Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Central African Republic (Ratification: 2000)

Article 3 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indications that the preliminary draft of the Labour Code, approved by the social partners, prohibits the worst forms of child labour. It also noted that a new Penal Code, also approved, was still in the process of adoption.

The Committee notes with interest the adoption in January 2009 of Act No. 09.004 issuing the Labour Code of the Central African Republic (Labour Code of 2009), sections 262 and 263 of which prohibit the worst forms of child labour throughout the territory of the Central African Republic, namely:

(a)   all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children and forced and compulsory labour;

(b)   the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances;

(c)   the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs, as defined in the relevant international treaties; and

(d)   work which, by its nature or the conditions in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of the child.

However, the Committee notes that the Government has not provided any information on the progress achieved towards the adoption of the new Penal Code. It once again requests the Government to provide a copy of the new Penal Code once it has been adopted.

Article 4, paragraph 1. Determination of hazardous types of work. The Committee noted previously that the preliminary draft of the Labour Code determines a list of hazardous types of work and that technological advances have been taken into consideration. It also noted the Government’s indication that the National Network to Combat Child Labour and the National Follow-up Committee on the Convention on the Rights of the Child would hold joint consultations with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report submitted under the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), that section 261 of the Labour Code of 2009 provides that a joint order of the Minister of Labour and the Minister of Public Health, issued after consulting the National Standing Labour Council, shall determine the nature of the types of work and the categories of enterprises that are prohibited for children and the age limit up to which the prohibition applies. However, the Committee observes that, to date, no such list of hazardous types of employment or work appears to have been published. The Committee reminds the Government that, pursuant to Article 4(1) of the Convention, the types of hazardous employment or work shall be determined by national laws or regulations or by the competent authority, after consultation with the organizations of employers and workers concerned, and that, pursuant to Article 1 of the Convention, immediate and effective measures shall be taken to secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour as a matter of urgency. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that a list determining the hazardous types of employment or work prohibited for persons under 18 years of age, in accordance with section 261 of the Labour Code of 2009, is adopted in the near future. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress achieved in this regard.

Article 6. Programmes of action. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that it envisaged implementing a programme of action for the protection of children at work and that, once the initial Labour Code was adopted and the study to identify and classify child labour validated, it would take measures to implement the programme of action. The Committee notes that, in its report submitted under the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), the Government indicates that, in the context of the adoption of the Labour Code of 2009, the Department of Labour worked on the preparation of texts to implement the Code, and that a national policy intended to achieve the progressive abolition of child labour and to increase the minimum age for admission to employment or work will be prepared once the implementing texts have been issued. The Committee requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that the national policy on the abolition of child labour is adopted in the near future. It requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken in the context of this national policy for the elimination of child labour in hazardous types of work and in the worst forms of child labour, particularly in the informal sector.

Article 7, paragraph 2. Effective and time-bound measures.  Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. Access to free basic education. The Committee previously noted the Government’s indication that it had adopted a Plan of Action on Education for All (NPA–EFA) in 2005, intended to increase the school attendance rate, reduce the school drop-out rate and ensure the completion of the full cycle of primary education by all children. It further noted that the Government has adopted measures to raise the awareness with regard to school attendance of girls so as to reduce the disparity in the school attendance rates between girls and boys. However, it noted that, according to UNICEF statistics for 2006, the net school enrolment rate at the primary level was 44 per cent for boys and 37 per cent for girls, with the figures at the secondary level being 13 per cent for boys and 9 per cent for girls. The Committee also noted that, according to the Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2008, published by UNESCO and entitled Education for All in 2015: Will we make it?, 20 per cent or more of students in primary school have repeated their grade and that girls repeat grades more than boys.

The Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain any information regarding education. However, the Committee observes that, according to UNICEF statistics for 2007, the school attendance rates at the primary and secondary levels remain a cause of serious concern: the net primary school registration rate is 53 per cent for boys and 38 per cent for girls, while the figures for secondary school are 13 per cent for boys and 9 per cent for girls. The Committee also expresses concern at the report of the Representative of the Secretary-General on the human rights of internally displaced persons of 17 March 2008 (A/HRC/8/6/Add.1, paragraph 60), which indicates that the education sector has been seriously affected, among other factors, by the destruction of hundreds of schools (117 in 2005) during the conflict in the Central African Republic. In areas where access to education was already insufficient, the Representative expresses concern that the right to education is becoming ever more illusory for thousands of children. According to United Nations estimates, around 90,000 children between the ages of 6 and 16 years are affected by this situation.

The Committee therefore once again expresses deep concern at the low rate of school enrolment in both primary and secondary education and the relatively high rate of students repeating years, with both phenomena affecting girls in particular. It is also extremely concerned at the number of children who are deprived of education due to the armed conflicts in the Central African Republic. Considering that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee firmly requests the Government to take effective and time-bound measures to improve the operation of the education system in the country, particularly in the context of the
NPA–EFA of 2005, and to improve the school enrolment rate at both the primary and secondary levels, and reduce the rate of grade repetition, with special attention to the situation of girls.

Clause (b). Direct assistance for the removal of children from the worst forms of child labour. Trafficking and prostitution. The Committee noted previously that, according to the information contained in the report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women of February 2003 (E/CN.4/2003/75/Add.1, paragraph 143), children originating from Nigeria, Sudan and Chad are trafficked for use as domestic workers and commercial and agricultural workers in the Central African Republic. According to this report, child prostitution also exists in the country. The Committee further noted the Government’s indication that a study on the abuse, sexual exploitation and trafficking of children had been carried out in 2005 and that a national plan of action to combat the abuse, sexual exploitation and trafficking of children had been adopted. The Committee once again notes the absence of information in the Government’s report on this subject. It therefore once again requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken in the context of the implementation of this national plan of action to provide the necessary and appropriate direct assistance for the removal of child victims of trafficking for economic or sexual exploitation from these worst forms of child labour and to ensure their rehabilitation and social integration. The Committee further requests the Government to provide information with its next report on the results achieved and to supply a copy of the national plan of action to combat the abuse, sexual exploitation and trafficking of children.

Clause (d). Identifying and reaching out to children at special risk 
1. Street children and other vulnerable children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that a number of children live and work in the streets in the Central African Republic. It noted the information provided by the Government that a Youth Development Programme (DIJE) had been tested in the sous‑préfecture of Boda and that NGOs had set up centres for the reintegration and rehabilitation of street children and other vulnerable children. The Committee once again notes that the Government’s report does not contain any information on this matter. It once again reminds the Government that street children and other vulnerable children are particularly exposed to the worst forms of child labour. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the measures taken in the context of the DIJE programme in the sous-préfecture of Boda and by the reintegration and rehabilitation centres to protect these children.

2. Orphans of HIV/AIDS. The Committee noted previously that, according to the Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic published by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) in May 2006, the number of children orphaned in the Central African Republic as a result of the virus was approximately 140,000. It also noted that, according to this report, the Government had formulated, in collaboration with UNAIDS, a five-year strategic national framework to combat the virus. It noted that, according to the national situation report that the Government submitted to UNAIDS in January 2008, national programmes have been implemented for orphans and vulnerable children. The Committee once again notes that the Government has not provided any information on this subject. It once again expresses concern at the high number of child HIV/AIDS orphans in the Central African Republic and again observes that the virus has negative consequences on orphans, who are at increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee therefore urges the Government to provide information in its next report on the specific measures adopted to prevent orphans of HIV/AIDS from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour.

Clause (e). Special situation of girls. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the 2003 study carried out by the Ministry of the Economy, Planning and International Cooperation on the situation of children in the country, girls from the majority of those working on their own account (57 per cent) and of domestic workers (54 per cent), two sectors which are not subject to the regulations on child labour, thereby making them vulnerable to exploitation. Noting once again the absence of information in the Government’s report, the Committee requests the Government to take effective and time-bound measures that pay particular attention to the situation of girls working in these areas. It requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the progress achieved in this respect.

Article 8. International cooperation and assistance. Poverty reduction. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes that, according to the report submitted in accordance with paragraph 15(a) of the Annex to Human Rights Council Resolution 5/1 of the Human Rights Council of 23 February 2009 (A/HRC/WG.6/5/CAF/1, paragraphs 47–49), the Government has prepared a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) as the sole context for dialogue and the reference point for all issues relating to national development policies. However, the Committee notes the indication in this report that poverty is a massive phenomenon in the Central African Republic; more than two-thirds of the population (67.2 per cent, or 12,618,000 people) live below the poverty line. Noting once again that the Government has not provided information on this subject, the Committee reminds the Government that initiatives to reduce poverty contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. The Committee urges the Government to take measures to ensure that the implementation of the PRSP has a significant impact on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to provide information on any progress achieved in this respect.

Parts IV and V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the study to identify and classify child labour, undertaken in collaboration with UNICEF, was in the process of being validated. It also noted the Government’s indication that the new Penal Code reinforced penal sanctions relating to the worst forms of child labour. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, following a seminar bringing together labour inspectors and magistrates, a recommendation was adopted to establish better collaboration and more effective communication of the decisions of labour courts. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide a copy of the study to identify and classify child labour as soon as it is validated, as well as information on the measures adopted or envisaged as a result of this study to give effect to the provisions of the Convention. It also once again requests the Government to provide information on the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and penal sanctions applied, particularly by the labour courts. To the extent possible, the information provided should be disaggregated by sex.