Education, Poverty and Child Labour

Abstract

The purpose of the paper is to investigate the effects of poverty and educational policies on school attendance, child labour and growth. We consider an OLG model, with parental educational choices. It is assumed there is a trade off between child labour and human capital accumulation. If parents don't choose for quality of education, it is shown that a poverty trap may occur in the presence of a consumption subsistence or when the quality of education is inadequate. A private education system, where schooling quality is endogeneized can improve growth and reduce child labour, and cycles may occur. A public education system does not generate cycles, but it can generate more easely a poverty trap. In this case, only subsidies would help to reduce poverty and, consequently, child laboueducation, child labour, consumption subsistence, growth, educational policies