In the commercial town of El-Eulma, east of Setif, child labor is on the rise. Indeed, the Dubai market attracts dozens of children between the ages of 10 and 14, from disadvantaged families. These children perform very hard activities including transporting goods using carts. According to information in our possession, the rental of these means of transport is provided by an owner of several dozen carts. The latter has no qualms, we are told, about exploiting children. This is the case of Abderraouf, 14, who left college benches to help his family. “I live in Bazer Sakhra. I come here every morning to work. My father does not work because he is sick. I rent a cart every day that costs 100 DA that I have to return to its owner at noon ”, added Abderraouf. And to add: “I earn 150 DA for each transport operation. I have to cover the needs of my family. ” Under a blazing sun and in the middle of the month of Ramadhan, these children roam the neighborhoods inside the market in search of a customer, pushing carts often heavier than their frail bodies. They carry the goods of visitors who come to shop in El-Eulma, including household appliances (refrigerators, stoves, washing machines) and even furniture.

According to children they met at the scene, they used to rent these carts to transport goods. “We are used to working here. The owner of the carts knows us perfectly, because we have been working with him for years ”, another child told us. During our trip, we noticed that the great majority of carts are rented, without any conscience, to the children who invest all the districts, in search of customers. “It's vacation time. We are taking advantage of this period to help our families and try to collect a little money to cover the needs of the next social school year ”, another child explained to us.