Children in Angola: Poverty, Deprivation and Child Labour

Abstract

Child poverty is considered to be an obstacle for the development of children around the world and to have a negative effect on social, economic and human development of a country. Therefore, analysis of this situation becomes vital in the study of poverty. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence in this field, especially in countries such Angola, with a long history of internal conflict and violence. This paper aims to measure the levels of deprivation and multidimensional poverty of children in Angola and the perceptions of poverty and child labour that urban households have in this country. A mix-methods study was designed, initially using the Integrated Survey on the Well-being of the Population (IBEP) 2008–2009. The levels of deprivation and multidimensional poverty of households with children of 18 years old or younger were calculated and the characteristics of those households were analysed. In the second part, a thematic analysis of 21 semi-structured interviews was conducted. The interviews were done in Lubango, urban Angola, with 14 children (8 to 16 years old) and 7 heads of household. The findings revealed that more than 30% of children aged 5 to 17 years in Angola are multidimensionally poor and 52% of children aged 0 to 17 years are absolutely poor. In addition, parents and children in Lubango associate poverty with lack of food and an income which is inadequate to cover the basic needs in a household. In addition, child work is considered to be normal if the family does not have the means to provide the minimum dietary intake.