P/H

Government of Uganda-UNICEF Country Programme [2001-2005]

ARMED CONFLICT, HIV/AIDS AND CHILD LABOUR IN UGANDA

Field Assessment Report

by Tumushabe Joseph Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics

Makerere University

September 15, 2000

LIST OF ACRONYMS AIDS

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

BECCAD

Basic Education Child Care and Adolescent Development

CBO

Community Based Organisation

COPE

Complementary Opportunities in Education

CRC

Convention on the Rights of the Child

ESAR

Eastern and Southern Africa Region

FTDA

Federation of Uganda Women Lawyers

GoU

Government of Uganda

GTZ

German Technical Co-operation Organisation

HIV

Human Immune-Deficiency Virus

IDP

Internally Displaced People

ILO

International Labour Organisation

DLO-DPEC

ILO-International Program on the Elimination of Child labour

LC

Local Council

NCC

National Council for Children

NGO

Non-Governmental Organisation

UN1CEF

United Nations Children's Emergency Fund

UNPAC

Uganda National Program of Action for Children

UPE

Universal Primary Education

UWESO

Uganda Women's Effort to Save Orphans

CONTENTS List of Acronvms...."...................."....".........""""—""".—•—••"•—••"""""—"—•""••••—•—••—•—" Table of Contents ..................................................................................................................... iii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................-.1 1.1

Background............................................................—.........——................................................. 1

1.2

The HTWAIDS Epidemic in Uganda................................................................................ 2

1.3

Violence and Armed Conflict .................................................................................................. 3

1.4

Child Labour............................................................................"."......"......"............................ 4

1.5

Legislative Framework and Policy Environment.....................——......—.———.................... 5

1.6

Purpose and Objectives ofthe Study........................................................................................ 6

Chapter Two: METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH ...................................................................7 2.1

Selection of Study Sites and participation of leadership....................................................... 7

2.1.1

Participation of district leadership ...................................................................................8

2.1.2

Participation of District Officers...................................................................................... 8

2.1.3

Participation of Sub-county leadership................................................................................... 9

2.1.4

Meeting with village leadership............................................................................................ 10

2.1.5

Summary of preparatory activities........................................................................................ 11

2.2

The study Team....................................................................................................................... 11

2.3

Study design.................................................................................................................. 12

2.4

Study respondents and Methods...................................................................................... 12

Chapter Three: ARMED CONFLICT, HTV/AIDS AND CHILD LABOUR: FIELD FINDINGS........................................................................................... 15 3.1

Introduction............................................................................................................................. 15

3.2

Magnitude of Child Labour............................................................................................ 16

3.3

Changes in Domestic/farm work: The Gender perspective................................................17

IV

3.4

Armed conflict and Child Labour ............•.............................................-...-.—.................—. 19

3.4.1

Causes of child labour under armed conflict................................................................. 20

3.4.2

Children's Working conditions under armed conflict................................................................. 25

3.4.3

Effects of child labour in armed conflict situations .................................................................... 26

3.5

HTV/AIDS and the Type of Work for Childrsn.............................................................27

3.5.1

Reasons for Work for AIDS orphans........................................................................27

3.4.1

Causes of child labour under armed conflict................................................................. 20

3.4.2

Children's Working conditions under armed conflict................................................................. 25

3.4.3

Effects of child labour in armed conflict situations .................................................................... 26

3.5.

Working conditions for AIDS orphans ..........................................................................28

3.6

Cross-cutting issues in AIDS and Armed Conflict.........................................................33

3.6.1

Remuneration ...............................................................................................................33

3.6.2

Care when sick or injured...................................................................................................... 35

3.6.3

Feeding .................................................................................................................................. 36

3.6.4

Accomrnodation..................................................................................................................... 38

3.6.5

Sexual and other Abuse in Child Labour .......................................................................39

3.7

Psycho-Social Conditions and Child Labour........................,.........................................43

Chapter Four: HTV/AIDS/Armed Conflict effects and Children's Rights...................................... 48

4.1

Conclusion.............................................................................................................................. 48

4.2

Discussion and Recommendations.................................................................................49

References.................................................................................................................................55

Appendix 1: Working Children's Field Survey Questionnaire.......................................................... 56 Appendix II: Crosscutting issues to discuss in all Group Discussions with children, parents, local leaders and teachers............................................................................. 64

Appendix III: Summary of the Policy framework for addressing the problem of Child Labour in Uganda.............................................................................................................68

Chapter One: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background In Uganda, like elsewhere in Africa, children have always worked within their families.

They

participated in cooking, washing, and fetching firewood and water. Gradually through observation,

guidance and supervision children were prepared for the roles expected of them during adulthood. During this process of socialisation children grew to maturity. The important phenomenon in this environment was the fact that children's work was devoid of exploitation. This is what has always been referred to as child work, which is permissible, if not desirable, for children's upbringing.

On the other hand, child labour refers to work which is hazardous and by its nature and circumstances

of performance jeorpadises the health, safety, education and morals of the child. The general criteria

of determining child labour being the age of the child, nature of work, duration the child has to spend on the work and criteria for its performance. There is a mounting body of evidence that children in Uganda have for long been subjected to various forms of child abuse especially related to child labour. The 1991 Population and Housing Census and

the 1992-3 Integrated Household survey revealed that one in four children between aged 10-14 years

were involved in some form of work. From the various urban and rural domestic servants of middle class elite homes, to the small peasant shambas, large plantations and cattle keeping range-lands

working children are a familiar site. In the expanding entertainment industry, the quarries and construction sites, the garages repairing second hand Japanese vehicles, and the informal commercial

sector, the wheels of Uganda's economy are largely oiled by the sweat of children.

Today, the traditional expectation of children to work as part of their up bringing, childhood development and education, has been replaced by the struggle for survival on the part of children. With armed conflict and HIV/AIDS, every principle of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

(CRC) is at risk of being violated. Whether it is the right to education, development or health, or

whether it is the right to self-protection from exploitation and harm, all these are endagered. Literature now abounds that whether it is armed conflict or AIDS any condition that disrupts the normal situation and growth of the family, kills off or seriously incapacitates adults from carrying out their normal activities, enhances participation of children in chores that would otherwise be performed

by adults (Barnett et. al. 1995, Tumushabe, et. al. 1993, 1997). /

With AIDS and prolonged internal conflict many children are orphaned or born to parents who are themselves totally helpless to provide for their care and up-bringing. In this environment children are

expected to contribute substantially, if not wholly, to their basic needs such as clothing, food, medical care and formal education. With the trio scourges of AIDS, internal conflict and poverty, the care is often required by their parents, brothers and sisters as well.

In the design of the 2001-2005 Government of Uganda/UNICEF a human rights approach to programming was adopted. To ensure optimum attainment of the rights of children, emphasis was put on the need to address a range of human rights principles relating to children, with a view to ensure appropriate and realistic action is taken from national to household level. The Ministry of Labour and Social Development felt it necessary to collect benchmark data and information that will enhance its

capacity to plan and develop strategies to ensure realisation of the rights of working children. In line with this, UNICEF and the Government of Uganda have included children orphaned and affected by AIDS, including those affected by armed conflict many of who are in child labour situation.

To facilitate the GOU-UNICEF Country Programme (2001-2005) planning process, between July and August 2000, the Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics, Makerere University carried out a

study on the effects of HTV/AIDS and Armed Conflict hi the districts of Kabarole and Lira. Two

study teams each handling one district employed rapid assessment procedures and effected the fieldwork.

1.2 The HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Uganda The first cases of AIDS were reported in Uganda in 1982. Since then, the HIV/ATDS pandemic has taken its toll, resulting in lowering of life expectancy from 54 years to 40.5 years (GOU-UNICEF Country Programme, 2001-2005). At the end of 1997, it was estimated that at nearly Imillion people (or 9.51% of the adult population aged between 15 and 49 years) were living with HIV/ATDS, and that AIDS had accounted for 1.8 million deaths by that date. It is also reported that AIDS is

responsible for 12% of annual deaths in Uganda and has surpassed malaria and other diseases as the leading cause of deaths amongst individuals aged between 15 and 45 years.

JL

AIDS has tremendously increased the social costs of caring for the sick people and orphaned children by communities and households. A GOU-UN1CEF study in 1996, found that in nearly all HTV/AIDS

affected families, many orphans and children were forced to leave school and care for themselves and other family members or provide nursing care for sick relatives (Mwaka and Tumushabe, 1996). As a

result of HTV/AIDS the extended family system was strained to the limits due to the large family size and the fact that absence of young adults often entails the merging of several children under the care of older orphans or grandparents.

It was estimated that by the end of 1997, there were 1.1 million orphans under ISyears of age (due to AIDS), and a further 0.6 million youth or young adults who had been orphans when they were hi the

same age bracket. Even with the recent downturn in sero-prevalence, the figure is projected to peak by 2010 but still to remain unusually high up to 2020. Many of these children live in child-headed

households. Much of the land of the deceased parents, farms lies fallow or is used for subsistence crops only.

Approximately 44% of Ugandans live in absolute poverty. When orphans are taken into other homes they are often treated badly (made to do twice the household chores as the children of their new care takers, segregated at meal times, given less food or less nutritious food and have limited access to beddings). It is estimated that 16% of children aged between 15 and 18 years are in labour force

(mainly as unpaid family workers). The same children are more vulnerable to other rights violations, such as exploitation by greedy relatives or neighbours who do not fulfil their rights to inheritance, education, health and other social services.

Amidst this seemingly hopeless situation, there is a reason for hope. Recent data indicate a significant declining trend in HIV sero-prevalence and incidence. In urban sentinel site surveillance through

antenatal clinics all sites showed evidence of significant decline through the first hah0 of the 1990s-by as much as 10% to 15% in some sites. This has resulted from increased knowledge leading to

avoidance of risky behaviours, especially in the younger age groups.

3

1.3

Violence and Armed Conflict

Armed conflict in Uganda started with the 1979 Liberation War. It went on throughout the early

1980s with the districts in the immediate neighbourhood of Kampala being largely affected by a the 1981 - 1986 Guerrilla War.

The period 1987 up to today saw an uprising hi the northern and

Eastern parts of Uganda that led many families to be displaced from their means of survival into protected villages or camps. Though Eastern Uganda was largely pacified hi the early 1990s, fresh incursions from across the borders as well as the increased cattle raids from the north Eastern region of Karamoja resulted hi considerable displacement of the population within the region and in neighbouring districts.

From 1997, the insurgency of the magnitude that characterised northern Uganda throughout the last one-and a-half decade was extended to the Western region of Uganda. This has resulted hi large displacement of the population many of who have either fled to towns or internally displaced persons camps.

Some of the displaced people are however living with relatives in safer locations. It is

estimated that nationally about 26 districts are currently affected by armed conflict or its effects.

According to the new GoU-UNICEF Country programme (2001-2005) armed conflict has increased separation of families with some family members living hi towns (mainly children to avoid abduction),

others hi camps while some few continue to hang on in rural areas. With the new settings in the camps and protected areas more based on individual households rather than on clan or extended family networks, more and more children have not had the support of extended family and often lacked adequate parental care.

1.4 Child Labour Child labour has been identified as a major social problem in Uganda. Although no official national data can verify the situation, more than 2.5 million children are expected to be engaged in child labour

activities. Engagement in child labour is very often known to be detrimental to children's education, destroying their childhood and their rights to normal development and progress.

The problem of child labour is associated with rapid increase hi the population, poverty, the FnV/ATDS scourge, decline of economic and social services of the 1970s and 80s as well as the negative effects of the economic reform programmes such as retrenchments and cut-backs in public

4

spending. Declining wages and producer prices have further fuelled the plight of poor households leading to household inability to provide for all their members especially children.

According to the World 46% of the population of Uganda still live in absolute poverty and Uganda

was ranked the 20th poorest country in the world. HIV/AIDS and the persistent civil strife compound Uganda's poverty. The phenomenon of single parent and child headed households occurring as a result of HIV/AIDS or armed conflict associated mortality and displacement has put a strain on many already impoverished families (Luyima, 2000). Uganda has an estimated 1.7 million orphans resulting from AIDS a figure expected to rise to 3.5 million within 10 years (UNICEF, 2000). Many of these children are staying in child headed households or with grandparents who are themselves in need of

care. Left on their own for personal survival or with an additional burden of caring for siblings and grand parents such children have become part of the potential child labourers.

1.5 Legislative Framework and Policy Environment Uganda is a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1990) and is in the process of

ratifying a number of other important conventions aimed at eliminating child labour abuses and recognising fully the children's rights. The last decade has seen Government undertake bold policy and programme measures aimed at protection of the Rights of the Child.1 Primary among these are the clauses in the Uganda Constitution that recognise the rights of the Child, the Uganda National

Programme of Action for Children and the commencement of Universal Primary Education. These and other policy measures provide answers to the problem of child labour but are faced with the new challenges and environment occurring from such scenarios as the increased adult mortality due to

HIV/AIDS and continued armed conflict.

In 1996 the Government of Uganda ratified one of the most comprehensive children's laws in the ESAR - the Uganda Children's statute. It is an Act to "reform and consolidate the law relating to children, to provide for the care, protection and maintenance of children, provide for local authority

support for children, to establish a family and Children Court ... ". This statute, which replaces all Acts of Parliament related to children, was designed to protect children's welfare through codifying and consolidating the law and making its implementation a local responsibility.

1

The articles in the CRC, the African Charter on the Rights of the Child and the Uganda Constitution, which relate to Child Labour, are presented in Appendix 3. £

1.6

Purpose and objectives of the study

The rapid assessment is aimed at generating an overview of child labour situation in two selected districts of Uganda. Emphasis is directed toward, but not limited to, exploring the relationship between child labour in domestic/family work, HIV/AJDS and armed conflict. More specifically the assessment set out to:

i)

Identify the type of labour male and female children are involved in and areas of concentration in the two selected districts,

ii)

Make estimation on the magnitude of child labour after consulting key duty bearers at district, sub-county, parish, and community levels,

iii)

Assess factors prompting children to be pushed to work.

iv)

Study the working conditions and terms of service for domestic/family work as well as work outside the home environment,

v)

. Assess the relationship between the child labourers and their parental families and/or remaining relatives.

vi)

Assess the quantity and quality of basic services available including education,

vii)

Determine the physical, moral and psychological well being of the studied children; with specific focus on orphans and children affected by armed conflict.

viii)

Prepare a final report on qualitative and quantitative indicators of rights realisation and/or lack of realisation by the studied children.

6

Chapter Two: METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH

2.1

Selection of Study Sites and participation of leadership

The assessment was carried out in the two purposively selected districts of Kabarole and Lira. In the selection of the districts the Department of Labour and UNICEF Country offices were consulted. In

addition wide consultations were made with NGOs who are working with UNICEF and the Department of Labour. These consultations generally centred on the suitability of the study districts as well as the methodology for this assessment.

The two districts were selected because of their unique experiences with regard to HIV/AIDS and Armed conflict. Lira district had for a long time (over 7 years) experienced intermittent cattle raids from marauding Karimajong warriors who often came to rustle cattle, steal and destroy property and

rape women.

In addition the district had experienced the initial armed insurgency which though had

been largely controlled continued to simmer not totally dying out. As a result the district had a population of internally displaced persons living mainly in Lira Town suburbs and other trading

centres where security was more guaranteed. Lake Kioga whose shoreline is dominated by several fishing villages where AIDS mortality has been notably high largely covers the southern border of Lira district.

Kabarole District on the other hand is currently experiencing fresh armed insurgency with about half

of the district having experienced rebel attacks over the last three years. In the northern and north western part of the district bordering the mountainous Kasese and Bundibugyo districts some sections of the populations have fled their homes and are either living in military protected villages or camps or are staying with relatives in lore secure locales.

The district also has experienced severe ADDS

mortality in the past which though on a downward trend, continues to affect a large section of the

young adult population leaving many orphans and straining the community's capacity to provide care. The district has a variety of economic activities including banana brewing and a vibrant tea industry,

which has an insatiable demand for labour.

7

2.1.1

Participation of district leadership

Prior to the actual field work the lead researcher in every district as well as one Research Assistant undertook a reconnaissance visit to the district. The purpose of this visit was to carry out a number of

preparatory activities at the district, sub-county and parish levels to facilitate the actual fieldwork. The following activities were effected in the reconnaissance visits:

In every district there are three principal actors namely the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) who is responsible for the day to day running of the district and supervises all the departments. He reports to the Local Council Five (LC V) Chairperson (at present they are all men in the 45 Districts) or the elected political head of the district. Finally, Resident District Commissioner is an appointee of the

President in the district and is largely responsible for the security of the district as well as political mobilisation activities.

It was therefore necessary to introduce this study to the above persons in the district for obtaining permission of working hi the district as well as ensuring future co-operation in case of need for intervention and remedial action to the problems entailed in child labour. In the reconnaissance visits therefore separate meetings were held with these leaders in which:

(a) The study was introduced to the district leadership and decision making bodies.

(b) Permission to conduct the study was sought and letters of introduction of the study team were sought and obtained for ease of reaching the lower levels of administration and communities of study.

(c) A broad background picture of the child-labour, AIDS, and armed conflict situation in the district was obtained.

(e) Assistance in mobilisation of key government officers, political and other leaders that would have a bearing on the study or emerging actions. These officers knowledge was deemed and proved essential in the selection of the study sites within the district.

1

2.1.2

Participation of District Officers

In each district the reconnaissance team held meetings with a number of officers to: •

Introduce the Child labour study to these duty bearers and seek information about the other key

persons and organisations dealing with HIV/AIDS orphans, as well as internally displaced persons.

•

Obtain an insight into the issues and magnitude of child labour, HIV/AIDS and armed conflict.

•

Attempt to identify secondary sources of data and information on the phenomenon of child labour.

•

On the basis of the information provided and the purpose and objectives of the study carry out a purposive selection of the possible study sites.

The following officers were met in both districts: 1. District Planner/Statistician

2. Probation and Welfare Officer and District Labour Officer 3. Secretaries for children, youth and women affairs 4. District Director of Health Services (DDKS) 5. District Education Officer (DEO) and Inspector of schools

6. Community Development Officer (CDO) After the meeting, the Probation and Welfare offices were requested and accepted to accompany the reconnaissance teams to the selected sub-counties where the leadership was met.

2.1.3

Participation of Sub-county leadership

At the sub-counties meetings were organised between the study team, the accompanying district

officers and the leadership of the sub-counties notably the sub-county chiefs, the LCIII chairpersons

1

and some extension staff2. Where it was not possible to meet with all these officers, meetings were oraanised for the officers to be effected later during the main fieldwork. The purpose of the meeting

with sub-county staff and political leaders was to:

•

Introduce the study and seek their permission

•

Identify the parishes and specific methods of approaching them including obtaining the assistance of the leaders towards leading the reconnaissance teams to the actual study sites. This was

particularly important in the internally displaced camps of Kabarole where acceptance and permission to enter these camps would have been more difficult to secure without these leaders/

•

Identify existing community facilities as well as major economic activities employing children.

"

Find out the magnitude of child labour, orphaned and internal displacement in the area.

»

Organisation of movement of team and security

•

Identification, selection and referral to lower units

"

Identify CBOs and groups relevant for study

2.1.4

Meeting with village leadership

During the reconnaissance visits, attempts were made to meet with the village/ community leadership of at least one of the study sites. Others were visited during the main fieldwork. The purpose of each initial visit to the village was to meet the LCI chairperson, secretaries for children, youth, women, parents/guardians and children (hi and out of schools, orphans and non-orphans, AIDS afflicted and non-afflicted, displaced and not displaced). Others visited were NGOs, Community Based Initiatives (self-help

and youth group) leaders, school administrators and teaching staff. In each of the

communities the purpose of the study was explained and a timetable for the fieldwork was discussed.

2

It was not possible in any sub-country to meet with all the extension staff but in different sub-counties the following cadre of officers were met - Community Development Assistants, Fisheries Assistants Agricultural extension workers and LCIII secretaries for youth, children and women.

J

The leadership in Mitandi Camp explained that the population were wary of Researchers because prior to their displacement in 1998 a team claiming to come from Makerere University had carried out a Community Mapping and Resource identification exercise for four days. Thereafter, according to these leaders the same team returned with a bigger force that attacked the villages leading them to free to their current places of refugee.

lb

2.1.5

Summary of preparatory activities

The sub-counties, parishes and communities covered and the reasons for their inclusion in the study are indicated in the table below. Table 2.1: Study sites and reasons for their selection Reason for selection Village District Sub-County Parish •Cabarole

Buhesi

Kibota

Kibota Mitandi

Butiiti

Butiiti Kaihuia

Bwenzi

East Division

Kitumba

Isandara Kisabagwa Miranga Nyambungo Miranga Kamengo

Hakibale

Kijura

Kahuna

Adyel

Teso A Teso bar

Starch Factory Kirome Lira Modern

Namasale

Izigwe

Kayago Kabayulo Kasubi Namasale Opong Bangladesh

Mukunyu

^ira

Kikondo

Predominantly armed conflict, internally displaced population staying in camps for the last three years. These camps have been in existence for three years. Non-Armed conflict affected area, but predominantly HTV/AIDS afflicted.

Urban with predominantly internally displaced population. Rural, tea plantation area, internally displaced population living outside the camps. Internally displaced population due to cattle rustling and Kony rebels (armed conflict). The internally displaced people here have been living in the area for 2 - 7 years. Fish landing sites which have had a relatively high incidence of AIDS. No armed conflict in the area.

Arwotomogotong

Aweyo Bwong Kamailo Kamawulu

2.2

The Study Team

Two teams from Makerere University under the supervision of the Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics conducted the fieldwork. In Kabarole the study team consisted of three Research

Assistants (two males and one female), the Probation and Welfare Officer. The Kabarole study team

was under the supervision of the Principal Researcher, hi Lira, the study team consisted of two Research assistants (all female), a Probation and Welfare officer under the supervision of the CoResearcher. An officer from the UNICEF BECCAD office visited each of the two teams at different times to provide some technical backstopping and get an appraisal of the field operations.

//

Prior to the field work the study team undertook a five-day training programme conducted at the UN1CF Country office by the UNICEF Regional Child Labour Officer. It was during this training session that the study instruments and the methodology were finalised.

2.3

Study Design

The multi-faceted and inter-related issues of domestic work, HTWAIDS and armed conflicts required a mixed method approach. The qualitative data were gathered using key informant interviews with key duty bearers at district, sub-county, parish, and village levels. In-depth interviews were carried out with selected children in-and out of school but already working. Focus group discussions were

conducted with working children both in and out of school, parents/guardians, teachers and

community leaders. A semi-coded survey questionnaire (Appendix 1) was administered to a total of 297 children in and out of school in four parishes in each district. Details of the respondents and methods adopted are indicated in the sections below:

2.4 Study Respondents and methods4 In this study the selection of participants and the methods applied were largely influenced by the time available for staying hi each community (3-4 days). Working children together with their parents or

guardians were easy to identify and reach in both districts. Two approaches namely the community leadership and the school's approach were found particularly helpful. Upon final selection of the

villages for study the sub-counties provided the guides to these villages. These guides, who were well

known to the village leadership hi all cases introduced the study participants to the community leadership. In the en-camped protected villages of Kabarole the village leadership were camp the camp chairpersons and members of their executive committees. In the non-encamped communities hi Lira

and other sub-counties of Kabarole the village leaders of Local council Chairpersons were the first points of contact for the study team.

Upon arrival in the communities the leadership was sought, the study introduced to them includins a

careful explanation as to how their villages came to be selected to participate in this regional study. This was necessary not only to create the necessary rapport, but as a step towards the elimination of false expectations while alleviating the worthy cause the village would serve in participating fully in 4

For detailed guides used in the study see Appendices I and II

, _

17-

the study. Through the discussion with the village leadership approaches of reaching the families where the working children and their guardians could be reached were identified. The village/camp leadership were requested to carry out the necessary mobilisation of individual groups from time to

time until the 3-4 days of fieldwork in each parish were completed and all target groups of respondents/individuals were reached. Where it emerged that the village leadership were having problems in reaching the affected families

and children the possibility of using schools as the point of entry was discussed with them. Upon obtaining information on the schools in the area from the community leadership, the study team visited

the individual schools, sough permission from the school administration to identify internally displaced

children, orphans, school children, dropouts and non-enrolees hi school. In each school visited three to four classes were used to carryout this identification.

Upon obtaining the permission of the head-teacher and class teacher the leader of the team would

proceed to find out from the pupils their understanding of some key concepts such as school dropouts, non-enrolees, orphans, internally displaced persons and child labour. In each case, the causes of these from the pupils' perspective would be discussed. Information on where the schooldropouts and non-enrolees who were hi employment or at home was discussed. The villages where

these were located were also pointed out and the study team worked out a quick tabulation of the numbers involved.

Thereafter children who were internally displaced and/or orphans were asked to volunteer to participate in the study through interviews. Since the number of volunteers was often higher than those targeted to be covered within the school a systematic sample was drawn after the volunteered had made a queue. After interviews a group discussion with the remaining volunteers or a selection from these was carried out. Upon finalising this the second day of work would consist of reaching the identified children who were out of school and carrying out the group discussions with teachers. The

following categories of respondents were thus reached:

Table 2.2: Type of respondent(s) Children

affected by armed conflict

Community level study participants and the methods of reaching them Method of identification

Methods of study

Use of local leaders (LCs).

Survey questionnaire, key informant interviews, focus group

Self identification throuah classroom interaction and

/J*

Type of respondent(s)

Orphans in communities heavily affected by HIV/AIDS

Method of identification

Methods of study

volunteering to participate in the study.

discussions, in-depth interviews, observation and photography.

Proxy identification and guidance of community leaders and school pupils for those out of school._________ Use of local leaders (LCs).

Use of NGOs working with families affected by HTV/AIDS. Self identification through classroom interaction and volunteering to participate in the study.

Parents and guardians of families caught in the Crossfire

Guardians hi • families Affected by

HIV/AIDS'

Proxy identification and guidance of community leaders and school pupils for those out of school.____________ Use of local leaders (LCs) and sub-county guides for mobilisation.

Identification through pupil in school interaction. Proxy identification and guidance of community leaders and school pupils. Use of local leaders (LCs) and sub-county guides for mobilisation.

Survey questionnaire, key informant interviews, focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, observation and photography.

Focus group discussions, key informant interviews and photography.

Focus group discussions, and key informant interviews.

Identification through pupil in school interaction.

Proxy identification and guidance of community leaders and school pupils.

Key informants (GovL NGOs) School Administrators Teachers

Use of NGOs working with families affected by HTV/AIDS. orphan NGOs and CBOs______________ Direct approach to these and explanation. Appointments for interviews

Key informant interviews.

Direct approach to these and explanation with assistance from local leaders functioning as guides. Appointments for interviews.

Key informant interviews. Review of classroom registers.

Mobilisation bv school head-teachers.

Focus group discussions.

rt

Chapter Three:

ARMED CONFLICT, HIV/AIDS AND CHILD LABOUR: FIELD FINDINGS 3.1 Introduction In Uganda, like in many other countries, children are expected to work and carry out a wide range of domestic duties as part of their up bringing and training (Mwaka and Tumushabe, 1996). At the

outset it is important to distinguish between children's normal work and child labour and establish the essential elements of child labour within household domestic work context. Simply defined child's work that harmful, exploitative or denies children the possibility of successfully completing basic

education is child labour. Such work is often a barrier to the realisation of many children's rights.

Where children are unable to obtain parental/guardians care and provision of all their essential needs and are forced to work for these either in the domestic/family environment or out, such work inevitably is at the expense of the child's rights to protection and hence child labour.

As pointed out hi Chapter One, Uganda has been in a state of armed conflict for over twenty years exhibited in different parts of the county at different tunes. This has affected children's work in a drastic manner. In the two study districts of Kabarole and Lira it emerged that prior to the war

children were expected to carry out a range of domestic and farm activities. Production of passion fruits, planting beans, digging after school, cooking, washing dishes and fetching water were usual activities for girls. The boys too fetched water, split firewood, cultivated fields, looked after animals, run errands, and carried food to the market.

The armed conflict within the last 10 years has led to displacement of families and many have been forced to stay hi protected camps or villages where each family is expected to construct a separate

shelter within the camp. Others have migrated to urban centres or other rural areas and putting-up with relatives and friends. In both cases communities that had started to evolve a peasant cash economy predominantly based production of food crops for their own consumption and surplus for

sale as well as keeping some domestic animals (cattle, pigs, goats, chicken) mainly for sale, have been disrupted by war and displacement.

tf

AIDS mortality on the other hand was found to affect child labour through bereavement. Children who are left with no adult to care for them or who are under the care of some foster parent (a grand parent, uncle/aunt) generally do without all but the essential requirements to survive. Where this survival is threatened, such practices as education or leisure activities generally become a luxury that

cannot be accessed within the available resources and tune. The situation gets worse if they have to care for other orphans or sick relatives. In some instance AIDS affected families too have to migrate hi search of work or fostering.

A major resultant outcome of HIV/AIDS affliction is the fact of orphanhood for the children who are denied the rights to self-protection. The disease is the leading cause of death among Ugandan adults aged 15-54 years. In 1991 about 1.2 million children had lost at least one parent to the disease and by 1996 - 1.5 million persons were estimated to be HIV positive.

Primarily as a consequence of the disease 1 hi 9 children hi Uganda is orphaned and 1 hi 4 families is having a fostered child. Having abandoned the strategy of institutionalised care for orphans in the

early 1990s, the communities were entrusted with the responsibility of caring for orphans. However, by the turn of the decade it was becoming increasingly clear that the communities' capacity to care for

an ever-increasing population of orphans was getting stretched to the limit.

As a consequence of inadequate and often total lack of, care about 23% of children 10-14 years age

group are presently working. Many of these are ADDS orphans. Of the working children 9 out of 10 are working hi the informal sector or self-employed.

3.2 Magnitude of Child Labour Child labour statistics are not readily available at the district or national level. Likewise the magnitude

of such proxy indicators as orphanhood or the population of children internally displaced was not available hi either Kabarole or Lira. The study team however was able to get the 1998 school

enrolment and dropout statistics. The extent to which the dropouts can be equated to the child labourers depends on our acceptance of the phenomenon of near universal enrolment hi 1998 and that when a child drops out of school they automatically go in the work environment. This of course would imply that children hi school are not child labourers which, as will be indicated later, is not

generally true. However the significance of dropouts as a proxy indicator of the magnitude of child

labour with regard to the causes of dropout is a strong indicator of the factors that push children from

fr

school into the realm of child labour. Table 3.1 shows the dropouts in Kabarole and Lira districts by sender and cause. There are various causes of dropouts from school as indicated hi the table. The

O

leading causes were disinterest, personal ill health and the pursuit of employment or jobs.

Table 3.1:

Dropouts in Kabarole and Lira districts by gender and cause

Kabarole District Cause of school dropout Preanancy Early marriage Fees Jobs Personal sickness Dismissal Not interested Others Total

Male 2 31 54 600 1173 30 3176 2005 7071

Female 55 141 19 454 1140 11 2434 1872 6126

% female 96.5 82.0 26.0 43.1 49.3 26.8 43.4 48.3 46.4

Male 3 49 111 497 470

Female 163 201 95 568 414 13

% female 98.2 80.4 46.1 53.3 46.8

Lira District

Pregnancy Early marriage Fees Jobs Personal sickness Dismissal Not interested Others Total

37 2672 735 4574

2988| 627 5069

26.0 52.8 46.0 52.6

Source: Ministry of Education and Sports, 1998

3.3

Changes in domestic/farm work: a gender perspective

Prior to the war children were expected to cany out a range of domestic and farm activities.

Production of passion fruits, planting beans, digging after school, cooking, washing dishes and fetching water were usual activities for girls. The boys too fetched water, split firewood, cultivated fields, looked after animals and run errands, and carried food to the market. A common characteristic is that whether in encampment and non-camp situations, or AIDS affliction situations, children's participation hi domestic, and farm work increases. Field findings in this study revealed that at the

household/domestic level children shoulder a big portion of the household and farm chores. Table 3.2 shows some gender segregation in the activities done by children at household level at least

with regard to the amount of time boys and girls spend on individual activities. Whereas boys spend a

n

lot more time on subsistence production/family business and employment outside the home, the girls

spend relatively more time on domestic duties, care for children, sick, elderly and at school. Even the order of importance attached to these activities in terms of average tune spent differs between boys

and girls. While boys on average have employment outside the family in third position, for the girls it comes in the fifth position. Whereas girls spend nearly 230 minutes on average on domestic work, the boys spend over an hour less (160 minutes) on average per day on domestic work. Table 3.2: Average amount of time spent on individual activities by gender in minutes Boys Girls Gender Daily activities . difference* 160 229 -69 Domestic work 136 8 144 Personal care 88 143 55 Employment outside family 176 135 -41 School Social and recreational 104 109 -5 60 39 Subsistence production on family farm 21 31 -8 Transit 39 6 Care for children, sick, disabled 25 -19 "» 5 Repair, construction and maintenance 2 Sleep / rest 371 350 21 Qualitative findings indicate gender differentiation hi the type of activities that boys and girls do as the following extracts from the group discussions indicate.

Girls follow in the footsteps of their mothers in activities such as digging, peeling matooke, fetching water, firewood, cooking and cleaning utensils. Girls shell and grind millet.

In addition they are responsible for cleaning the compound washing clothes. Different group discussions, Kabarole and Lira

Boys sometimes sweep the compound, wash utensils and dig. Some boys help with

the cooking. Parents, Lira and Kabarole. The main activity for boys is cultivation, grazing and distillation.

Teachers, Kabarole

To ascertain whether domestic work per say is too heavy and may get in the way of normal development of the children, the variables used in the activity timeline above were re-grouped into

5

The negative (-) value implies girls spent the same amount of time indicate more than the boys while the positive

value in this column shows activities where boys exceeded girls in terms of average time spent.

\*

work and leisure/rest. Thereafter these groups were used to to assess the duration of time boys and girls spent on leisure versus work in a day.

In general however, fewer domestic duties were mentioned for boys relative to girls. For instance in Kabarole district while only five domestic duties (washing plates and dishes, cooking, fetching water,

sweeping compound, washing clothes) were occasionally mentioned in group discussions as activities for boys, the range of domestic duties for girls was more than that of boys and were more frequently mentioned. Girls' domestic activities included washing plates and dishes, cooking, fetching water, caring for the children, sweeping the compound, washing clothes and, looking after the siblings and sick persons.

It would appear therefore that while girls are expected to shoulder most of the household chores as well as carry out a wide range of farm activities, boys are required mainly to participate in farm and income generating work. Many boys are engaged in such activities as trade and fishing only occasionally being involved in household chores such as fetching firewood and water.

3.4

Armed Conflict and Child Labour

As noted in the Rights of Children in Armed Conflict Program Plan of Operation6, all duty bearers at

national, district and community levels, parents and guardians have obligations to enable children to realise their rights to freedom from violence, abuse and exploitation. The overall objective is to ensure

that progressively 95 percent of children and women in communities affected by armed conflict, protected villages and DDF camps realize their rights to freedom from violence, abuse and exploitation and access to basic social services.

Among the specific objectives the programme intends to:

* Establish a functional community-based system to protect the rights of children and women to freedom from violence, abuse and exploitation in areas affected by armed conflict.

The programme is to work with the duty bearers and support their obligations. At the national level authorities are obliged to abide by international treaties and conventions among which the Convention

One of the components of the Government of Uganda - UNICEF Country Program 2001 - 2005.

!l

on the Rights of the Child is a major one. The district authorities have among others the duty to ensure child protection. The roie to district authorities includes creating an enabling environment for psychosocial recovery, creating awareness and providing information to communities on important issues including psycho-social care.

The programme recognises the need for communities to know that children have a right to protection and parental care and that the children must never be perceived as potential recruits. Children and especially girls and women are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse during times of conflict and displacement.

The fulfilment of rights requires that the district authorities maintain basic social services, ensure that

children face minimum disruption in schooling and create within the schools a supportive atmosphere for psychosocial recovery and promotion of alternatives to violence. In addition, the programme calls on local communities to establish systems that will protect women and girls from sexual and physical abuse.

The programme component specifically seeks to protect the rights of children from direct involvement in armed combat, the psycho-social problems experienced by such children and the issues related to

child sexual abuse. It is important to note however, that this programme component is targeted at 13 districts hi northern and Eastern Uganda, where as the problem of armed conflict in the country has in

addition spilled over to several districts in Western Uganda. In addition the programme component lacks explicit objectives to handling child labour related exploitation which was rampant in this

assessment as indicated hi the sections below.

3.4.1

Causes of child labour under armed conflict

In the field assessment the harsh realities of child labour and the inherent abuse of children's rights was noteworthy. The war situation and its effects on the magnitude of child labour was well summed-up

by this female parent hi Kibota camp, Kabarole.

In times of hard conditions like war in the area, children are not stopped from doing any kind of work. We have nothing to do. At times we know that work is too much for children, but due to war, all children have to work.

V

The major causes of child labour in situations of armed conflict in both Kabarole and Lira were found to be lack of care, inaccessibility to basic shelter, increased poverty, the need to supplement education

needs and limited opportunities including education. These were cited in nearly all group discussions.

Lack of care

The rapid assessment found considerable family disruption for the children. Slightly more than one third of all the children in armed conflict situations (35%) are living with both parents, less than a fifth stay with their mother or father only, about a fifth with other relatives and 13 percent with a grandparent (Figure 3.1).

Figure 1: The Person, with whom the child lives, (armed conflict situation only).

Hu«band

N o t related

Other

-— Other r e l a t i v e i

G randparent

y^ P

immmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm$

m

i

y^mzs&gm^mmmmmzmfM Pr

M o t h e r / f a t h e r only

M other and father

P eno nally h e a d

Pi

^SSSSSKJ^^

&* •-•—— -?•

i ..^-....

^

....

^,

^

^,

^,

^,

For 5 percent of the children however, there is total lack of an adult figure to live with.

For many children the domestic work has been exacerbated by the need to fend for themselves and find personal sustenance as well as increase contributions to the households. It is important to note

that nearly two-thirds of the children in armed conflict situations are either staying with a single parent or some other relative. About one-half of all the children are actually staying alone or with someone

other than their parent. The extracts below provide some insights into the conditions of their livelihoods with regard to the contributions in form of child labour which they are expected to make

towards their careaivers or families.

9.1

z\

My parents are alive but I grew up like an orphan with the responsibility of caring for my 5 younger siblings. This was after my parents had separated, so I do all work at home and even get employment outside the home to care for the younger siblings. I dig and get money to buy clothes. Girl 16 years, unmarried mother of 2, in IDP Camp In Kabarole, and heading family of 5 siblings. We never used to look for work to get money. Rather we would dig and sell the harvest but now due to war, even parents have no money. Children, Kabarole These days with the conflicts, parents have no alternative to children doing some work to earn a living. Before the conflict parents used to give us money but at present they are unable thus we have to work.

Parents have a number of children thus we work to contribute to our school fees. Children, both study districts.

The purchase of items that would ordinarily be provided by the parents and guardians forms the primal reason for child labour in the conflict prone areas. Children reported: Supplementing payment of school fees, purchase of books, clothing, shoes, soap, to buy mats used as

bedding, medicine in case one is sick. Others are realising early that they need money for investment because they cannot hope to inherit this. In cases where the children are themselves heads of households the need for care of siblings is the raison d'etre for working.

I use the money got to buy children posho although I can not buy myself any thing. Once I get 3,000/=, buy food. As for the use of money to benefit the families it would appear that opinion differs from parent to parent and child to child as the following extracts from parent's group discussions indicate: These who go to work don't usually send anything. Nothing. May be to come back pregnant. Nothing because the om who takes her is not the one who brings her back. Some work and never return. Some of the working children are not paid, others are paid little money, some are sent a\vay when they fall sick.

&

Others bring clothes, but due to war they are looted.

The need for shelter

But besides this ordinary work children especially boys, are expected to undertake construction work, which has been brought about their internal displacement into the camps. Children in Mitandi Camp reported that they were active participants in construction work, which involves digging below

surface shelters known as andaki

"We dig andakis'. Make mud for house construction. ... Dig and construct pit latrines" Male pupils, Mitandi, Primary school Direct involvement in armed conflict has also occurred as a result of the prevailing conditions

especially for children who drop out of school.

Most of them joined the army both UPDF and homeguards. The rest are at home with no work. Parents, Kiboota Camp, Kabarole Poverty and Destitution

Increased destitution is yet another cause of child labour in armed conflict situations Table 3.3: indicates that households in armed conflict situations have a very low mean wealth index score

averaging at 3.6. Although they are very vulnerable they are slightly better off than their counterparts which are mainly HIV/AIDS afflicted.7 Table 3.3: Mean Wealth Score by Armed Conflict Affliction Status Category of Household Armed-conflict affected Non-affected

Number of children Mean Household Wealth Score 157 3.60 140 3.19

The leading cause of child labour is poverty at the household level. Although most of the households in this study were poor, households where children reported they had ever worked for money were

' The Household Wealth Index was computed from a set of socio-economic indicators of each household. These indicators (radio, bicycle, motorcycle, hurricane lamp, clothing, bedding, consumption of meat or fish and number of meals as well as domestic animals and roof of main household) were assigned different scores and thereafter an average for each household was computed. The minimum score for all households was 0 and the maximum attained was 7 with a mode at 4 (scored by 102 households). The maximum possible score was 15.

2.3

generally poorer than their counterparts where children had never been hi paid employment (Table 3.4).

Table 3.4: Mean Wealth Score by Work Status for the Child Number of children Category of Children

Ever worked to earn money Never worked to earn money

201 96

Mean Wealth Index Score 3.31 3.60

Tiie need to supplement education needs In the camps working for pay has increased because of lack of the caregivsrs or because caregivers (guardians and parents) are themselves constrained hi terms of access to resources for child support.

Provisions of such basics as pencils, pens, books, uniform have to be met from the child's own

resources obtained from the child's own income as indicated by the following extracts from group discussions with pupils hi camps in Kabarole:

Children here do some work for pay like fetching water to purchase book and pens while at times work is done to assist their teachers and elders. Limited opportunities including education

Where as government support has helped sustain children in school (albeit with many children having to work to provide for auxiliary school inputs) the cost of secondary education is out-of-reach for

many. In Uganda, Primary education ends at around the age of 13 years. It is important to note that even hi case of surviving parents, the opportunities for saving to the level of financing secondary education are totally eroded for parents who are forced to migrate from the plots of farm land to stay in camps. Many children and parents in the internally displaced areas were quick to point out that children dropping out of school after completing primary have little alternative but to start fending for themselves.

After P. 7, parents have no money to pay for further education so children sit home. Buy due to changing society, children go to work for money to pay for their un keep.

Girls who have dropped out of school have no jobs. TJiose 16 years and above have left to loiter in towns and enjoy life. Boys are at home because of war. There is no work and others have trained as home guards.

*H

3.4.2

Children's Working conditions under armed conflict

However for the out of school children living in camps the work for a pay is often relatively heavy as

the group discussion with the 12 - 16 year out of school boys from Mitandi camp indicated: Carpentry, Timber cutting and Bodaboda ^transporting people on bicycles for a pay) are activities -which children do here in the camp especially the boys who are unable to continue schooling. The poverty and the misery of children who are living in the villages as new comers due to displacement caused by the war is quite glaring..

Children here manage to live but the hardest way. As you can see, most of them are sleeping in other peoples' houses. They have scabies and are dressed in. torn clothes and yet they are working. Local leader, Kabarole The boys who have been displaced complain that no food is given to them and thus they have to work on an empty stomach; tilling the soil all day, consequently developing headache and other bodily pains,

Our employers reserve the complicated parts for us to dig. The rain normally gets in the gardens and brings fever. Even when we are taken for treatment after healing, we have to pay back the money for the treatment by working more. FGD Boys, Kabarole. In Kabarole there are cases within the camps for internally displaced persons where children are given heavy work and when they are unable to complete the tasks their employers refuse to pay

for the completed half. Being displaced and vulnerable the children have limited choices indeed: Since we want the money our employers determine what to do and what to pay... some pay us 1000/= instead of 3000/-. FGD, Boys, Kabarole. Reports from the displaced population communities (both camps and non-camps) indicate that armed

conflict has increased the number of girls who have fallen out of school. Many of these, have had to migrate to urban centres to work as house-girls and where such work becomes difficult to obtain have ended-up in prostitution.

// was unknown (before war) for a Mukonjo girl to go outside the Bakonjo society to look for employment of being house girls. But now it happens. Normally girls here are used as housekeepers though on a small scale especially outside this community. Teachers, Kabarole

&

House girl, prostitution. The places they go determine -what they do. Parents, Kabarole

In Teso Bar area on the outskirts of Lira town lies a community that is virtually a community of internally displaced persons. Most of the children in this area have embraced riding bicycles in and around town as their major survival strategy. The hazards associated with this activity reported include:

•

Having to transport overweight persons or luggage.

•

Accidents including being knocked by cars.

•

Theft of the bicycles and having to refund the total cost of the bicycles to the employers (bicycle owners).

•

Competition from other transporters who include older men and failure to get any pay from the employers (bicycle owners) in case of failure to raise a minimum agreed amount or damage to the bicycles.

3.4.3

Effects of child labour in armed conflict situations

Sometimes the opportunity cost of schooling weighs unfavourably against the need for household survival and the needs of the family. In such situations absenteeism from school or partial attendance (say for half a day where a full day is required) are the normal practices. For some children such activities as digging and weeding gardens after school are practised.

The degree of vulnerability to work at an early age and to do a lot more work apparently increased with orphanhood accompanied by armed conflict as indicated in the following extracts and case study. The piece of-work -which could be done with parents is now left to orphans most of whom still young as some of our parents were claimed by the war. Before the conflict they did any other work like the rest but now they do a lot more like construction of "Ndaki with the help of their brothers.

In Lira especially in areas around Lake Kioga fishing and other activities associated with ii such as cleaning fish, smoking the fish and taking it in the market were activities in which boys took an active part. Similar work is carried on at school as well as indicated by the following extracts from Group discussions with teachers:

2- t

They (boys) slash the compound, sweeping, cleaning latrines. We send them for reeds, fibres for school renovation. Illiterate parents think this is an abuse. They do hard work e.g. "ebitogo"papyrus.

3.5 HIV/AIDS and the Type of Work for Children Partly as a consequence of the need to work for self-sustenance and partly as its consequence, primary completion rate, were projected at only 40% for 1997/98. The questions that this study set out to address were just what type of work are AIDS orphans engaged in and what are their working

conditions? What are the predisposing conditions towards child labour and what benefits do these predominantly AIDS orphans derive from child labour? In what way does child labour affect the realisation of children's rights among this group?

3.5.1

Reasons for Work for AIDS orphans

As indicated in Table 3.4, many children in both AIDS afflicted homes and in the armed conflict areas have to work for basically four major reasons namely:

1.

To meet personal basic needs

2.

As a requirement of the foster families or their own personally headed families

3.

To meet school needs

4.

For food.

Besides having to meet their own needs or provide for themselves, many of such children have got to

look after siblings, providing for the family's basic needs such as food or clothing as well as general management of the family at tender ages. Where fostering has been provided the many foster parents have not made efforts to put these children in school or where this has been done the children

reported they had to work for their auxiliary school needs (exercise books, pens and pencils, uniform

etc).

There was a striking similarity in the reasons for out of homework between the AIDS afflicted children and the non- AIDS afflicted ones. Of the 95 AIDS afflicted orphans 65 (68 percent) reported at least one reason for having to work. Of these, 45 percent reported they worked to meet basic

needs, 31 percent were force to work because of the need to assist guardians or because they were

required by guardians and their families to contribute to household needs. Likewise of the 202

?1

children from non-AIDS afflicted families (predominantly armed conflict affected children) 138 (68 percent) were forced to work for money. Similarly the need to meet personal basic needs was the

overriding reason for work accounting for 45 percent of all those that worked for money. Guardians came second among the first reasons given for working at 27 percent. Table 3.5:

First reason for work Reason for work School needs AIDS affected Guardian/family needs Personal basic needs Food Total [Non-AIDS affected School needs Guardian/family needs Personal basic needs Food Total

Frequency 12 20 29 4J 65 27 37 62 12 138

Percent 18.5 30.8 44.6 6.2 100.0 19.6 26.8 44.9 8.7 100.0

3.5.2 Working conditions for AIDS orphans

Amount of work for AIDS orphans and other AIDS affected children

The magnitude of children's work in this study was estimated using an activity timeline which traced all activities that a child was primarily engaged in from the time of waking-up set at 5.00 a.m. to the time all children would be expected to be hi bed by mid-night. This was divided into minutes as indicated in Table 3.6 below: Table 3.6

Effect of coming from an HFV7AIBS Afflicted Household on Average time spent on different activities No. of children! Average time (minutes) HIV/AIDS affected Time spent on ..... 93 1 AIDS affected Personal care 131 93 Domestic duties 194 93 Care for children 13 Home construction 93 8 93 Subsistence production 49 EmDloyment outside home 93 | 146 Transit 92| 21 93 Social and recreational 121 93 Resting/sleeping 320 201 Personal care Non-AIDS affected 146 201 Domestic duties 182 201 Care for children 12 201 Home construction 201 Subsistence production 54

$

HIV/AIDS affected

Time spent on ..... Employment outside home Transit Social and recreational Time spent while sleeping

No. of children 201 201 201 201

Average time (minutes) 112 40 99 384

It is important to note that the children in this study were all experiencing some degree of vulnerability and exposed to largely one form of child labour or the other. On all activities that required children to work (domestic duties, care for siblings, sick and elderly, home construction, subsistence production,

employment outside the family) the children in HIV/AIDS affected families spent on average more time than their counterparts in non-AIDS affected families. On the other hand the children from non-

AIDS afflicted families spent more time on activities that Odeke Patrick is a 17 year old leaving hi Lira district, Adyel Division, Teso Bar parish, corner Kamdini village. He stopped school in P.4 due to poverty. Odeke lost both of his parents when he

was still a baby and he hardly remembers any thing about them. "...... Because of being an orphan, I have no home, I stay anywhere where am always welcomed. I sell beans in the market for the purpose of giving assistance to those ready to keep me at their homes." Odeke uses part of his money to buy basic necessities for him. He is often chased from home where he stays, never given food and abused if he fails to bring some money at home yet he has to keep some of the capital for the business.

were less strenuous such as personal care, social and recreational.

In nearly all the group discussions and in-depth

interviews it emerged that orphans had to do more work than non-orphans. It emerged that some orphans had no one to care for them as indicated in the group discussion extracts below:

Orphans do more work than non-orphans because no one helps them. They do all work at home. Orphans work harder than those with parents as they miss the care that would be provided by parents. So orphans must find a way for survival.

Orphans usually work harder to buy themselves things like books, clothes, and soap, as there is no one to do it for them. Orphans buy themselves food and construct themselves shelters with the help of their brothers.

Care for Siblings and patients

Some of the AIDS orphans were found to have full responsibility of looking after AIDS patients and/or their parents. This nursing care was reportedly too tiresome. Asked about the responsibility of orphans with sick guardians, the orphans in Kabarole reported:

*d

Work like the adult bearing full responsibility of the parents, have to provide food and other necessities. ./ Orphans do more work because they have younger children to look after so have to dig t o get food f o r t h e family.

. _ . . . . . _ "

Asked about the responsibility of orphans with sick guardians, the orphans in Kabarole reported:

Work like the adult bearing full responsibility of the parents, have to provide food and other necessities. Orphans do more work because they have younger children to look after so have to dig to get food for the family. Child labour in foster homes

Even those under some form of foster care were reportedly doing more work than none-orphans.

An orphan adopted does all the work in the family while children in that family just play and eat. The guardians make the orphans work as porters and look after family, children. Most of them (guardians) treat them badly and make us suffer.

Guardians make them do more work including looking after their own children. •&&&>yyy» &&&3