Share of children in hazardous work (15-17) by country
This indicator is based on harmonized definitions used by the ILO in the context of producing global estimates. Data may differ from nationally reported figures. Children refer to persons ages 5-17 years old. Hazardous work is measured on the basis of a list of hazardous industries and occupations, excessive...
What the numbers show
Share of children in hazardous work (15-17) is currently reported for 35 countries. The highest value is 31.64 in Mali; the lowest is 0.062 in Russian Federation.
The median across all reporting countries is 2.16, and the mean is 6.86.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 510.
Over the past decade 8 countries rose and 22 fell. The largest increase was in Hungary (up 174.8%), and the largest decrease in Georgia (down 94.9%).
Share of children in hazardous work: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mali | 31.64 | 2020 | up 116.3% | rising |
| 2 | Cambodia | 25.8 | 2023 | down 10.0% | rising |
| 3 | Honduras | 21.6 | 2023 | down 10.5% | falling |
| 4 | Peru | 20.42 | 2025 | up 81.9% | rising |
| 5 | Ecuador | 17.68 | 2025 | up 49.8% | rising |
| 6 | Switzerland | 16.47 | 2025 | up 29.5% | rising |
| 7 | Guatemala | 13.96 | 2022 | down 14.9% | rising |
| 8 | Pakistan | 13.12 | 2021 | down 1.5% | falling |
| 9 | Paraguay | 9.83 | 2025 | down 34.4% | falling |
| 10 | Austria | 9.15 | 2025 | down 14.2% | falling |
| 11 | El Salvador | 8.87 | 2025 | down 46.0% | falling |
| 12 | Bolivia, Plurinational State of | 8.65 | 2025 | down 10.6% | falling |
| 13 | Rwanda | 8.15 | 2021 | — | falling |
| 14 | Colombia | 6.38 | 2022 | down 7.3% | falling |
| 15 | Angola | 5.54 | 2025 | down 7.6% | falling |
| 16 | Dominican Republic | 4.72 | 2025 | down 14.9% | falling |
| 17 | India | 3.94 | 2025 | — | rising |
| 18 | Thailand | 2.16 | 2023 | down 52.3% | falling |
| 19 | Zambia | 1.93 | 2022 | — | rising |
| 20 | Uruguay | 1.85 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 21 | Estonia | 1.1 | 2024 | up 122.0% | falling |
| 22 | United States of America | 0.958 | 2023 | up 27.1% | falling |
| 23 | Jordan | 0.952 | 2023 | down 79.1% | volatile |
| 24 | Republic of Moldova | 0.841 | 2025 | up 7.4% | volatile |
| 25 | Malta | 0.743 | 2023 | down 54.4% | falling |
| 26 | Hungary | 0.632 | 2024 | up 174.8% | volatile |
| 27 | Romania | 0.608 | 2024 | down 22.1% | falling |
| 28 | Georgia | 0.554 | 2025 | down 94.9% | volatile |
| 29 | Chile | 0.441 | 2025 | down 94.6% | volatile |
| 30 | Costa Rica | 0.375 | 2022 | down 94.0% | volatile |
| 31 | Slovenia | 0.319 | 2024 | down 0.9% | falling |
| 32 | Belarus | 0.289 | 2022 | down 4.0% | falling |
| 33 | South Africa | 0.28 | 2024 | down 31.9% | volatile |
| 34 | Greece | 0.15 | 2025 | — | rising |
| 35 | Russian Federation | 0.062 | 2025 | down 39.2% | falling |
About this data
This indicator is based on harmonized definitions used by the ILO in the context of producing global estimates. Data may differ from nationally reported figures. Children refer to persons ages 5-17 years old. Hazardous work is measured on the basis of a list of hazardous industries and occupations, excessive working hours performed for 43 or more hours per week, and hazardous working conditions (such as night work). For more information, refer to the Child Labour Statistics (CHILD) database description.