Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

Social Policy (Basic Aims and Standards) Convention, 1962 (No. 117) - Zambia (Ratification: 1964)

Parts I and II of the Convention. Improvement of standards of living. The Committee notes the reply provided by the Government to its 2006 observation in a report received in March 2008. The Government indicates that it has established a poverty reduction strategy through which it has been combating poverty and improving the living standards of the people. It further indicates its hope that when the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) is implemented, it will significantly reduce poverty. In addition to the PRSP, the Government highlights a number of other initiatives introduced, such as training and job searching techniques for persons who have been dismissed which will assist them to gain access to employment opportunities. The HIV/AIDS pandemic threatens the country’s capacity-building efforts due to its indiscriminate effects on all productive age groups. Exploitation of the country’s natural resources in a sustainable manner would provide greater potential for economic growth and poverty reduction. The Committee recalls that, in the conclusions adopted at the 11th ILO African Regional Meeting (Addis Ababa, April 2007), the tripartite delegations reached consensus for an assessment of the impact on the generation and maintenance of decent work opportunities in development strategies aimed at poverty reduction and to adopt national targets for the creation of sufficient decent jobs to absorb new labour market entrants and reduce, by half, the numbers of working poor. The Committee refers to its 2008 observation on the application of the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122), and hopes that in its next report on the application of Convention No. 117, the Government will include an up to date assessment of the manner in which it ensures that the “improvement in standards of living” has been regarded as the “principal objective in the planning of economic development” (Article 2 of Convention No. 117) as well as information on the results achieved in combating poverty.

Part III. Migrant workers. In reply to the Committee’s previous requests, the Government indicates that, in 2000, the migrant workers made up 3.6 per cent of the total population in Zambia. Zambian health workers chose to go to other countries in Africa to find work opportunities more easily. More recently, they have also been choosing to go to some OECD countries, which has affected the health sector more than any other. The Government indicates that it has included issues of labour migration as a key area for intervention in the National Employment and Labour Market Policy in the Fifth National Development Plan with the aim of reducing the brain drain and effectively utilizing skills of migrant workers and skilled refugees. The Government recognizes the need to streamline issues pertaining to the management of migration even though this matter currently falls under the responsibility of both the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security. The Government’s management of the new Labour Market Information System will help to identify gaps in skills and to introduce appropriate policy measures. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to ensure that the terms and conditions of employment of migrant workers within the national territory and abroad take account of their family needs and the increase in the cost of living, and facilitate the transfer of wages and savings (Articles 6 to 9 and 14, paragraph 3). The Committee draws the Government’s attention to the fact that it is difficult to prevent abusive practices in relation to migrant workers and emphasizes the urgency of affording effective protection to this category of particularly vulnerable workers. The Government may also wish to refer to the ILO Multilateral Framework on Labour Migration of March 2006, designed to improve the effectiveness of policies in respect of migration for employment.

Part VI. Education and training. In reply to the Committee’s previous requests, the Government highlights several programmes that were set up to bring education and training requirements in line with the needs of the industry. The Government indicates that it reformed the process for the development of training curricula, and it used the Systematic Curriculum and Instruction Development format which used a competence- and outcome-based approach to education and training so that learners are appropriately prepared for the challenges of the world of work. It is also designing Training Quality Assurance Protocols with a view to enhancing the provision of quality training by training providers. The Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security are jointly reviewing the Apprenticeship Act with a view to addressing training, both in the formal and informal sectors. Finally, the Government highlights that the Tevet qualification framework, a forerunner for national qualification networks, has been developed. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the impact of the measures adopted for the progressive development of education, vocational training and apprenticeship, and the manner in which the teaching of new production techniques has been organized as part of a social policy which gives effect to the provisions of Articles 15 and 16 of the Convention.