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Conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs have become widespread in poor countries as a way to alleviate current poverty and provide investments in human capital that improve families’ living conditions in the long-term. The first goal is accomplished when poor families receive money from governments on a monthly basis. The second goal is reached by conditioning the cash transfers on certain behaviors such as children's regular school attendance. However, these programs may also have impacts on time use decisions within beneficiary households, particularly with respect to time spent working. Using data from 2003, we measure the impact of the Brazilian Bolsa Escola CCT program on children's and parents’ labor status using the econometric framework of policy evaluation. Probit regressions and propensity score-matching methods show that this program reduces the probability of work for children aged 6–15, increases school enrollment, and increases mother and father participation in the labor force.

There are an estimated 190.7 million economically active children in the world today.¹ Most of these children are living in poor countries. Sixty-four percent live in Asia where nearly 1 in 5 children work. Sub-Saharan Africa's population is much smaller, but more than 1 in 4 children are economically active. These statistics do not include the hundreds of millions more that provide unpaid household services to their families.