentralization, and strengthen local capacity for qualityeducation programs.[3473] With funds from the OAS, the Ministry of Education’s National Office onPre-primary and Primary Education has developed a program to improve thequality and equity of basic education in rural areas through radio learning.[3474] The Ministry also began a three-year program in 2000 with assistance from theIDB to improve the quality of secondary education and to increase theeducational system’s relevance and linkage to the labor market.[3475] In 2002, the IDB approved a social development loan that includes aninfrastructure component for kindergarten and primary schools in rural areas.[3476] With financing from the World Bank, the Ministry began implementation of aproject in May 2003 to extend access to rural pre-and secondary schooleducation, improve teaching quality and motivation in rural areas, andstrengthen education management.[3477] The World Food Programme is extending the government’s school feeding programin three departments in the highlands and promoting gender equity ineducational access.[3478]
Incidence and Nature of Child Labor
In 2001, the ILO estimated that 1.7 percent of children ages10 to 14 years in Peru were working.[3479] A large number of children, however, are workingin the country’s informal economy in activities that are not well captured bychild labor surveys.[3480] Data from the National Household Survey indicate that the working populationfrom 14 to17 years tripled between 1997 and 2001.[3481] Children are employed in the agricultural sector (including coca cultivation),fireworks factories, stone quarries, and the brick-making sector. Children arealso found loading and unloading produce in markets, collecting garbage andworking in informal mining sites.[3482] In urban areas, children often work shining shoes[3483]and perform domestic work.[3484] It is reported that some children under the age of 15 years are forced to jointhe military through a system of recruitment called “leva”.[3485] These forced recruits often come from border areas or rural areas of theinterior.[3486] In 2003, there were reports of children serving in the army in the departmentof Loreto.[3487] Children also engage in prostitution.[3488] The commercial sex trade flourishes in Cuzco due to high unemployment and hightourism levels in which children are reportedly involved.[3489]
The General Education Law establishes free and compulsorypublic education through secondary school.[3490] In 1999, the gross primary enrollment rate was 127.6 percent and the netprimary enrollment was 104.5 percent.[3491] School attendance is lower in rural and jungle areas, and girls attend at alower rate than boys.[3492] Attendance rates are not available for Peru. While enrollment rates indicate alevel of commitment to education, they do not always reflect children’sparticipation in school.[3493] Indigenous children and those from rural areas lack access to the educationsystem.[3494] The average number of years of schooling and student performance are alsosharply lower in rural areas than in urban areas.[3495] The Child and Adolescent Code provides for special arrangements and schooltimetables so that working children and adolescents can attend schoolregularly.[3496]
Child Labor Laws and Enforcement
Within the Ministry of Women and Social Development, theDirectorate of Children and Adolescent Affairs is responsible for developingand coordinating national policy on youth, particularly those policiesaffecting children exposed to violence, extreme poverty, discrimination andsocial exclusion.[3497] In 2001, new legislation was passed that modified the Child and Adolescent’sCode of 2000 and raised the legal minimum age for employment from 12 to 14years.[3498] However, children aged 12 to14 may perform certain jobs if they obtain legalpermission from the Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion and can certifythat they are attending school. In August 2002, the Ministry reported that itapproved 839 of these requests in the first eight months of the year.[3499]
According to the Code, the minimum age for employment in thehazardous industrial, commercial or mining sectors is 15 years, while in theindustrial fishing sector it is 16.[3500] Work that might harm a child’s physical, mental and emotional health anddevelopment, including underground work or work that involves heavy lifting andcarrying, or work that might serve as an obstacle to continued schoolattendance, is prohibited for youth under the age of 18.[3501] Children aged 12 to 14 years are prohibited from working more than 4 hours aday, or over 24 hours a week, and adolescents between 15 and 17 years may notwork more than 6 hours a day, or over 36 hours a week.[3502] Working children must be paid at the same rate as adult workers in similarjobs.[3503]
The Child and Adolescent Code prohibits hazardous forms ofchild labor such as forced and bonded labor, economically exploitative labor,prostitution, and trafficking.[3504] Prostitution is legal in Peru, but laws prohibit individuals from profiting byprostituting others.[3505] Laws prohibiting kidnapping, the sexual abuse of minors, and illegal employmentare enforced, and can be used to sanction individuals who traffic children forexploitative labor.[3506] In 2001, amendments to the Penal Code strengthened existing penalties bycriminalizing the production, possession and distribution of child pornography. In contrast, other amendments weakened existing penalties for sexual assaultsagainst children.[3507]
The Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion isresponsible for enforcing labor laws. As of August 2003, the Ministry had 200labor inspectors, over two-thirds of whom work in Lima. Inspections areprimarily conducted in the formal sector[3508],and enforcement remedies are generally adequate to punish and deter violations.[3509] However, many children work in the informal economy where the government does notsupervise wages or working conditions.[3510] The national police and local prosecutors have law enforcement authority overchild labor violations.[3511] The Directorate of Children and Adolescent Affairs, an office within, ischarged with protecting the rights of children and adolescents.[3512] At the municipal level, the Municipal Child and Adolescent Defender Centerswork with local governments to supervise investigations, apply punishments,[3513]and monitor compliance of child labor laws.[3514]
The Government of Peru ratified ILO Convention 138 onNovember 13, 2002 and ILO Convention 182 on January 10, 2002.[3515]
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