Children from poor families sent off to work in high income households in Pakistan.
Children under the age of 15 are prohibited to work in Pakistan under child labor laws however still an estimated 3.3 million are forced to work in servitude (source: unicef.org) in order to supplement income needed by their families. Many within this group are young girls aged 5-15 who are sent from poor families to work as maids in the homes of those more well off often times at the expense of a school education. Despite the national laws as well as those laws put in place with the ratification of the Child Rights Convention, there is little to no protection for many of these children leaving them subject to both physical and mental abuse.
Orphan Care Organization, partner organisation to Child Rights Eurasia, receives many young girls who have experienced being child labourers into their care. The organisation looks to provide these girls (sometimes as young as 6 years old) with access to free schooling, mental health support, physical activities, as well as a safe haven. The aim, when possible, is to reunite them with their immediate or extended families once they have reached a certain level of education or schooling and at which point the risk for child labor has been reduced.
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