The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Monday reported that the number of child laborers in the country dropped this year.

According to DOLE, out of the 327,194 child laborers monitored by the agency in 2023, 188,238 were validated as removed from child labor.

This was further validated based on the Philippines Statistics Authority's latest survey wherein the number of child laborers decreased to 678,000 in 2023, from 828,000 in 2022, and 935,000 in 2021, respectively.

DOLE Undersecretary Benjo Benavidez said this was made possible through the implementation of various programs to help the parents and the families of the child laborers through job placement, employment facilitation, skills training, financial assistance, medical aid, housing support, and inclusion to Department of Social Welfare and Development's (DSWD) Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.

"That's right, the number of child labor has decreased in our country... and we are happy to have this data, but our happiness is because of the whole community and government that helped to address this problem faced by the family that has child laborer," Benavidez told the press during the agency's yearend media conference.

"We continue to provide employment facilitation to the parents of child laborers. Second, we also provide livelihood assistance or projects," he added.

Services provided by DOLE, in collaboration with the Department of Education (DepEd) and DSWD, to the family of a child laborer also include educational assistance, medical assistance, legal assistance, birth registration, feeding programs, as well as provision of school supplies, hygiene kit, and food packs.

"We collaborated with DepEd to send those children back to school," Benavidez said.

Meanwhile, Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma explained that "working children are different from child laborers."

"Working children 15 years old and above can work, but they cannot work under hazardous environments. They must also have consent from their parents or guardians," he noted.

"Meanwhile child labor has none. So it's prohibited."