ISSN: 2320-5407 Int. J. Adv. Res.

11(11), 844-855

Journal Homepage: -www.journalijar.com

Article DOI: 10.21474/IJAR01/17886

DOI URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.21474/IJAR01/17886

RESEARCH ARTICLE
THE NETWORKING OF RECRUITERS OF CHILD LABOUR IN SOME SELECTED BORDER
COMMUNITIES IN SOUTH-WESTERN NIGERIA: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Adeniran Peter Sunday, Oluranti Samuel and Jubril Jawando

Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social SciencesLagos State University, Ojo, Nigeria.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………....
Manuscript Info Abstract
……………………. ………………………………………………………………
Manuscript History Child labourers constitute a growing proportion globally, as more
Received: 16 September 2023 children engage in it, in a bid to meet up with the financial situation for
Final Accepted: 19 October 2023 themselves or family support. Poverty, networking of recruiters and
Published: November 2023 other circumstances could be responsible for this. This paper reviewed
studies that have examined the networking that exists between
Key words:-
Networking, Recruiters Of Child recruiters of child labour and parents of child labourers. The Google
Labour, Border Communities Scholar search engine was used to search for published studies on the
subject in the last ten years, between the 1 st of January, 2011 and to 31st
of December, 2021. A total of 40 studies were sampled, of which the
majority based their conclusion using primary data and only two were
retrospective studies, using secondary data. Only 30% of the studies
were conducted in Nigeria, and 7% by social scientists with
quantitative and triangulation methodologies with very few recruiters.
Ninety percent (90%) of the studies reviewed, provided explanations
why child labourers could fall into the hands of recruiters due to; abject
poverty, risk in child migration, lack of education, and cultural belief
system. Others are, - the lack of jobs by the parents, parents‟ low
income, parents‟ migration, myth of recruiters of child labourers. The
study recommends the need for more sociological studies on the
networking of the recruiters of child labour in border Communities,
using only qualitative methodology to complement the existing
literature on child labour.

Copy Right, IJAR, 2023,. All rights reserved.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………....
Introduction:-
It is anticipated that 152 million young people would work overseas between 2012 and 2016. investigation carried
out in 2017 by Genève, Oryoie, and Tideman (2017). The most recent projections show that by 2020, 160 million
young people will be employed globally. Along with UNICEF, Lambon-Quayefo (2021). By the start of 2020, it is
expected that eight million more youngsters, or one in ten of all children globally, would start working as minors
overseas. Population expansion, extreme poverty, a lack of social safety, and the considerable closure of businesses
and educational institutions were the root reasons of the rise in COVID-19-related mortality (Adeparua, 2021;
UNICEF, 2021; ILO, 2012). Therefore, according to the International Labour Organization (2019), millions of
children who work as children do so on a full-time basis and are subject to the worst types of child labour, including
performing domestic work outside of the home (Basu, Das, and Dutta, 2010; Bilgen, Ozlem, and Serhat, 2016);
engaging in sexual acts that increase the risk of STIs (Bales, 2003; Roby, 2005; Willis and Barry, 2006); and
children who trade on the streets. Nearly all child labourers, according to Roggero, Mangiaterra, Bustreo, and

Corresponding Author:- Adeniran Peter Sunday 844

Address:-Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social SciencesLagos State University, Ojo,
Nigeria.
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Rosati, are more likely to have behavioural and emotional issues, emotional and mental health issues, as well as a
decreased tolerance for stress (2018). Additionally, they are more likely to get infectious diseases including malaria,
HIV/AIDS, and non-HIV (Abdalla, Salma, Jafer and Abdelgadir, 2019). The concept that child labour has benefits is
now supported by a number of research. Working-class children's social circumstances in America have evolved
with time, according to a 1994 research by Rosenberg and Zelizer. (2013). According to Wegmann (2003, 2004),
Woodhead (2004, 2006), and Bolin (2006), child labour increases a child's chances of excelling in school by
allowing them to realise their full physical and intellectual potential, as well as their self-esteem, and by teaching
them how to handle money. The benefits of group projects are also emphasised in the classroom. This was backed
by the views of Putnick and Bornstein (2015) and Bourdillon (2017), who thought that child labour had certain
intrinsic benefits, including financial rewards for guaranteeing one's survival and sustaining the level of life for one's
family.

If the children's education or their mental or physical health before the age of 18 are negatively impacted by these
tasks, which are carried out without parental supervision and without the participation of children and teenagers who
are at least 14 and enrolled in general, vocational, or technical schools or other training facilities, there may be
issues. This may be child labour (ILO Convention, 2011; Ortiz-Ospina, 2016). In light of this, the most recent
estimates of child labour (UNICEF, 2021; ILO, 2021) for five geographic regions—Africa, Arab States, Asia and
the Pacific, Americas, and Europe and Central Asia—found that, in absolute terms, nearly half of child labour (72.1
million) is found in Africa and another 62 million in the Asia and Pacific Region, with the remaining child labour
population being split among the Americas (11 million), Europe, and Central Asia (62 million) (1 m). ILO 2010 and
Adeparu 2021.

Asia uses less child labouras a result of Chinese regulations that uphold children's rights and mandate schooling
(Muscato, 2016). The International Labor Organization and several African governments have signed a
Memorandum of Understanding titled "Eliminating the Worst Forms of Child Labor in West Africa and
Strengthening Sub-Regional Cooperation via ECOWAS" (ILO). As of 2006, Mali, Benin, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast,
Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Niger, Liberia, Togo, Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, and
Senegal were the first 15 ECOWAS nations to openly endorse the idea. The UN and ILO provided examples. The
"Labor Act of Nigeria" included in Part III, Section 59, Subsections 1, 2, and 7 of the 1999 Constitution of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria forbids the use of children as forced labourers or as participants in any sort of economic
activity. Unfortunately, not all of the promises made by the Constitution and the Labor Act have been honoured. If
child labour in Nigeria is to be totally eliminated, more work needs to be done to put these restrictions into place.

Even though it is prohibited in many countries, some kids nevertheless work as domestic helpers, sell things on the
street, and engage in commercial sexual exploitation. Some nations, including Nigeria, have a lower legal working
age than the rest of the world. Given the lack of information on some of the most probable causes of child labour,
such as networking between the parents of these children and child labour recruiters in Nigeria, it is logical to draw
the conclusion that the practice will never be completely eradicated. This paradox served as the impetus for the
inquiry we conducted. This study analysed the findings of other studies on the topic to gain a better understanding of
child labour and the networking between recruiters and the parents of child labourers.

Theoretical Orientation
The inquiry is supported by the Social Action theory. The social action hypothesis is most often defended by Max
Weber (1864-1920). In one of his works, "Economy and Society," which was first released in the 1920s, Weber
founded sociology as a field concerned with the interpretive understanding of social action and, subsequently, with a
causal explanation of its path and effects (Haralambos and Holborn, 2013). It is a micro-perspective theory that
emphasises people's subjective states (Harvey, 2012). To behave responsibly, people must be conscious of and
educated about their environment. According to Coser, Weber argued that sociology should concentrate on the
interpretive knowledge of social behaviour, with its dubious explanation of its origins and effects (1977, pp. 217-
219). In light of this, he asks the following questions about social interaction: What first influences how individuals
behave? What potential long-term consequences may their actions have?

According to Coser (1977), Weber distinguished between four types of social behaviour: goal-rational activities,
valued-rational acts, affective or emotional actions, and conventional actions. Goal-rational behaviour may be
considered efficient from a rational point of view when supported by logical or scientific reasoning. For instance, the
objectives of an activity may be viewed as predetermined, self-sufficient objectives that could be met without the

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assistance of other components, or they could be viewed as objectives in and of themselves. For example, this goal
still exists even when it is used as a tool to achieve another goal. The goal of the activity is to acquire material
goods, such as a new car, a mountain getaway, or a trip to Europe. Coser (1977) asserts that individuals who
demonstrate value rationality use tactics to achieve their goals and adhere to a predetermined set of goals. Take a
soldier as an example who gives his life for his nation. He is not operating in a way that would enable him to realise
any specific, concrete goal, like riches. It places a strong focus on moral values like honour and patriotism. When
actors depict characters in emotionally charged contexts, affective or emotional activities are seen to be occurring. A
woman who is made fun of on a bus could feel driven to use violence in retaliation because she is so incensed and
upset by the behaviour. Instead than being motivated by a goal or moral code in this situation, the actor's emotional
reaction to a particular set of circumstances dictates their behaviour. So, a rage-fueled assault, whether physical or
verbal, is acceptable. Traditionalism is the technique of establishing a task's objectives and working methods based
on custom and tradition. This is based on an old custom. Because we don't fully understand what drives people to
behave in certain ways, things are done in such ways. For instance, extremely rigorous succession laws for group
leaders exist in certain communities that appear to be ancient (Coser, 1977:217-219).

Social action theory has a severe problem with its "methodological individualism." According to David Lee and
Howard Newby (1983), the aim of social action theory is to approach all social dynamics and forces as if they could
be explained (or reduced) to the intentions and deeds of lone people. Social action theory can be helpful in
explaining behaviour from the viewpoint of the actor, regardless of whether it is "goal or value reasonable,"
"successful," or "traditional." Additionally, it explains how social behaviour on an individual level eventually serves
as the foundation for social organisations (Trueman 2015; Oyedokun, 2016).

When applying this theory to the network of child labour recruiters, Weber mentions two issues with social action,
including: Why do people behave in particular ways? What message do they explicitly seek to convey by their
actions? The responses to these two questions are very important since the main objective of the study is to
determine the cause(s) of child labour by recruiters and parents of child labourers. to bring attention to the negative
effects of their participation in child labour. A person participates in social action and provides it value, according to
Weber. What effects does child labour have on employers and parents?

According to Coser, Weber's definition of goal-rational behaviour is a decision made without taking into account the
repercussions and typically without having the resources to do so in order to achieve a legitimate purpose (1977, pp.
217-219). Therefore, it is possible to think of child labour as a purposeful, advantageous behaviour. This might be
used as justification for the parents' and recruiters' exploitation of the children for financial benefit. In value-rational
action, the actor employs tactics to attain predetermined, arbitrary objectives. You think it's good for parents to
frequently employ children so they can provide for their families.

When an activity's methods and goals are connected, an affective or emotional action results; this action may be
spontaneous or emotional. the same manner that fury may result in verbal or physical abuse. Employers and
recruiters frequently utilise young workers, which fosters abuse and violence. Additionally, the hiring manager or
employer can't be friendly with the young workers since they are focused with personal matters that have nothing to
do with their problems. This type of behaviour is referred to as customary action when the ends and means are set by
custom and tradition. The parents of these children or the recruiters may be from purportedly remote regions where
they have seen other families use child labour. As a result, it takes on a life of its own. In the end, culture is
permeated.

Methods:-
Google Scholar was used to find the research articles mentioned in the study. The search is restricted to English-
language works published between January 1, 2011, and December 31, 2021, that addressed the subject and
employed jargon and key terms. The recruiters for child labour in this network span border areas, developing
nations, child labour, and child labour. Both worldwide and regional study on these subjects were represented by the
usage of Africa and Nigeria. For the review, 40 publications in all were consulted. Table 1 displays the key
characteristics of the products.

Table 1:- Characteristics of Studies Reviewed.

S/N Authors/year Location of study Sample Sample size Methodology
published population

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1 Adama, (2014 Nigeria Geo-political zone NA Cross-sectional

NOI Polls on survey
educated
Nigerians
2 Adeborna& Johnson, Ghana Existing literature NA Review of Existing
2015 Literature
3 Adeogun, 2013 Ekiti State, Parents living in 400 parents Multistage random
Nigeria. Ekiti technique
4 Adeoye, Agbonlahor, Ogun State, 128 rural farmers‟ 352 Children Multistage
Ashaolu, &Ugalahi, Nigeria household between ages 5 sampling technique
2017 to 17.
5 Ahsan, 2018 Pakistan NA NA Theoretical paper
6 Ajagbe& Adegbite, Ogbomoso area of All relevant 200 respondents Stratified sampling
2014. Oyo State, respondents to the technique
Nigeria. study.
7 Alawari, 2014 Anambra, Nigeria Secondary school 300 respondents Qualitative with
children who are Key Informant
working Interview
8 Asamu, 2015 Ibadan, Enugu and Child labourers 826 respondents Survey method
Kaduna, Nigeria with questionnaire
9 Avais, 2014. Pakistan All girls working 50 respondents Purposive sampling
in the carpet technique
weaving industry
10 Bilgen,Ozlem, & Turkey Data from the 18, 911 Retrospective study
Serhat, 2016 2003 Turkey respondents
Demography and
Health Survey
11 Bourdilon, 2015 Zimbabwe NA NA Theoretical paper
12 Bourdilon, Zimbabwe Existing literature NA Review of Existing
Aufseeser, Carothers, Literature
Lecoufle, & 2017
13 Cleghom, 2017 America NA NA Theoretical paper
14 Das, 2012 India Households 124,680 Retrospective study
sample of respondents of
National Sample which 79,306
Survey (NSS) for were in rural
61st round (2004- and 45,374 in
2005) urban areas.
15 Haddad, 2017. Iran NA Data collected Retrospective study
from Iranian within 5 years
Household‟s interval.
Income and
Expenditures
Survey (2005
and 2010)
16 Hamenoo, & Dako, Ghana Children below 25 participants Qualitative with
2018. the working age In-depth interview
of 18.
17 Holgado, Jariego, Colombia Children who 3,302 children Quantitative data
Ramos-Vidal & participated in the were sampled collection was
Sanudo, 2014 child labour adopted and data
eradication was analyzed
program through a logistic
“Educame regression model.
Primero

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Colombia”
18 Jack, 2011. Gold Coast, NA NA Theoretical paper
Ghana
19 Khaleb, Raheem, Egypt Data from the 20, 560 children Quantitative data
Sartorius & Ismail, 2014 Egypt (5-17) engaging collection. Using
2019 Demography in economic multivariate
Health Survey activities. Bayesian geo-
(EDHS). Never additive model for
married- children demography and
aged 5-17 years. socio-economic
factors for working
children.
20 Mukherjee & Das, India Data from the 10,400 male Survey
2015 National Sample children in methodology with
Survey Urban areas in longitudinal study.
Organization India. The
(NSSO), the survey period
55th(1999-2000) was divided into
and the 61st four stages.
(2004-05).
21 Mukherjee & Pal, Bombay in India Children in NA Quantitative with
2016 Andhra Pradesh longitudinal survey
22 Muscato, 2016 China NA NA Theoretical paper
23 Nengroo, & Bhat, Kashmir Valley in Parents of child 88 parents quantitative with
2015 India labourers responded the use of a
questionnaire
24 Nwokoro, 2011 South-East, NGOs/CSOs NA A review of
Nigeria reports, school Existing Literature
owners, and an In-depth
government Interview were
officials, religious conducted.
leaders, parents,
children, existing
literature
25 Obed, 2018 Rural and Urban Government 60 respondents Semi-structured
Ghana officials, NGO in all. interviews were
representatives, conducted.
parents whose
children
were/were not
involved in child
labour
26 Ofuoku, Ovharhe, Akwa-Ibom, Arable crop 369 children Three states were
&Agbamu, 2020 Bayelsa, Cross farmers registered between the randomly selected
River, Delta, Edo, with their ages of 6-17 and multistage
and River State in respective sampling was
the Niger Delta agricultural utilized.
Region of Nigeria development
programs (ADP)
households
27 Oluyemi, Abubakar, Ilorin, Nigeria Child labourers in 20 participants Qualitative with In-
Abudulateef, Ilorin metropolis depth interview
Atolagbe&Motolani,
2018
28 Oluwatoba, 2012 Ile-Ife, Osun State, Parents living in 200 parents of Survey method and

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Nigeria Ile-Ife child labourers data analyzed using

Pearson Product
Moment
Correlation
29 Ortiz-Ospina, 2016 Multicountry NA NA International
LabourOrganisation
countries
30 Oryoie, Alwang, & Zimbabwe Existing literature NA Review of Existing
Tideman, 2017 Literature
31 Osment,2014 Department of Existing literature NA Review of Existing
Human Literature
Geography,
University of
Lund, Sweden
32 Putnick, & Bornstein, Multicountry Families with 186,795 The survey method
2015 Children between families in 30 was adopted with a
7 to 14 years old. low and middle- cross-sessional
income approach.
countries
(LMIC)
33 Raqib, 2017 Afghanistan in NA NA Theoretical paper
Asia
34 Rosenberg, 2013 America NA NA Theoretical paper
35 Salisu, 2012 Ifo, Ogun State, Hawking children Data was Qualitative through
Nigeria on the street and collected In-depth interview
community through a small
leader. number of in-
depth interview
cases (O‟Leary
2010:105). One
community
leader
interviewed
36 Samonova, 2014 The 2nd Global Existing literature NA Review of Existing
Virtual Literature
Conferences,
University College
Dublin, Germany
37 Sharmistha, 2011 India Rural households NA Survey method
in northern and with questionnaire
eastern India
38 Shehu, Ibarahim, & Nigeria Representative of NA Survey method
Nura 2015 poor households with questionnaire.
The univariate
probit model was
used to analyze the
data.
39 Wood, 2011 America Existing literature NA Review of Existing
Literature
40 Zane, Irwin, & Multicountry NA NA Theoretical paper
Walker, (2016)

Findings and Discussion:-

The basic features of the articles are shown in Table 1. Six of the publications were from Europe, eleven from Asia,
twenty from Africa (including 12 from Nigeria), and three were the results of cross-border research partnerships. 42

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studies were included, with 32 of the 40 being empirical. Eight of the 40 papers were theoretical, making the total
number of articles 40. Three studies made use of a retrospective study's worth of secondary data. The study's
conclusions are broken down into the following categories: types and characteristics of child labour, overt causes of
child labour, networks and distribution methods used by child labour recruiters, misconceptions surrounding child
labour recruiters, and parental involvement in child labour.

Nature and types of child labour

Nine research looked into the various types and patterns of child labour in industrialised and developing countries
(22.5 percent). It is crucial to assess the kinds of professions that children engage in, their ages when they work, and
other aspects because the eight studies that were included covered such a wide range of child labour scenarios
(Bourdilon, 2015; Bilgen, Ozlem and Serhat, 2016; Ortiz-Ospina, 2016; Obed, 2018; Khaleb et al., 2019).
Eliminating child labour is crucial because it harms children by inhibiting their healthy development (Ortiz-Ospina,
2016; Oryoie et al., 2017). Bourdilon (2015) asserts that child labour is a violation of fundamental human rights,
obstructs healthy development, and may have long-term detrimental effects on a kid's physical and mental health. It
also affects kids' intellectual development and school attendance (Putnick and Bornstein, 2015). These studies
demonstrate how individuals and nations are tackling the causes and consequences of child labour while working
within the constraints given by their specific degree of knowledge, circumstances, cultures, legal systems, and
institutional capacities. This explains why the idea's definition and interpretation seem to be difficult to grasp.

According to Bourdilon's (2015) and Bilgen, Ozlem, and Serhat's (2015) research, people who work for money or
without payment outside of the family are categorised as child labourers (2016). Minors who work for pay or for
free in factories, street hawking, workshops, companies, mines, and the service industry—such as domestic labour—
while still children are considered to be doing so in violation of the ILO Minimum Age Convention No. 138 from
1973 and the ILO Worst Forms of Child Labor Convention No. 182 from 1999. For instance, many young people in
Nigeria work as hawkers, bus drivers, and beggars (Adamu, 2014; Asamu, 2015). For instance, Adamu (2014)
discovered that 68 percent of kids worked as street vendors or beggars (31 percent). Child labour refers to the
employment of minors, some of whom start their jobs as early as age 6, as domestic servants and child porters in
Ghana's Accra and Ashanti regions (Obed, 2018). According to Khaled et al (2019) research, a sizable fraction of
Egyptian minors engages in domestic labour, forced begging, and commercial sexual exploitation.

A practise that robs children of their innocence, potential, and dignity while also putting them to circumstances that
are detrimental to their physical and mental development is referred to as child labour, according to the research
stated earlier. Therefore, when a child is forced to work in a job that puts them in danger physically,
psychologically, socially, or morally, interferes with their education, prevents them from going to school, forces
them to permanently stop learning, or forces them to try to balance work with excessive demands with attending
school, it is considered child labour.

Manifest Factors responsible for child labour

It is thought that poverty is what leads to child labour most commonly since the financial security of these houses
rely largely on the income of these kids. Child labour may occur when a family is facing economic difficulty or
uncertainty, when a caregiver falls ill suddenly, or when a family loses its main source of income. A correlation
between the growth in child labour and the bad economy that causes family poverty was demonstrated in 14 of these
research, or 37% of all evaluations. The Head Tax was a brand-new set of tax regulations that were implemented at
the time by the colonial empires of the British and French. Everyone was required to pay taxes, sometimes even 8-
year-old children, to help cover the costs of the local colonial administration. Child labour was therefore promoted
throughout the latter years of colonialism in Africa (Jack, 2011). To be able to pay their taxes and take care of their
daily expenses, many parents made sure their kids had jobs. Because of the complicated connections between
economic and cultural elements that viewed imperial power, experience from the late colonial era demonstrates that
families and children were under pressure to embrace views.

Because of their vulnerability to and desire to work as flexible, unskilled labour for corporations or dishonest
relatives, Ahsan thinks that young people are typically the victims, regardless of any potential familial issues (2018).
Many families are compelled to use their kids as labourersin order to survive (Holgado, Jariego, Ramos-Vidal,
Sanudo, 2014; Haddad, 2017; Hamenoo and Dako, 2018). However, it is believed that child labour in Nigeria, where
it usually represents the family's sole source of money, is mostly a result of poverty (Adegun, 2013; Shehu, Ibrahim,
Nura, 2015; Oluyemi, 2018). The prevalence of child labour in Nigeria has been linked to a number of factors,

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including widespread rural-urban migration (Osment, 2014), farm and household size, cultural factors, political
factors (Adeoye, Agbonlahor, Ashaolu, Ugalahi, 2017; Ofuoku, Ovharhe, Agbamu, 2020), and a lack of financial
support for the children's education due to low family income.

According to the aforementioned data, child labour is on the rise and poverty is a problem in both industrialised and
developing nations. For the purpose of conducting research, gathering data, and keeping track of the issue,
governments must keep a careful eye on the elements that contribute to child labour. Despite the fact that most
nations have sufficient legislative protection, governments frequently fail to monitor real practises.

Channels and networking of recruiters of child labour

In only a few research, the issue of how recruiters use young children as child labourers has been briefly discussed.
Pictures of children were present on 4 percent or 11 percent of the commodities under inspection. Working has been
a tradition throughout human history (Nwokoro, 2011; Oishimaya, 2019). For instance, slavery, perhaps the best-
known instance of child labour, was a thriving industry that relied on the networks of influential business men or
women and a select few strategically placed people to flourish. Since ancient times, it has existed in a variety of
forms in both developed and developing nations (Nwokoro, 2011). After the contracts were signed, the kids were
kidnapped to America and forced to masquerade as street performers. Sometimes, child labour recruiters deceive
parents into enrolling their children in apprenticeships by claiming that they are doing so to teach the children how
to play an instrument (Wood, 2011; Cleghom, 2017). At this period, a large number of young Italian men and
women were enrolled, and the recruiters, or padrone in Italian, were paid for their work. Children who violated their
"padrone" master's orders would frequently suffer horrendous punishment (Wood, 2011; Cleghom, 2017).

Children from less developed regions of Ethiopia used to be sent to Addis Abeba, a major African metropolis, where
they were forced to perform physically demanding tasks including mining, selling commodities, polishing shoes,
and other manual labour for little to no pay or under duress (Oishimaya, 2019). This slave labour was occasionally
converted into chains or used to settle debts. These kidnapped children are maybe the toughest to rescue since their
parents or guardians are paying them to clean houses while still benefiting from their labour, and because they aren't
available if the carpet owner has bought them (Oishimaya, 2019). These studies, however, failed to mention that
child migration, which can occasionally be unlawful or irregular, is one method for kids to travel and subsequently
expose themselves to child labour recruiters.

The myth of the recruiters of child labour

According to five surveys, 13% of employers that take on young workers believe they are doing them a favour by
offering them a job and money to aid with their financial difficulties. Sadly, the main justification for hiring children
has nothing to do with how important they are to the economy (Nwokoro, 2011; Wood, 2011; Zane, Irwin and
Recczek, 2016; Bourdillon, 2017; Cleghom, 2017). Contrary to what they claimed, a research conducted in 2016 by
Zane, Irwin, and Recczek revealed that people who enrol these youngsters don't actually care about their human
rights. If so, supply chain reports of unethical behaviour would have been investigated to find out more about the
young children. So, ignorance on purpose was at play. The Italian "padrones" (employers of Italian immigrants),
who employed youngsters as slaves while disguising them as apprentices, engaged in similar behaviours (Wood,
2011; Nwokoro, 2011).

Unexpectedly, managing children is less difficult than managing adults. Additionally, they have a higher chance of
being fired at any time, are less likely to protest unfair working conditions, are less likely to join unions, are less
aware of their legal rights, and are less obnoxious, whiny, and adaptable. Therefore, it is essential to stress the
financial advantages of work for children. Because they are concerned about losing the small amount of money their
children may bring into the home, parents are less likely to file police complaints (Cl) (2017). According to
Bourdillon (2017), children who sell goods on the street will gain financial incentives for supporting their family
and themselves as well as learn the value of money and develop a legal source of income as opposed to begging or
stealing.

Parents’ involvement in child labour

A connection between different family system factors and parental involvement in child labour was hypothesised to
exist in 16 papers, or 40% of the research examined. Rural American parents historically thought of a new baby as a
potential helpful labourer because the nation's agricultural investment required more labor-intensive employment
with more children in the 18th century, whether it was planting crops, caring for poultry, or building fences

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(Rosenberg, 2013). The ability of parents to maximise the potential for productivity of their children has long been
acknowledged in the country, according to Cleghom's 2017 study, which found that the post-Civil War American
legal system permitted parental control of the children regardless of the parent's line of work. The supervisor also
considered the child's height when determining the pay offer for any physically demanding tasks, and the child's
earnings went toward comparable family-supporting pursuits (Cleghom, 2017).

Parents who cherish their childhood memories of helping their parents may encourage their children to feel the same
way (Sharmistha, 2011; Avais, 2014). The sociodemographic and economic circumstances of parents, such as
poverty, inadequate childcare, exposing children to various levels of violence, living in an area where children are
easily influenced by their peers, parental survival rate, and household size (Khaled et al., 2019), have a significant
impact on the level of involvement of parents of child labourers because it boosts the income of some families.
Migration of parents is another possibility. Parents' absence, carelessness, and neglect as parents expose their covert
involvement in child labour. Children are at risk of being contacted by a stranger or someone looking to use them as
child labour when parents leave the house (Ragib, 2017; Hamenoo and Dako, 2018).

Parental ignorance increases the likelihood that both parents and children will engage in child labour because it is
more difficult for parents to understand how their actions affect their children (Das, 2012; Oluwatoba, 2012; Ajagbe
and Adegbite, 2014; Mukherjee and Pal, 2016). A parent education programme is therefore required (Sharmistha,
2011; Nengroo and Bhat, 2015; Mukherjee and Das, 2015), and if the parents are educated, there is a possibility that
the prevalence of child labour will decrease. Even though some parents genuinely care about their kids' education,
many feel pressure to send their future stars into the workforce due to certain socioeconomic circumstances, such as
a lack of funding for their education and a lack of government oversight of laws defending kids' rights (Oluwatoba,
2012; Samonova, 2014; Asamu, 2015; Muscato, 2016).

Conclusion:-
The majority of research on the networking of child labour recruiters only skims the issue of root causes and makes
the assumption that those who engage in child labour and the exploitation that surrounds it are widely known. As a
result of the reviewed literature, many academics have concentrated on the factors that cause child labour, such as
gender bias, polygamous family origins, parent unemployment or parent illiteracy, cultural issues, and a lack of
family shelter. Famine, parent deaths, significant rural-urban migration, a lack of parental care, a lack of education
for children, and insufficient government laws on child labour are additional factors that contribute to child labour.
Other investigations focused on the harmful outcomes of child labour, including rape, pregnancy, HIV/AIDS,
excruciating pain, and physical and mental illness.

Recognize that parents and recruiters/employers both play important roles because they are the actual actors in the
situation. The problem hasn't received enough attention from academics, though. Border Communities haven't
received enough attention, despite the fact that some of these kids are occasionally forced into child labour. Hence,
this study is an attempt to explore this aspect by interrogating the network that exists between recruiters/employers and
parents of child labourers in selected border Communities in southwestern Nigeria.

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