The Gift of Knowledge

Ana Maria Azevedo has a heartbreaking job. Every day, she deals with families who must work in the dangerous and inhuman conditions at the Olinda garbage dump on the outskirts of Recife, a town on Brazil's beautiful northern coast. The dump is Ann-Maria's beat, a reeking mountain of trash where children pick through refuse in search of bottles and cans to be resold. In spite of national laws forbidding child labor, severe poverty in Brazil forces many children to work. Their contribution to the family's income is often the difference between subsistence and starvation.

But Ana Maria has seen how education can free children from a miserable fate. She runs education and child development initiatives for Fazer Valer os Direitos, a United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) program in Brazil. Previously, Ana Maria worked as the project coordinator with the Olinda Municipality and UNICEF.

Today, Leandra is in school, thanks to the Bolsa Escola ("School Scholarship") Program, a renewable scholarship, that compensates students for the income they would earn if they were to work. Distributed in either cash or in-kind, the scholarship allows children to take basic educational courses for half a day and go to enrichment activities, such as music, arts and crafts, for the other half. The Bolsa Escola has helped nearly six million families with children between the ages of 6 and 15. In the rural areas, recipients are granted a sum equivalent to about US $ 9 a month, while in Recife and other towns compensation is around US$14. Each family is entitled to three Bolsas.

The Bolsa Escola, however, is not without its problems. Sometimes, families have to wait for more than two months for funds, which forces some children back to work. Basic schooling in Brazil lasts for eight years, but not every child makes it to graduation. Some children fail. Others drop out or leave discouraged. "We want to change the situation with longer school days, cash grants for short-term replacement of children's incomes and vocational training for parents so that they do not have to rely on their sons and daughters", says Ana Maria.

UNICEF is working with the Brazilian government to improve the Bolsa Escola Program and make it available to as many children as possible. The administrators work closely with families. They visit parents at home, monitor living conditions and assist with the scholarship's paperwork. According to Ana Maria, involving parents from the beginning is the key to success. This is why Ana Maria is with the children and their families every step of the way. Her reward is seeing young people regain their childhood and become students with a sense of achievement and a belief that life offers opportunities they never imagined possible.

How can you help?
Begin by learning more. According to the International Labor Organization, nearly 250 million children between the ages of 5 to 17 years have to work. Of these, around 179 million are caught in worst forms of child labor, which includes slavery, debt bondage, prostitution and pornography. It also includes the use of children in armed conflict as soldiers, and for drug trafficking and other illicit activities.

Several important international global agreements seek to safeguard children from exploitation. Article 32 of the United Nations' Convention on the Rights of the Child spells out the obligations of governments to protect children from economic exploitation and work that is likely to be hazardousand impairing their education, health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development. There are also two ILO conventions: The Minimum Age Convention sets 15 years as a cut off age, below which children should not work, although there are exceptions for "light work". The Worst Forms of Child Labor Convention (1999), is a powerful international legal instrument that defines work that is hazardous to the health and well being of children.

To help, give your support to an organization working to eradicate child labor. In addition to UNICEF, two internationally renowned NGOs addressing this important issue are Global March and Save the Children. Partnerships between these organizations and individuals, families and businesses can have a real and positive impact on a child's life.