Globalization, Gender and Child Work

This paper evaluates the impact of globalization on two sorts of child work: child labour and household chores. Using newly available survey data on gender-specific participation rates in child labour and household chores, results are estimated separately for boys and girls to determine whether globalization affects the activities of these children differently. A negative and robust impact of foreign direct investment and trade openness on child labour was found, but no evidence that this relationship varies by gender. Foreign direct investment inflows were also found to be correlated with lower participation by children in household chores, even after controlling for endogeneity.