By Jorge Rojas-Ruiz, Humanitas Global
This year marks the 20th Anniversary of the International Day of Families, a global observance day focused on sustainable development through the strengthening of family roles. This year’s theme, “Families Matter for the Achievement of Development Goals; International Year of the Family +20,” focuses on and highlights the role of families in meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
As a microcosm of society, families are the face of the problems and struggles we experience as a society. To address these obstacles and break the cycle of poverty, it will take all levels of society working together – from families to governments. For this International Day of Families, we would like to highlight the role of families in meeting the second MDG on achieving universal primary education.
In an effort to end the cycle of poverty, completing primary education is a crucial first step. The good news is that there has been progress in primary school enrollment during the last decade. The number of out-of-school children dropped by 45 million between 2000 and 2011 and enrollment in developing countries reached 90 percent in 2010. However, there is much work to be done if we are to reach the goal set by MDG2, especially in rural regions of developing countries.
In our work at Humanitas, we see that one of the main barriers to sustained enrollment of primary education is due to financial constraints that families face, resulting in children being pulled from school and put into the workforce. The costs associated with education, including: uniforms, supplies, and fees, make school out of reach for far too many children. In my home country of Bolivia more than 10 percent of Bolivians are illiterate and one out of seven children is unable to finish their primary education. Rural children fare even worse, only completing an average of 4.2 years of school. However, the Bolivian government is taking steps to address the issue of child education.
In 2006, the Bolivian government introduced the Bono Juancito Pinto in 2006, a cash transfer program created to increase primary school enrollment in the country. Even though enrollment in rural areas increased by 5.9 percent in a matter of five years, completion rates remained an issue and there were still over two million children between the ages of 5 and 14 working in 2008.
In 2014, the Bolivian congress attempted to pass a law that would prohibit employment of children under the age of 14. However, children and parents strongly opposed this measure and protested in the streets forcing President Evo Morales to ask Congress to remove the bill that would guarantee their right to an education through the age of 14. This exemplifies how strongly rooted child labor is in family traditions in Bolivia, particularly for those deepest in poverty.
Seeing children in the workforce was something I witnessed on a daily basis growing up in Bolivia, often seeing children younger than I was working on farms, in construction, gardening, mining and even begging in the streets. Child labor in Bolivia hinders the ability of children to receive an education that would help them end the cycle of poverty they live in. I believe that behavior change campaigns and interventions that raise family’s awareness on the role of education are imperative to achieve universal primary education and break the cycle of poverty in Bolivia.
This year’s International Day of Families, let's highlight the major role that families can play in achieving universal education in Bolivia and around the world. Now is the time when private, public and civil sectors alike must jointly strategize ways in which the world as a whole can work towards achieving the MDGs and include families in the post 2015 development agenda.
