According to statistics, two-thirds of child laborers work as farmers or hired laborers, and their lives are difficult. But Giovanni's life has changed dramatically when he recently joined the World Vision Children's Funding program at the age of 11. According to a comprehensive report by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), there have been 8.4 million more child laborers worldwide in the past four years, reaching 160 million people. In El Salvador, two-thirds of child laborers live in rural areas, mainly working as farmers or hired labor, and 55 percent of the children are from poor families. W105-0045-008 Photo Credit:
Taiwan World Vision At just 11 years old, Geovanni's small phone database hands are covered with scars from careless use of tools while farming, and his cheeks are sunburned from long-term farming work, but his eyes are still shining. "I started helping my grandfather in the corn field when I was 7 years old. During the harvest season last year, I started to work in other people's fields. Because my father likes to drink, the family only relies on my mother to sell groceries. I really hope to help the family make money together. With money, my family has food. My mother agreed to my request, as long as I didn’t drop out of school because of work.” On working days, Giovanni got up at 5 in the morning, went out at 5:30, went to work at 6:00, worked in the fields until 12:00 noon, and then used the afternoon to go to school. After working half a day in this way, he can earn about $7, and he will take half of his salary to buy food and the other half to pay for tuition. W105-0045-021 Photo Credit:
Taiwan World Vision "Working under the scorching sun is very hard, and you have to be very attentive when using a hoe, otherwise accidents are easy to happen. I have only suffered a little injury, and I have never had a major accident. Other adults also took special care of me and taught me how to do it. I like to work, and I like to study more. , I hope that in the future I can learn to repair mechanical appliances." Giovanni, who is in the seventh grade, has a grade of B or above in every subject at school. The 20 classmates in the same village have a good relationship, and we often play together. Some of the classmates are also his "colleagues". Giovanni recently joined the World Vision Children's Sponsorship Program and was delighted to receive a letter from his sponsor and a special gift—new clothes and food for the whole family.