Not all FDI are alike as far as their impact on various dimensions of human
development. This paper focuses, in particular, on child labor and it undertakes a cross-country
empirical analysis of this issue, using data on 100 countries spanning the period 1990-2009.
Unlike earlier studies that focus mostly on total FDI, we also utilized data on disaggregated FDI,
covering main economic sectors of interest such as agriculture, mining, manufacturing, services,
and finance. The empirical results suggest that different economic sectors generate varied effects
on child labor. For instance, FDI in agriculture in Europe and Central Asia tends to exacerbate
child labor, whereas FDI in manufacturing in South and East Asia and FDI in mining in Latin
America appears negatively linked to child labor. Furthermore, signing onto the UN Convention
on the Rights of the Child had a positive association with child labor, which runs counter to the
intended effect! One possible explanation is that stronger anti-child labor laws could lead to
multiple equilibria in labor markets, including the possibility of increasing child labor in certain
sectors. Selected case studies help clarify the possible reasons behind this varied FDI impact on
child labor, emphasizing among other factors supply chain management and the critical
importance of policy implementation and coordination with the private sector.