History
Based on information in the article, which best describes the difference between the child labor rates in Nepal and Mongolia?A.Child labor rates have increased in Mongolia since 1990, but decreased in Nepal since 1990.B.Child labor rates have increased in Mongolia since 1990, but stayed the same in Nepal since 1990.C.Child labor rates have increased in Nepal since 1990, but decreased in Mongolia since 1990.D.Child labor rates have increased in Nepal since 1990, but stayed the same in Mongolia since 1990.In 2000, there were 127 million children working in Asia. By 2004, that number had fallen to 122 million. Officials are pleased that child labor rates have dropped, but they say the decline isn't happening fast enough.Those numbers came from a recent report from the International Labor Organization (ILO). The report focused on South Asia, which includes Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and other nations. It concluded that despite the decrease in the number of working children ages five to 14, South Asia remains a child labor hot spot.The report discussed child labor in several nations and identified Nepal as one of the worst offenders. As of 2004, almost 40 percent of Nepalese children aged 10 to 14 were working. Many continue to do strenuous physical labor in mines, quarries, and carpet factories. Still, even in Nepal, child labor rates are declining; they had been near 50 percent in 1990.The Philippines has improved, but problems remain in some industries. Many Filipino children still work in fireworks production, deep-sea fishing, and mining. The country has a national action plan to change this."The [anti-child labor] laws are all there," said Filipino Undersecretary of Labor and Employment Manuel G. Imson. Imson says that the government is working with the police to enforce these laws.In some cases, child labor has emerged where it was previously nonexistent. There were few or no child laborers in Mongolia until 1990; today, up to 10,000 children there work in gold, coal, and mineral mines. Kh. Ganbaatar, executive director of the Mongolian Employers' Federation, blames the problem on economic changes as well as on natural disasters. Several years ago, winter storms killed millions of livestock. This made it harder for families to maintain their traditional herding way of life. Many of these families were forced to send their children to work.In fact, child labor often develops because area families cannot make ends meet and need extra income. In other cases, parents want to send their children to school but cannot afford the related fees."A large number of working poor means that we have a large number of people who are unable to support children [going] to school," said Panudda Boonpala, senior child labor specialist at the ILO.In August, government representatives from nearly 40 countries as well as workers' and employers' organizations attended an ILO conference. Topics on their agenda included migration, competitiveness, productivity, and youth employment (child labor). At a session on youth employment, participants watched a video that showed children working at a gold mine in Mongolia.The ILO says that it will try to end some of the worst forms of child labor within 10 years. Its officials point out that attitudes about working children have changed in Asia. This is contributing to the reduction in child labor rates."I think 10 years ago there was lots of denial," Panudda said. Still, she said, nations will not be able to end child labor unless they are willing to put a lot of effort and funding into the fight against it.