survey of activities of young people, 2015

Source: Survey of Activities of Young People, 2015

Survey of Activities of Young People, 2015

Dr Pali LehohlaStatistician-General

#StatsSA


What is SAYP

The survey collects data on educational activities, economic activities, non-economic activities, health and safety issues, and household tasks of individuals aged 7–17 years who live

in South Africa.


SAYPThe survey helps:

• To understand the extent of children’s involvement in economic activities

• To analyse the demographic and socio economic characteristics and their extent to contributing towards their involvement in economic activities

• To update and expand the existing statistical data on working children

• Identify specific areas that needs intervention to reduce children involvement in hazardous activities.

•• To provide information for the formulation of an informed policy to combat child labour within the

country; and

• To monitor the South African Child Labour Action Program (CLAP) and Sustainable Development Goals( SDG’s).


NDPVision

• The NDP vision is that everyone has access to education at a high standard, regardless of who they are and where they live.


SDG Goal 4By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free,equitable and quality primary and secondary educationleading to relevant and Goal-4 effective learning outcomes

Target 4.1:

Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms

Target 8.7:


Profile of South Africa’s

Children


Profile of South Africa’s children aged, 7 – 17 years oldDemographics

50,0%50,0%2015 2015

+0,1 from 2010-0,1 from 2010

of the total South African

population in 2015

20,5%

Children aged 7 to 17 years made up

Total population

Chi

ldre

n ag

ed 7

–17

yea

rs o

ld


Provincial distribution of South Africa’s children aged 7 – 17 years old

South Africa

20,5%

NC2,3%(+0,2)

WC10,2%(+0,8)

EC15,0%(-0,3)

NW7,2%

(-)

MP9,0%(-0,2)

KZN22,9%(-0,4)

FS4,6%(-0,7)

LP12,5%(+0,4)

The biggest proportion of children were found in

KwaZulu-Natal followed by Gauteng.

The North West is the only province that did not

experience any change between 2010 and 2015.

Highest change was observed in Western Cape

at 0,8 percentage point.

GP16,3%(+0,3)


37,3%7 – 10 years old

35,2%11 – 14 years old

27,5%15 – 17 years old

+2,2 from 2010 -2,2 from 2010

unchanged

Profile of South Africa’s children aged, 7 – 17 years oldAge


Indian/Asian1,9%

White5,5%-0,2

Coloured8,8%

Black/African83,9%

+0,3

4 in 5 children in South Africa

are Black African

Profile of South Africa’s children aged, 7 – 17 years oldRace


Parental survival


Children by Parental survival

74,8%Both parents

alive-2,7 from 2010

14,3%Only mother

alive+0,4 from 2010

7,3%Neither parent

alive+2,0 from 2010

Only 29% of black African children lived with both parents in the household compared to the 75,6% among whites and 74,8%

among Indian/Asian in 2015

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Parents not alive

Both parents not household

members but alive

Both parents household member

Only father household member

Only mother household member

Black/African Coloured Indian/Asian White All population groups

3,6%Only father

alive+0,3 from 2010

Presence of parents in the household by population group


Presence of grandparents in the household among children aged 7 – 17 years old whose parents were not household members

In 2015 fewer children whose parents were not household

members lived with their grandparents compared to

2010


Children educational characteristics


Proportions of children aged 7–17 years old not attending school

South Africa1,6%

-0,5 (compared to

2010)

NC2,9%(+0,4)

WC1,7%(-1,1)

EC2,1%(-1,3)

NW2,7%(+0,5)

MP2,1%(+1,1)

KZN1,1%(-0,9)

FS2,3%(+0,1)

LP1,2%(-0,6)

GP0,9%(-0,4)

Overall there was a drop in the proportion of children not attending school between 2010

and 2015.

Mpumalanga recorded the biggest increase in non-attendance at 1,1

percentage points


Children with no parents alive or only father present in household member were more likely not to attend school.

Non school attendance increased among children in father only households

Parent survival and member of the household by school non-attendance

Neither parents alive

3,5%(-0,1)

Only fatherhouseholdmember

2,1%(+0,6)

Neither parents

householdmember

1,9%(-0,7)

Only motherhouseholdmember

1,5%(-0,4)

Both parents householdmember

1,1%(-0,8)


School attendance of children aged 7 – 17 years old whose parents were not household members by presence of grandparents in the household

Grandparents presence in the household where parents were not household members increased the likelihood of

children attending school

1,7%(-)

Grandparent part of

household

3,1%(-1,2)

Grandparent not part of household


Children engaged in economic activity


Economic activity

Specifically contributing or available to contribute to the production of goods and services according to the United Nations System of National Accounts (SNA,1993).

This includes:• work for pay or in-kind; • unpaid work in a family business • domestic work in households• Production for own consumption


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in economic activity by sex in 2015

Children aged 16 to17 years were more likely to be involved in child labour

21% of all children aged 7-17 years were involved in economic activities, and this was a decrease of 2,6 percentage points from 2010

In 2015 more boys were engaged in economic activity (22,3%) compared with girls (20,9%), both sexes experienced decreases with the largest among girls at 3,6 percentage

points.

23,6%

22,3%

2010 2015

Male

24,8%

20,9%

2010 2015

Female


24,2%

30,5%

28,2%

15,0%

21,6%

29,7%

22,7%

14,7%

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

Total

15 - 17 years old

11 - 14 years old

7 - 10 years old

2015 2010

Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in economic activity by age

The 15-17 year old had the highest proportion among those engaged in economic activity. Older ages were more likely to be involved in economic activities

Those aged 11–14 year old their proportion decreased with 5,6 percentage points, the highest change when compared with the other age group.


24,2%

28,4%

5,6%

3,3%

1,5%

21,6%

25,2%

0,5%

3,9%

1,7%

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Total

Black/African

Indian/Asian

Colooured

White

2015 2010

Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in economic activity by race

Black children were more likely to be involved in economic activities (which included production for own consumption) compared to the other races among children involved in

economic activities


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in economic activity by school attendance

24,2%21,6%

2010 2015

Overall children involvement in economic activities declined in 2015

Children involved in economic activities were more likely not to attend school

All children

35,7%

29,2%

2010 2015

Children not attending school

23,9%21,5%

2010 2015

Childrenattending school


97,4% of girls were involved in production for own consumption only, slightly more than the 95,6% of boys.

More boys were engaged in economic activity for both market and own production than girls.

Boys were also more likely to have participated in market activity only.

96,5%

2,0%

1,5%

+0,8 from 2010

-0,2 from 2010

-0,6 from 2010

Involvement by type of economic activity

Involvement in economic activities by sex

&

Children 7 – 17 years old engaged in economic activity by type of economic activity


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in economic activity by industry in 2015

Involvement of children in economic activities was high in the trade industry in both 2010 and 2015, though the share decreased by 8,8 percentage points.

58,1%

12,0%

29,9%

49,3%

16,5%

34,2%

Trade Private households other

2010 2015


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in economic activity by occupation

The majority of children who engaged in economic activities were in Elementary, followed by Sales and Services

65,6%

18,3% 16,0%

68,8%

11,9%

19,3%

Elementary Salesandservices Other

2010 2015


Children engaged in economic activity by industry and hours of work per week More than 60% of children engaged in economic activity, worked for less than 14 hours per week.

Children who worked in agriculture and services were more likely to work more than 14 hours per week in 2015. The share of children who worked more than 14 hours per week in the transport industry declined 16,5%

Less than14 hours

per week

More than14 hoursper week

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2010 2015

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2010 2015


Widespread decreases in children aged 7–17 years involved in most activities – except for those who only studied and those who both studied and engaged in household chores, where

the proportions increased.

Children aged 7 – 17 years old by activities

+ +

+Household chores & study

Economic activity, household chores & study

Study only

57,6%

56,4%

2015

2010

20,5%

22,7%%

2015

2010

19,7%

18,1%

2015

2010


Children who lived in a household with no parent present but had at least one grandparent in the household, were more likely to be involved in only studying compared to those who had no parents

or grandparent in the household.

Children aged 7 – 17 years activities by presence of grandparents where the parents were not household members.

+Household chores & study

+ +Economic activity, household chores & study

Study only

Grandparent part of household


51,6%(-0,3)

54,5%(-0,1)



32,2%(-1,3)

28,8%(+0,2)



14,0%(+2,3)

12,9%(+1,8)


Reasons of children aged 7-17 years for doing economic work

43,3%

25,9%

20,3%

10,3%

55,4%

22,2%

15,7%

6,7%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Pocket money Assist family with money Duty to the family Other reasons

The main reasons why children worked was for pocket money, and this reason increased with 8,8 percentage points in 2015

2010 2015


Household chores


Children aged 7-17years involved in at least one household chore by province

NC72,4%(-3,9)

WC74,7%(-3,5)

EC81,2%(-9,0)

NW79,7%(-5,9)

MP80,7%(+1,4)

KZN85,6%(+3,3)

FS82,5%(-3,3)

LP81,6%(+3,5)

GP68,7%(-1,0,)

Involvement of children in at least one household chore was more than 65% among

all children in all the provinces

South Africa79,3%

-1,3(compared to 2010)


Children involved in at least one household chore by presence of parents in the household

82,4%83,6%

74,6%

86,7%

80,6%80,6%81,5%

73,0%

85,6%

79,3%

Only mother household member

Only father household member

Both parents household member

Neither parents household member

Total

2010 2015

Children with no parents in the household or staying with the father only were more likely to be involved in at least one chore in the household


Number of hours per week spent on household chores by age group

The number of hours worked by children increased with their ages, children aged 15-17 years reported the highest percentage to be working more than 15 hours per week in 2015,

7-10yrs 11-14yrs 15-17yrs Total

15 hrs+ 11-14hrs 4-6 hrs 0-3 hrs

2010

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

7-10yrs 11-14yrs 15-17yrs Total

15 hrs+ 11-14hrs 4-6 hrs 0-3 hrs

2015


Children involved in household chores by type of activity and sex

Cleaning or sweeping or going to the shops were household chores which were performed by most children who were involved in performing household chores.

Girls were more likely to be involved in household chores compared to boys, while boys were more involved in going to the shops and repairing of household equipment.

60,4%Cleaning/sweeping

Male Female67,4%53,3%

60,1%Going to the shops

Male Female

59,9%60,2%

42,0%Washing clothes

Male Female

47,9%36,1%

48,0%Cooking

Male Female

56,4%39,6%

10,3%Caring for children

Male Female

13,3%7,3%

2,5%Repairing household

equipment

Male Female

1,5%3,5%

1,2%other

Male Female

1,1%1,3%


Chores at school


Most children were involved in the sweeping/cleaning of schools.

At school, boys were more likely work in the garden.

Children involved in chores at school by type of activity and sex

29,7 %Cleaning/sweeping

Male Female

31,6 %27,7 %

0,1%Other

Male Female

0,1%0,1%

5,8%Maintenance of walls, floors etc

Male Female

6,6%4,9%

4,5%Helping teacher

with marking

Male Female

5,1%3,9%

2,1%Working in school

garden

Male Female

1,3%2,8%

0,3%Helping teacher with his/her house

Male Female

0,4%0,2%


Number of hours per week spent by learners on chores at school

More than 55% of learners spend 1 hour per week on school chores

1%13%

17%

57%

12%

7 hours or more per week

3 to 6 hrs/week

2 Hours per week

1 Hour per week

Less than 1 hour per week


Child labour


Difference between activities (economic, school chores and household chores) and child labour

• Not all work affects children’s development negatively;activities such as helping around the house and earning pocketmoney outside school hours can equip children with skills andcapabilities that would enable them to be productive in theiradult life. (E.g selling sweets at school for pocket money).Thistype of work is not regarded as being involved in child labour.

• On the other hand child labour is work that affects children’shealth, personal development and interferes with theirschooling and has a negative impact on children’s well-being


Child Labour Action Programme

Definition: Work by children under 18 which is exploitative, hazardous or otherwise inappropriate for their age, detrimental to their schooling, or social, physical, mental, spiritual or moral development.

Monitoring: To monitor its progress, a set of indicators were established which could be measured through the use of surveys such as the SAYP. Any child who is rated as being vulnerable in respect of any one of the indicators is counted as being in child labour.


Child labour indicators

• Where a child appeared to be doing work prohibited by Basic Employment Act

• Where a child appeared to have worked long hours for their age on all types of work combined

• Where a child was doing ‘market’ that interfered with schooling

• Where a child appeared to be absent from school or experienced difficulties at school because of work-related activities

• Where a child was doing hazardous work


Child labour composite indicators as defined in the (Child Labour Action Plan)

Child labour composite indicator 2010 2015 Changes (2010-2015)

Where a child appeared to be doing work prohibited by Basic Employment Act

122 000 81 000 -41 000

Where a child appeared to have worked long hours for their age on all types of work combined

417 000 349 000 -68 000

Where a child was doing ‘market’ that interfered with schooling 11 000 1 000 -10 000

Where a child appeared to be absent from school or experienced difficulties at school because of work-related activities

35 000 4 000 -31 000

Where a child was Doing hazardous work 291 000 203 000 -88 000

Overall (at least one of the options in the indicators)

779 000 577 000 -202 000

Child labour declined with an

estimated 202 000 from 779 000 in

2010 to 577 000 in 2015


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in child labour by sex

Children aged 16 to17 years were more likely to be involved in child labour

5,3% of boys were engaged in child labour, slightly higher than girls at 5,0%

6,7%

5,3%

2010 2015

Male

7,4%

5,0%

2010 2015

Female


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in child labour by age group

9,8%

7,4%

4,4%

8,8%

5,2%

2,7%

16-17 yrs 10-15 yrs 7-9 yrs

In 2015 Child labour declined in all age groups, although children aged 16-17 years were more likely to be engaged in child labour

2010 2015


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in child labour by race

8,0%

4,0%

2,6%

1,3%

5,9%

0,4%

1,6% 1,6%

Black/African Indian/Asian Colooured White2010 2015

The highest proportion of children engaged in child labour was recorded among Black African population. While whites were the only race to experience an increase (0,5 percentage point)

in child labour in 2015


Children aged 7 – 17 years old engaged in child labour by province

NC1,2%(-1,4)

WC1,5%(-1,1)

EC4,8%(-10,4)

NW1,5%(-1,4)

MP7,4%(+2,8)

KZN10,0%(-2,9)

FS1,4%(-1,5)

LP7,1%(+4,3)

GP1,5%(-0,2)

The proportion of children engaged in child labour in South Africa declined from

7,0% in 2010 to

5,2% in 2015

Child labour was higher among children in

KwaZulu-Natal, although it declined in 2015.

Mpumalanga and Limpopo were only provinces to report

increases in Child labourin 2015


Exposure to hazardous working conditions


Hazardous work could include any of the following:• Work environment which is very hot, dusty or cold;

• Work done in bad light or work done close to or with dangerous machinery or tools;

• Work which has caused injury or illness or which made illness worse;

• Doing heavy physical work or working for long hours;

• Doing tiring or noisy work;

• Working in an environment where the child experiences fear that a person may hurt him or her; and

• Working with or near dangerous or poisonous substances or with dangerous animals.



41,8% 41,6% 39,9%

51,5%

34,2% 33,9%37,0%

53,8%

All economic activities Production for own consumption only

Market activity only Both market and own production

2010 2015

Overall exposure of children to at least one hazardous working condition declined; more so among children who were involved in production for own consumption.

While children who were in both market and own production their exposure to hazardous conditions increased.



Production for own

consumption only

Market activity only

Both market and own

production

All economic activities

2010 2015

0,0

10,0

20,0

30,0

40,0

50,0

60,0

70,0


Production for own

consumption only

Both market and own

production

All economic activities

Male Female

Boys were more likely to be exposed to at least one hazardous working conditions compared to girls, and the exposure for boys working in market activity only and both market and own production increased with

more than 9 percentage points.


Children injured while involved in economic activity


The number of children injured while involved in market activity only decreased from 5 000 incidents in 2010 to 4 000 in 2015

Production for own consumption only

The number of children injured while involved in production for own consumption decreased from 81 000 incidents in 2010 to 72 000 in 2015

+Both market and

own production

The number of children injured while involved in market activity and own consumption saw an increase from 5 000 incidents in 2010 to 8 000 in 2015


Highlights


• Total number of children aged 7-17 years increased with 127 000 between 2010 and 2015

• Black children had higher proportions compared to other races among children with motheronly household member.

• School non-attendance among children is declining which makes the NDP vision 2030 ofuniversal education possible.

• 24,2% of children were involved in economic activity, and boys were more likely to beinvolved in economic activity compared to girls.

• Around 80% of children are involved in at least one household chores

• Child labour declined with 202 000 children in 2015.

• 5,2% of children were involved in child labour in 2015.

• Children aged 16-17 years were more likely to be engaged in child labour.

• Child labour is largely concentrated in rural areas.

survey of activities of young people, 2015

Education