Child Labor and Development
回顾了1990年代中期以来经济学界对童工问题兴趣重燃的原因，包括减贫和人力资本积累的重视，并介绍了相关国际公约及研究进展，适合关注发展经济学和儿童权益的读者。
Long neglected by economists, child labor has experienced a sudden resurgence of interest as a subject of research and analysis since the mid-1990s. This is surprising at first glance, because the global incidence of child labor has been on the decline for several decades now. What accounts for the increased interest? One factor is the growing emphasis in the development literature on poverty reduction, particularly among the most vulnerable sections of the population, which includes children, especially working children. Simultaneously, with the heightened recognition of the importance of human capital accumulation as a catalyst—and perhaps even a prerequisite—for development, child labor is viewed as a major impediment to economic progress. The recent academic interest is matched by the increasing prominence of child labor in both national and international policy settings. This is manifested in a series of international conventions, such as the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 182 on Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor (1999), and the U.N. Millennium Declaration (2000) with its emphasis on poverty reduction and universal education. These three documents share a common concern for banishing global poverty and investing in children. This international concern, enshrined in various conventions, has been mirrored by economists’ interest in globalization and its implications for poverty eradication. The new research has dimmed some of the earlier optimism that growth and globalization will automatically trickle down to the benefit of all. Child labor is a prime example. Though its incidence has declined, children continue to work in large numbers and for long hours, more so than should be tolerable in this age of globalization and prosperity. This persistent search for new, possibly specific solutions is now being facilitated by the increasing availability of micro data, which enable the explicit formulation and testing of critical propositions and policies. This should result in a more rigorous understanding of intrahousehold allocation mechanisms, their interaction with market forces, and the effect of these interactions on child labor. The articles in this issue of the World Bank Economic Review make a small contribution to the growing debate on child labor. They are based on papers presented at an international conference, ‘‘The Economics of Child Labour’’ in Oslo in May 2002, sponsored by the ILO, the United Nations Children’s Fund