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Cambodia
or a medical emergency.
However, this does not fully explain why
children may continue their labour even after
such crises pass. During our initial research
among children who work as itinerant scrap
collectors in Phnom Penh, it was found that
the children often have other motivations for
working:
Child scrap collectors at work on a garbage dump truck
Photo: World Vision Cambodia
undertaken that reveal some key principles
that apply when working with children in
poor urban communities. Targeted
approaches, that increase the options
available to children and their families, reduce
the risks of exploitation and involvement in
hazardous labour.
The principles for program planning in the
following section are taken from World
Vision Cambodia’s publication Look Before You
Leap: Strategic approaches to urban child
labour. 2
Working principles/
philosophy: An integrated
approach that builds child
participation
Understanding and respecting the
child labourer’s perspective
It is widely accepted that poverty is a primary
factor that contributes to the entry of
children into hazardous or exploitive labour.
While other factors exist, most children
working at the Phnom Penh city garbage
dump or on the streets began when there
was a crisis impacting family income or
expenses, such as a parent’s business failing
“Child scrap collectors differ from many other
child labourers in that they are self-employed
and usually possess a great deal of autonomy in
their work. For instance, rather than giving all
of the money to their parents at the end of the
day, many children told us that they kept some
for themselves to buy snacks, play snooker and
video games, and even gamble. In this sense
they are not unlike children in developed
countries who want spending money of their
own. This was also indicated during group
discussions in which a significant number said
they would continue to work at the dump at
least part-time, even if their parents earned
enough money to send them to school and
provide a decent living standard.” 3
While perhaps not present in the beginning,
over time the children may develop positive
attitudes such as these towards their work
that may contribute to their long-term
involvement. There are, in fact, many reasons
which make scrap collecting an attractive
occupation for children (as well as adults): it
offers flexible hours and year-round
availability, is close to home (particularly for
those living near the dump), and is accessible
to people of a wide range of ages and
educational levels. These are just a few of the
advantages that the community sees yet the
outsider rarely notices, and that are crucial to
understand in order to offer alternatives
which are accepted and supported by the
children and their parents. It has been noted
in ILO studies on child labour that the unit of
analysis is usually an adult concern such as the
family or the school. But “childhood is an
interesting phenomenon in its own right.
Child-centred studies/statistics are different
2
3
Gourley, S, Un, V & Gray, L, Look Before You Leap: Strategic approaches to urban child labour, World Vision Cambodia, 1999. This book, which has not
been widely circulated outside Cambodia, contains valuable insights into working with the urban poor to tackle the issue of child labour, to which this
present chapter is indebted.
Child Scrap Collectors in Phnom Penh: A profile, World Vision Cambodia, 1997
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