Children in Bangladesh are subjected to the worst forms of child labor, including commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor in drying of fish and the production of bricks. (1,2) Children also perform dangerous tasks in the production of garments and leather goods. (2,3) Table 1 provides key indicators on children’s work and education in Bangladesh. Data on some of these indicators are not available from the sources used in this report.

Primary completion rate was unavailable from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2022. (4)
Source for all other data: International Labor Organization's analysis of statistics from Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 6 (MICS 6), 2019. (5)

Based on a review of available information, Table 2 provides an overview of children's work by sector and activity.

† Determined by national law or regulation as hazardous and, as such, relevant to Article 3(d) of ILO C. 182.
‡ Child labor understood as the worst forms of child labor per se under Article 3(a)–(c) of ILO C. 182.

The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics estimated that there were 1.28 million children working in hazardous sectors before the COVID-19 pandemic, with 260,000 children working in the government's officially listed hazardous sectors. (2,8) Economic hardships and school closures brought on by the pandemic have forced many school age children to take on temporary jobs in factories, including in the garment and food processing sectors. Reports also indicate an increase in child domestic work. (2) One NGO reported that 75 percent of children had left their education program and estimated that one-third of the children either entered into hazardous work or returned to their villages. Sources further indicate that children engaged in child labor worked longer hours with fewer breaks, earned lower salaries, and faced worse conditions as a result of the pandemic. (2)

Other hazardous sectors in which children work include tanneries, shipbreaking, and the dried fish industry. (14,26,32,33) In the dried fish industry, children work all day without protective gear and are exposed to the insecticide DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane), salt, and the sun. (26,34) In the shipbreaking sector, children are exposed to toxic materials such as asbestos, work in dangerous conditions without personal protective equipment, and often work at night. (20) Children who work in tanneries lack protective equipment and experience continuous exposure to heavy metals, formaldehyde, and other hazardous substances. (35,36) In addition, children working in informal garment production work as many as 16 hours a day and often carry heavy loads, use hazardous machinery, and handle chemicals without protective equipment. (11,37)

Reports of violence against child workers in various sectors, including in domestic work, have also been documented. (14,21,38-40) In 2018, a survey by an international organization found more than 400,000 children in domestic work in Bangladesh. Some girls are forced into domestic work and are abused by their employers. (2,4,30,31) According to reports, from January to November 2021, 28 children were tortured while working as housemaids. (2) Throughout Bangladesh, street children are coerced into criminality or forced to beg, and masters of begging rings sometimes maim children to increase earnings. Children are also forced, especially in border areas, to produce and transport drugs, especially “yaba” tablets (methamphetamine). (1,2)

Children throughout Bangladesh are sexually exploited through the country’s legal and illegal brothels, and child commercial sexual exploitation remained widespread during the reporting period. (1) According to some estimates, 30,000 girls are sexually exploited in Bangladesh, many of whom work in brothels but also at parking lots, bus stations, and online. (2) False promises of work are used to lure poor women and children into exploitation, and oftentimes these women and girls, some as young as age 10, are charged exorbitant and fabricated debts they must work to repay. Reports have indicated that some police accept bribes to not check documentation that workers in registered brothels were older than 18 years and to procure falsified documents for younger workers. (1) Women and children living on the street or struggling economically and children fleeing abusive child marriages are especially vulnerable to being sold to brothels for commercial sexual exploitation. Some children of sex workers are also put to work in brothels and made to take steroids to appear older. (1) In addition, children are trafficked to India where they are forced into labor or commercial sexual exploitation. (9) Research has found that Internet-based trafficking in persons increased during the pandemic, with human traffickers adapting to technology by using popular apps to connect with victims. (41)

Although the 2010 National Education Policy raised the age of compulsory education from fifth grade (age 10) to eighth grade (age 14), the new compulsory education scheme is not enforceable until the legal framework is changed to reflect the revised policy. (19) Research has found many schools are overcrowded and over 80 percent run double shifts. Further, the Teacher Training Institute cannot keep up with the demand for teachers, particularly in rural areas. (9) Bangladesh has 57 Primary Teacher Training Institutes, each of which is expected to enroll 200 potential teachers to accommodate the higher compulsory education age. However, an average of seven instructors are responsible for training over 400 teachers at a time. (2) Furthermore, to accommodate the larger number of students receiving compulsory education, Bangladesh is building new schools for students in higher grades. In fiscal year 2020–2021, Bangladesh constructed 12,723 new classrooms, established 10,000 sanitation facilities, and installed tube wells in over 6,500 schools. (12)

In 2021, limited access to education as a consequence of the pandemic continued to impact children in Bangladesh. School closures due to new variants of coronavirus increased the risk of school dropouts and child labor. (42) Many children joined the workforce in formal and informal sectors to provide for their families struggling during the pandemic, and are unlikely to return to their studies. (43) While televised and online classes were made available to students in grades 1 through 10, the distance learning program did not adequately reach the most vulnerable children. Reports indicated that 53 percent of children whose parents work in the garment sector did not receive any online classes, and most children opted to work with limited position to return to school. (44) In addition to pandemic-related closures, children in Bangladesh face barriers to education such as high costs for transportation, uniforms, and stationary. (2,42) According to reports, in fiscal year 2020–2021, approximately 367,000 eligible children did not enroll in school for the academic period. (12) Additionally, research has shown that about 2.5 million school-age children remain out of formal education, with the current drop-out rate for primary education at around 18 percent, which is higher than for secondary education. (45)

Over 450,000 Rohingya children are living in refugee camps in Bangladesh following the Burmese military's ethnic cleansing operations. Children residing in the camps are vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor. (2,25,46-49) Rohingya girls are trafficked from the refugee camps for commercial sexual exploitation in Bangladesh, India, and Nepal. In some cases, girls are promised jobs in domestic service but are instead forced into commercial sexual exploitation. (1) Rohingya children recruited to work outside the refugee camps are reported to be underpaid or unpaid, unable to communicate with their families, and subjected to excessive working hours. (25,50) Rohingya boys typically work in construction, fishing, and shops. (23,31) Rohingya children are also sold by their parents into bonded labor in the fish drying industry, primarily in Cox's Bazar. Bonded laborers—both Bangladeshi children and Rohingya refugee children—work to pay off their parents’ debts over a 9-month fishing season. (10,23) There are reports of Bangladeshi officials taking bribes to facilitate the trafficking of Rohingya children, including providing access for human traffickers to refugee camps. (2)

Rohingya refugee children are also not permitted to attend primary and secondary schools in Bangladesh, including private institutions, due to their lack of documentation. (22) In addition, due to the pandemic, the government began restricting humanitarian access, including education and protection programs. As a result, refugee children are more vulnerable to exploitation and less able to access humanitarian assistance. (49) The government had in the past permitted international organizations, such as UNICEF, UNESCO, and UNHCR, to provide some basic education services to primary school-age Rohingya children, and some university-level students who received scholarships. (19,22,49) The government had also agreed to allow international partners to implement the Myanmar Curriculum Pilot in 2020. (19) However, the program was put on hold as a result of the pandemic and in December 2021, the Government of Bangladesh ordered the authorities to shut down all refugee-run learning and coaching centers, further hampering educational accessibility for Rohingya refugees. (2,51,52)

Bangladesh has ratified key international conventions concerning child labor (Table 3).

On January 20, 2022, Bangladesh ratified the ILO Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labor Convention, 1930. (53,54) In March 2022, Bangladesh also ratified the ILO C. 138 on Minimum Age. (55)

The government has established laws and regulations related to child labor (Table 4). However, gaps exist in Bangladesh’s legal framework to adequately protect children from the worst forms of child labor, including the minimum age for work.

* Country has no conscription (69)

In 2021, the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) developed a proposal to update its list of hazardous sectors. If finalized by the Ministry of Labor and Employment (MOLE), these sectors would include drying fish, stone quarries, local tailoring, brick breaking, street-based work for children, stone collection, garbage picking and waste disposal, and informal tailoring in the clothing sector. (2,43,70)

Bangladesh’s laws governing the minimum age for work do not protect children engaged in informal work. Regulations defining hazardous work do not include a number of sectors in which children are known to undertake dangerous tasks and work for long hours, including garments, drying fish, or brick manufacturing. (1,2,18,37,57,71) Furthermore, the Bangladesh Labor Act does not cover children working in the informal sector. However, 93 percent of child labor occurs in the informal sector, including domestic work, street work, and work on small agricultural farms. (1,2,56)

Bangladesh prohibits, but does not criminalize, the use of children in pornographic performances and in the production of drugs. (67) Sources indicate that the minimum age for recruitment in the Army is age 17 and requires parental consent and birth documents verifying age. (64) Army recruitment and training take 1 year, ensuring that recruits reach the age of 18 before entering regular duty. (65) However, the minimum age for recruitment in the Air Force is age 16. (63) In addition, the legal framework of the Bangladesh constitution does not criminally prohibit the recruitment of children by non-state armed groups. (67)

The Primary Education (Compulsory) Act only requires guardians to enroll children ages 6 to 10 in primary education where it is compulsory. It does not appear that there are laws providing for compulsory education, though the 2010 National Education Policy provided for compulsory education to eighth grade (age 14). (19,72) The compulsory education age is lower than the minimum age for work, making children ages 10 to 14 vulnerable to child labor, as they are not required to attend school but are not legally permitted to work. (19,72)

The government has established institutional mechanisms for the enforcement of laws and regulations on child labor (Table 5).

Labor Law Enforcement

In 2021, labor law enforcement agencies in Bangladesh took actions to address child labor (Table 6). However, gaps exist within the DIFE's authority that may hinder adequate labor law enforcement, including a lack of reciprocal referral mechanism between labor authorities and social services.

† Data are from July 1, 2019, to June 30, 2020.
‡ Data for Labor Inspectorate funding are from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021. Other data are from July 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021.

Bangladesh employs 305 labor inspectors for a workforce of over 69.8 million workers. (70,80) According to the ILO’s technical advice of a ratio approaching 1 inspector for every 40,000 workers in less developed economies, Bangladesh would need to employ about 1,745 labor inspectors for Bangladesh's workforce. (80) The shortage in human resources and high turnovers at the DIFE have led the agency to exclude around 95 percent of industrial and commercial establishments from its inspection list. (2) Sources also indicate that DIFE is insufficiently funded and inspectors are reluctant to enforce labor laws. (9)

The DIFE is only authorized to conduct unannounced inspections outside the export processing zones and special economic zones. (9,81,82) The lack of routine unannounced inspections in all sectors allows employers to hide child laborers. (23) Sources report that garment factories producing for local markets are rarely inspected despite a high prevalence of child labor. (9) Some employers move children to night shifts to evade inspectors, as night inspections are only conducted until 8 p.m. (9,20) In addition, the penalty for a child labor law violation carries a maximum fine of approximately $59 (5,000 taka), which is insufficient to deter violations. (9,56,81,83)

The government reported that in fiscal year July 2020–June 2021, labor inspections helped remove 5,088 children in vulnerable situations from 23 districts. (2) In addition, 1,937 children have been removed from the automobile, bricks and stone crushing, engineering workshops, bakeries, hotel and restaurants, and plastics sectors, among others, in fiscal year 2021-2022 until December 2021. (78) According to the MOLE, out of the 1,421 cases filed for criminal labor infractions, 98 were child labor violations. (70) While a previous reciprocal referral mechanism existed between labor authorities and social services, DIFE lacks an active referral and rehabilitation system for children. Employers of children get off with a warning and the rescued children are found in the same factory or nearby a few days after the inspection. (2)

Criminal Law Enforcement

In 2021, criminal law enforcement agencies in Bangladesh took actions to address child labor (Table 7). However, gaps exist within the operations of enforcement agencies that may hinder adequate criminal law enforcement, including the lack of publicly released criminal law enforcement information.

The government constituted and funded seven anti-trafficking in persons tribunals to handle human trafficking cases that were functioning and hearing cases as of August 2021. (41) During the reporting period, UNODC in collaboration with the Government of Bangladesh organized special training for investigating officers and prosecutors from the anti-trafficking tribunals to increase cooperation and center victim voices. (84)

In 2021, a small number of high-profile cases in which police arrested factory owners for alleged abuse of child workers made international headlines. Bangladesh police filed a criminal complaint against 8 factory management team members, including the owner, after a factory fire killed at least 52 people, including 19 children between the ages of 12 and 18. (2,11,85,86) Abdul Hashem, the factory owner, was required to pay $2,334 to each of the victims' families. However, in order to receive the compensation, survivors and their families were required to forgo any future claims against the company and its executives. (86) In addition, in January 2021, police arrested a brick kiln owner for torturing and confining children in chains. (86) Police rescued 2 children ages 8 and 9, whom the owner had bought through brokers and forced them to work against their will. The suspect remains in custody while under prosecution. (85) In addition, in the reporting period, 43 individual defendants were prosecuted in cases related to child trafficking for labor exploitation. (86)

The Government of Bangladesh did not provide specific information on criminal law enforcement efforts against child labor crimes for inclusion in this report. Reports have suggested that investigation coordination between agencies and authorities is lacking. (2) Many cases are resolved through mediation and settlement rather than prosecution, resulting in low conviction rates for violence against child workers. (2) Cases resulting in convictions usually have fines that are minimal and perpetrators are not regularly sentenced to jail for employing children. (19) Reports also suggest that criminal investigators do not receive sufficient training on addressing child labor. (2)

The government has established mechanisms to coordinate its efforts to address child labor (Table 8). However, gaps exist that hinder the effective coordination of efforts to address child labor, including a lack of capacity to assist citizens abroad who are victims of labor exploitation.

The government has established policies related to child labor (Table 9). However, policy gaps exist that hinder efforts to address child labor, including lack of implementation.

† Policy was approved during the reporting period.
‡ The government had other policies that may have addressed child labor issues or had an impact on child labor. (96)

The National Plan of Action on the Elimination of Child Labor faces coordination and implementation challenges and research has found that MOLE is not effectively coordinating the implementation of the policy. (2,41) The government has a National Education Policy that sets the compulsory age for free education through eighth grade (age 14). However, the government has yet to include child labor elimination and prevention strategies into the National Education Policy. (96)

Sources reported that the National Authority, an institution that would serve as a supervisory body on addressing human trafficking, was not active or funded. (41)

In 2021, the government funded and participated in programs that include the goal of eliminating or preventing child labor (Table 10).

* Program was launched during the reporting period.
† Program is funded by the Government of Bangladesh.
‡ The government had other social programs that may have included the goal of eliminating or preventing child labor. (41)

The MOLE was expected to conduct a national survey on child labor by 2021. (14) The Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics started the survey in 2022 with the support of the ILO. Research shows that survey results are expected after June 2022. (43)

Research has found that the government's social programs often align with the priorities of various funders and lack coordination among relevant ministries to address the cross-cutting nature of child labor issues. (9) In addition, DIFE maintains the 16357 hotline to receive labor law violations. During the reporting period, the 16357 hotline received 831 complaints; however, the complaints were not related to child labor. (66) Ministry of Women and Children Affairs also developed a “Joy” mobile app which provides the opportunity to record dialogue and images of child labor victims and perpetrators and send the information, including GPS location, to the National Helpline Center 109 and nearby police station. (43)

Based on the reporting above, suggested actions are identified that would advance the elimination of child labor in Bangladesh (Table 11).

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73. Ministry of Labor and Employment. U.S. Department of Labor Request for Information on Child Labor and Forced Labor. March 7, 2017. Source on file. 
74. Dhaka Tribune. Government launches helpline 16357 for garment workers. January 31, 2019. 
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75. Ministry of Home Affairs. National Plan of Action for Combating Human Trafficking 2015-2017. January 2015. Source on file. 
76. Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments, Government of Bangladesh. Questions from U.S. Government. February 24, 2015. Source on file. 
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78. U.S. Embassy- Dhaka. Reporting. April 4, 2022. 
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84. GLO.ACT. Bangladesh organizes workshop to increase cooperation between investigating officers and prosecutors Dhaka. December 8, 2021. 
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85. Dhaka Tribune. Brick kiln workers or slaves? February 12, 2021. 
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86. U.S. Embassy- Dhaka. Reporting. February 15, 2022. 
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89. The Independent. Call to curb cross border human trafficking. August 31, 2018. 
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90. U.S. Embassy- Dhaka. Reporting. February 13, 2020. 
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98. ILO. Country Level Engagement and Assistance to Reduce (CLEAR) Child Labor Project Technical Progress Report. September 31, 2018. Source on file. 
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