Child Labor in Tunisia

ECO320- Development Economics
Education & Health
Questions:
Child Labor Tunisia. Does it exist? Should it be tolerated? In which conditions?
Gender Gap in Tunisia.
Child Labor in Tunisia
Introduction:
The issue of human rights in Tunisia is one that is the subject of numerous
inquiries. Although the Tunisian constitution is designed to protect individual
rights, social crises of individual freedom have nonetheless occurred.
law vs Reality:
The International Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Tunisia has
ratified, is the most significant of the international conventions on children's
rights. The number of pieces of law that establish and advance children's rights
as well as human rights in general has increased. The international and local
treaties ratified by the State are not respected, hence the reality is entirely
different.
Children can now be seen begging, washing cars, selling jasmine flowers,
and working in auto repair shops, which has become a common but under-
reported occurrence in Tunisia. They are taken advantage of because of their
susceptibility and ease of destabilization.
Girls frequently start working as maids at a young age to support their

families. They go from the north-western interior regions to the capital to work,
where they run the risk of being raped and harassed.
1
A Growing Phenomenon Causing Alarm:
In Tunisia, 179,000 children between the ages of 5 and 17 work as children,
accounting for 7.9% of all children in this age group.
Boys are more likely to engage in child labor than girls (9.7% vs. 6%).
However, girls (53% vs. 40%) are more likely to do housework than boys.
Except for Greater Tunis, where about half of working children are employed
in commerce, most working children are unpaid family workers in agriculture,
animal husbandry, forestry, and fisheries. 75.9% of all children who work do
so in hazardous jobs.
→ However, the existing figures provided by child protection officials or other

authorities do not reflect reality as they are primarily based on reported cases.
Where there is no shared action plan with other pertinent bodies, the child
protection officials act based on reported cases. As there is no database of
statistics on child begging and the State does not provide the required resources,
it is challenging to bring charges.
Legislative Loophole:
The current laws on child labor are confusing, because they don't have a set
age limit for children to start working. This leaves it up to the government to
decide what type of work is too dangerous for children, which can be
problematic because different people might have different opinions about what's
too dangerous.
2
Article 58 of the Labor Code, for example, states that:
→ This article deals with an issue that is causing concern because it recognizes
that children are allowed to work as long as they are not putting themselves at
risk.
Causes and Effects:

The direct link between school conditions and child labor, as well as the
growing risk of educational failure and early school leaving. Furthermore,
extreme poverty and greed can lead parents to turn their children into easy bait
for these organizations, allowing these networks to hire their babies to elicit
more sympathy from bystanders.
Child labor can result in bodily harm, serious injury and terminal illness.
Children can also suffer psychological damage when they suffer from
exploitation, exhaustion, and a lack of psychological support
In 2018, 59% of child trafficking victims were sexually exploited because

their innocence or ignorance of what was happening was exploited, or because
they were forced to comply for fear of losing their job, without which they could
not survive.
In addition, children who are forced to work may be directed to more

dangerous areas, by being recruited by terrorist groups or becoming victims
of prostitution and drug networks.
→ Therefore, child labor shouldn’t be tolerated under any circumstances.
3
Solutions and Strategy:
1- Developing a strategic plan to avoid the child labor dilemma

inevitably requires interdependent institutions and governments
that often lack the minimum capabilities to work effectively to
address child labor issues.
2- Provision of the necessary human and technical resources for the

Child Protection Commission because it currently does not have
enough specialists.
3- Involvement of civil society, in particular associations concerned

with the issue, in parliamentary sessions on child protection.
4- Development of a child labor monitoring system at national and

regional levels for better synergies between actors. Pilot evaluations
and comparative experiments should be carried out, priorities
identified at the regional commission level, and structures adapted to
the needs of children freed from child labor should be developed.
- 2000: Tunisia signs and later ratifies the Palermo Protocol

against human trafficking. The country undertakes to take
measures against cross-border organized crime.
- 2016: Tunisia adopts the National Action Plan to Combat Child

Labor in Tunisia. The country passes Law 2016-61 on Preventing
and Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, leading to the
establishment of the National Anti-Trafficking Agency. Ministry
of Justice and IOM launched the first national anti-trafficking
campaign in Tunisia.
- 2018: Tunisia launches National Anti-Trafficking Strategy and

National Action Plan against Human Trafficking.
4
Gender Gap in Tunisia
Introduction:
Tunisia is often cited as a pioneer of women's rights in the Arab world due
to the unique status of Tunisian women. Since the passage of the Personal
Status Code in 1956, Tunisian women have played a greater role in the
country's development. More recently, they played a crucial role during the
post-revolutionary democratic transition.
Tunisian Women Position Nowadays:

The important position of Tunisian women in society and the professional
world is repeatedly observed. More and more women are now occupying
managerial positions at the highest levels of public service and the private
sector.
In addition, the indicators are promising: the country ranks 4th in the MENA
region in terms of gender equality. Tunisian women have a literacy rate of
72%, make up 42% of university students and hold 36% of parliamentary
seats.
→ However, could it be that these numbers hide a more nuanced reality, pointing
to geographic and social differences?
The Development of Tunisia is Alarming!

According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2020, the World Economic
Forum's publication on gender inequality, Tunisia's ranking for gender
equality fell from 90th place to 124th place between 2006 and 2020, out
of a total of 153 countries.
The development in the overall index is reflected in the sub-indices. This
moves Tunisia up from 97th to 142nd place in terms of economic
participation and job opportunities, from 76th to 106th place in terms of
education, and from 53rd to 67th place in terms of political participation.
Despite this good performance compared to other MENA countries, the
development in Tunisia is alarming, the achievements are fragile and the road
to equality is still long.
- While 67% of university graduates are women, they represent

only 24.6% of the working population.
- Unemployment affects women twice as much (22.5%) as men

(12.4%).
5
- This inequality is exacerbated in the interior regions of the
country (Gabes, Kasserine, Jendouba, Kbili, Gafsa, and
Tataouine) where the Female unemployment rate is high at an
average of 35%.
- Only 23.3% of new home loans are made to women and

women continue to be victims of global violence, I. H. at least
one form of violence (physical, sexual, psychological, or
economic).
Factors Hinder Women’s Economic Inclusion:

Despite their academic achievements, young women suffer from poor
integration into economic life. The slowdown in hiring in the public sector,
a sector where 39% of employees are women, is an important factor but only
partially explains this situation.
Other factors hinder women's economic inclusion and empowerment, such

as:
1- the lack of affordable and quality support systems for mothers struggling
to reconcile work and family life.
2- labor laws.
3- domestic violence.
→ These inequalities hamper the country's economic and social development,

taking away some of its driving forces.
Finally, the lack of equality in economic rights disadvantages women,

who are significantly disadvantaged in access to credit, land ownership, and
financial products. This inequality hampers their entrepreneurial or
commercial initiatives and affects their financial autonomy.
6
Recourses:
• https://houloul.org/en/2021/04/05/child-labor-in-tunisia-an-alarming-and-worsening-
phenomenon/
• https://www.alliance87.org/pathfinder_countries/tunisia/#tabp-2
• https://www.refworld.org/docid/48d74910c.html
• https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/tunisia/publication/ecd2015
• https://www.bollettinoadapt.it/old/files/document/9292slama_conf_2010.pdf
• https://raseef22.net/english/article/1089820-employing-minors-in-tunisia-a-growing-
phenomenon-causing-alarm
• https://euromedmonitor.org/en/article/2257/Tunisia:-Rise-in-child-labor-requires-
legal-protection-and-control-by-Tunisian-authorities
• https://violenceagainstchildren.un.org/sites/violenceagainstchildren.un.org/files/childr
en_on_the_move/child_labour_in_the_arab_region_english_version.pdf
• https://www.bakerinstitute.org/research/gender-inequality-and-economic-inclusion-
tunisia-key-policy-issues
• https://blogs.worldbank.org/arabvoices/status-women-tunisian-society-endangered
• https://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/GenderGap.html
• https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2022.pdf

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ECO320- Development Economics

Education & Health

Child Labor in Tunisia

Girls frequently start working as maids at a young age to support their

→ However, the existing figures provided by child protection officials or other

Causes and Effects:

In 2018, 59% of child trafficking victims were sexually exploited because

In addition, children who are forced to work may be directed to more

→ Therefore, child labor shouldn’t be tolerated under any circumstances.

1- Developing a strategic plan to avoid the child labor dilemma

2- Provision of the necessary human and technical resources for the

3- Involvement of civil society, in particular associations concerned

4- Development of a child labor monitoring system at national and

- 2000: Tunisia signs and later ratifies the Palermo Protocol

- 2016: Tunisia adopts the National Action Plan to Combat Child

- 2018: Tunisia launches National Anti-Trafficking Strategy and

Tunisian Women Position Nowadays:

The Development of Tunisia is Alarming!

- While 67% of university graduates are women, they represent

- Unemployment affects women twice as much (22.5%) as men

- Only 23.3% of new home loans are made to women and

Factors Hinder Women’s Economic Inclusion:

Other factors hinder women's economic inclusion and empowerment, such

→ These inequalities hamper the country's economic and social development,

Finally, the lack of equality in economic rights disadvantages women,

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