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Market imperfections and child labor

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  • Dumas Christelle

    (THEMA, Universite de Cergy-Pontoise)

Abstract

There is some indirect evidence that the absence of markets might cause child labor. However the existing literature is silent on whether marginal improvements of the markets functioning would reduce child labor. This paper models rural households’ labor supply when the degree of imperfections on the labor market vary and the land and credit market remain absent. We highlight the heterogeneity in households’ responses: some households may increase their child labor use following an improvement on the labor market, even when children are assumed not to be able to sell their workforce outside of the household. We use Malagasy data to estimate the relation between child labor and various measures of markets imperfections. We match those data with a municipality census so as to control for a large set of village characteristics. We find that on average market imperfections (labor but also land and credit) do indeed increase child labor and obtain heterogenous effects by land ownership that are consistent with the theoretical model. The results point to the fact that an improvement of markets competitiveness should decrease child labor (and even the more so for labor markets), which provides an alternative policy to fight against child labor.

Suggested Citation

  • Dumas Christelle, 2011. "Market imperfections and child labor," THEMA Working Papers 2011-04, THEMA (THéorie Economique, Modélisation et Applications), Université de Cergy-Pontoise.
    • Handle: RePEc:ema:worpap:2011-04
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    3. Yingying Zhang Zhang & Chun Yee Wong & Alessandro Comai, 2024. "Child Labor in Social Media: Exploring a Decade of YouTube Data," Working Papers EMS_2024_04, Research Institute, International University of Japan.
    4. Ajefu, Joseph B. & Massacky, Falecia, 2023. "Mobile money, child labour and school enrolment," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(10).
    5. Delphine Boutin, 2014. "Climate vulnerability, communities' resilience and child labour," Revue d'économie politique, Dalloz, vol. 124(4), pages 625-638.
    6. Congdon Fors, Heather, 2024. "Child Labour Background, Challenges, and the Role of Research in Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 8.7," Working Papers in Economics 840, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    7. Julián Arteaga Vallejo, 2016. "Land, Child Labor, and Schooling: Longitudinal evidence from Colombia and Mexico," Documentos CEDE 14977, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economía, CEDE.
    8. Bandara, Amarakoon & Dehejia, Rajeev & Lavie-Rouse, Shaheen, 2015. "The Impact of Income and Non-Income Shocks on Child Labor: Evidence from a Panel Survey of Tanzania," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 218-237.
    9. Oryoie, Ali Reza & Alwang, Jeffrey & Tideman, Nicolaus, 2017. "Child Labor and Household Land Holding: Theory and Empirical Evidence from Zimbabwe," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 45-58.
    10. Bernal, Carolina & Vlaicu, Razvan, 2023. "Child Labor, Rainfall Shocks, and Financial Inclusion: Evidence from Rural Households," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 13008, Inter-American Development Bank.
    11. Aïssata COULIBALY, 2016. "Revisiting the Relationship between Financial Development and Child Labor in Developing Countries: Do Inequality and Institutions Matter?," Working Papers 201619, CERDI.
    12. Rodriguez, E. & Costa, L. Vieira, 2018. "Income shocks and child labor: evidence for the rural Dominican Republic," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 277453, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    13. Edmonds, Eric & Theoharides, Caroline, 2020. "The short term impact of a productive asset transfer in families with child labor: Experimental evidence from the Philippines," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    14. Christophe J. Nordman & Smriti Sharma & Naveen Sunder, 2022. "Here Comes the Rain Again: Productivity Shocks, Educational Investments, and Child Work," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 70(3), pages 1041-1063.
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    16. Marine JOUVIN, 2021. "Addressing social desirability bias in child labor measurement : an application to cocoa farms in Côte d’Ivoire," Bordeaux Economics Working Papers 2021-08, Bordeaux School of Economics (BSE).
    17. Busquet, Milande & Bosma, Niels & Hummels, Harry, 2021. "A multidimensional perspective on child labor in the value chain: The case of the cocoa value chain in West Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Child labor; Market imperfections; Land; Labor; Credit; Madagascar;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J43 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Agricultural Labor Markets

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