CMNT_TITLE

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Democratic Republic of the Congo (RATIFICATION: 2001)

Article 2(3) of the Convention. Age of completion of compulsory schooling. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s reference to article 43(5) of the Constitution of 18 February 2006, which provides that primary education shall be compulsory and free in public establishments. It takes due note of the official communication of 30 August 2010 from the President of the Republic and Circular No. MINEPSP/CABMIN/008/2010 of 25 September 2010 under which all direct schooling costs of primary education are covered from the start of the 2010–11 school year. It also notes that, according to information posted on the Senate’s website, a bill establishing the fundamental principles of the national education system was put to the vote and adopted at the ordinary session of March 2011. The Committee also takes note of the detailed statistics on education supplied in the Government’s report. It observes that the primary school completion rate is nearing 65 per cent nationwide. However, there are significant disparities between the regions: for example, the rate stands at 78.5 per cent in the Kinshasa region as compared with 56.2 per cent in South Kivu. Furthermore, the primary school completion rate is much higher among boys than among girls (73.8 per cent as opposed to 54.7 per cent). As regards secondary education, the gross enrolment rate for the first year of secondary school barely reaches 47 per cent nationwide. The Committee also notes that, according to the Education For All Global Monitoring Report 2012, published by UNESCO, although the results of household surveys suggest that the proportion of out-of-school children fell by 25 per cent between 2001 and 2010, the number of out-of-school children is probably well above 2 million, which means that in all likelihood the Democratic Republic of the Congo is among the five countries with the highest number of out-of-school children. Considering that compulsory education is one of the most efficient means of combating child labour, the Committee urges the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure that children who have not reached the minimum age for admission to employment or work are integrated into the education system, paying special attention to girls. It requests the Government to provide detailed information on the measures taken and the action programmes implemented to this end, and on the results obtained. It also requests the Government to provide a copy of the new national education law establishing the fundamental principles of the system with its next report.

Article 3(3). Admission to hazardous work from the age of 16 years. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 10(2) of Ministerial Order No. 12/CAB.MIN/TPSI/045/08 of 8 August 2008 provides that young persons between 16 and 18 years of age may not carry, drag or push, either within or outside the customary workplace, loads of a weight higher than certain maximum levels. The Committee nonetheless pointed out to the Government that the flexibility clause contained in Article 3(3) of the Convention allows the competent authority to authorize hazardous work from the age of 16 years only if the following requirements are met: (a) prior consultations must be held with organizations of employers and workers; (b) the health, safety and morals of the young persons concerned must be fully protected; and (c) it must be ensured that the young persons have received adequate specific instruction or vocational training in the relevant branch of activity.

The Committee takes note of the Government’s statement that it undertakes to examine the extent to which the health, safety and morals and vocational training ought to be guaranteed by national regulations before submitting young persons to hazardous work. Observing that this issue has been raised many times, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary regulatory measures to ensure that the performance of hazardous work by young persons between 16 and 18 years of age may be authorized only if the requirements of Article 3(3) of the Convention are met.

Article 7. Light work. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 17 of the Ministerial Order of 8 August 2008 establishing conditions of work for children draws up a list of light and healthy types of work authorized for children under 18 years of age. The Committee observed that section 17 does not set a minimum age from which a child may perform light work, but appears to allow all young persons under 18 years of age to be engaged in these types of work. It also noted that the Ministerial Order of 8 August 2008 does not set the conditions of employment under which light work may be performed.

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government to the effect that young persons between 12 and 14 years of age shall perform light work, the duration of which is set by section 5 of the Order, and that sections 17 and 18 establish the conditions of work for light and healthy tasks. It notes however that, although the Order of 8 August 2008 bars children under 18 years of age from working for more than eight hours a day (section 5), from night work (section 6) or from work in certain jobs deemed to be unhealthy, it sets no minimum age for the performance of light and healthy types of work as defined in section 17. The Committee again reminds the Government that Article 7(1) and (4) of the Convention is a flexibility clause under which national laws or regulations may permit the employment of persons 12 to 14 years of age on light work or the performance by these persons of such work, provided that it is: (a) not likely to be harmful to their health or development; (b) not such as to prejudice their attendance at school, their participation in vocational orientation or training programmes approved by the competent authority, or their capacity to benefit from the instruction received. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the types of work referred to in section 17 of the Order of 8 August 2008 are authorized only for children who have reached the minimum age for admission to employment or work, namely 14 years, or children who have reached the age of 12 years, provided that the requirements set out in Article 7(1) of the Convention are met.