Child Labour and the Arrival of Refugees: Evidence from Tanzania

Abstract

Despite efforts to reduce the incidence of child labour, about one in three children in Sub-Saharan Africa works. Using data for the Kagera region of Tanzania, we estimate how rates of child labour were impacted by a large influx of refugees fleeing from genocide in both Rwanda and Burundi. We find that the areas most affected by this population shock initially had a lower incidence of child labour. However, 10 years later, children in these areas were more likely to work on a farm and participate in domestic chores as the demand for agricultural labour increased.