Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Benin (Ratification: 2001)

Article 2(1) and (4) of the Convention and Part III of the report form. Scope of application and labour inspection. The Committee previously observed that the provisions of the Labour Code and its implementing regulations do not apply to labour relations in the informal economy or to work performed by a child on a self-employed basis, except where the parties so decide. It noted that, according to the July 2003 activity report on the ILO–IPEC project on the abolition of child labour in Benin, employment in the informal sector is expanding rapidly. In addition, according to the report, it is extremely difficult for the labour inspectorate to intervene in the informal sector, where most child labour occurs. The Government indicated that random inspections are carried out in hairdressing, dressmaking and mechanical workshops to check whether they are observing the legislation in force, particularly as regards the existence of an apprenticeship contract and the age of the apprentice. It also indicated that the labour inspectorate is increasingly extending its action from the informal economy to other sectors of the national economy.

The Committee notes the Government’s information to the effect that labour inspectors visit workshops where children are employed as apprentices and also sites where the small-scale exploitation of gravel and granite quarries takes place. Moreover, according to the Government, inspectors raise the awareness of workshop bosses, operators and other persons with regard to the damaging effects of child labour. The Committee encourages the Government to pursue its efforts to adapt and strengthen the labour inspection services so that children who are working on a self-employed basis or in the informal sector enjoy the protection afforded by the Convention. It requests the Government to supply information on the number and nature of violations reported by labour inspectors in the course of their duties involving children below the minimum age for admission to employment who are working on a self-employed basis or in the informal sector.

Article 2(1) and (4). Minimum age for admission to domestic work. In its previous comments the Committee asked the Government to supply information on the measures taken or contemplated with a view to explicitly establishing in the national legislation a minimum age for admission to domestic work, regardless of whether the work is performed on a full- or part-time basis.

The Committee notes with interest the information supplied by the Government indicating that domestic work has been included in the list of hazardous types of work prohibited for young persons under 18 years of age. It notes that the draft decree establishing this list was approved by the National Labour Council during its June 2010 session and has been transmitted to the Government for adoption. The Committee expresses the hope that the draft decree establishing the list of hazardous types of work which prohibits domestic work for young persons under 18 years of age will be adopted in the near future. It requests the Government to continue to supply information on the progress made in this respect.

Article 2(3) of the Convention. Age of completion of compulsory schooling. The Committee previously noted that the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), in its concluding observations of October 2006, while noting with satisfaction the various efforts undertaken by the Government, including the adoption of the National Plan of Action entitled “Education for All” and the Ten‑Year Development Plan for the Education Sector, expressed concern, inter alia, at the high illiteracy rate, the large number of school drop-outs and the low transition rate to secondary school (CRC/C/BEN/CO/2, paragraph 61). The recommendations made by the CRC to the Government included: taking measures to ensure that primary education is free and to prevent children dropping out of primary education; and paying specific attention to gender, socio-economic and regional disparities in access to education (CRC/C/BEN/CO/2, paragraph 62). The Committee noted the measures taken by the Government to improve the education system, particularly to increase school attendance rates and prevent the overcrowding of classes. New teachers have been recruited and trained, classrooms have been constructed and equipped, and compulsory primary education has been made free of charge.

The Committee notes the Government’s indications that the measures taken to improve the functioning of the education system and enhance gender equality include the allocation of allowances to schools, the setting up of the Directorate for the Promotion of Schooling for Girls and the provision of school kits and scholarships for girls in at-risk categories. The Committee notes that, according to UNICEF statistics for 2003–08, the net primary school attendance rate has increased but remains lower for girls (62 per cent compared with 72 per cent for boys). The same applies to secondary education, where the net attendance rate is 27 per cent for girls and 40 per cent for boys. The Committee further notes that, according to the 2010 Education for All Global Monitoring Report published by UNESCO and entitled Reaching the Marginalized, Benin is one of the countries which have made the most rapid progress in primary education and has a good chance of achieving the objective of universal primary education by 2015 on the basis of current trends. However, according to the same report, it will be difficult to maintain this trend since the rapid growth in numbers has resulted in new challenges for education policy, including increasing the completion rate for primary education and reducing regional disparities in access to education. While duly noting the measures taken by the Government to improve the functioning of the education system in the country, the Committee encourages the Government to pursue its efforts and requests it to take steps to increase the completion rate in primary education and reduce regional disparities in access to basic education in order to prevent children under 14 years of age from engaging in work. Moreover, it requests the Government to continue to supply information on the measures taken and the results achieved, particularly by the Directorate for the Promotion of Schooling for Girls, in terms of achieving gender equality. Finally, the Committee again requests the Government to supply a copy of legislative texts establishing the structure of the school system and the age of completion of compulsory schooling.

Article 3(3). Admission to hazardous types of work from the age of 16 years. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the draft legislation designed to ensure that young persons between 16 and 18 years of age who are authorized to perform hazardous types of work receive adequate specific instruction or vocational training in the relevant branch of activity, will soon be submitted to the National Occupational Safety and Health Council. The Committee again expresses the strong hope that this new legislative text will be submitted to the National Occupational Safety and Health Council as soon as possible and that it will contain provisions requiring that young persons between 16 and 18 years of age who are authorized to perform hazardous types of work receive adequate specific instruction or vocational training in the relevant branch of activity. It requests the Government to continue to supply information on all progress made in this respect.

Article 6. Apprenticeships. In its previous comments the Committee noted that, according to the April 2006 ILO–IPEC report on the project for the removal and initial vocational training of 100 children between 13 and 15 years of age exploited in carpentry workshops, sawmills, vehicle repair, welding and hairdressing in the town of Porto-Novo, there are 23,782 child apprentices in the country under 14 years of age. It noted with interest that, in the context of this project, 117 children were removed from places of apprenticeship, instead of the 100 initially envisaged. In addition, of these 117 children, 29 very young children were returned to school and 88 received theoretical pre-apprenticeship training. The Committee noted that the project had been completed and asked the Government to continue its efforts to withdraw children from these places of apprenticeship and supply information on the results achieved. Noting the lack of information in the Government’s report on the measures taken to withdraw child apprentices under 14 years of age from work in the informal sector, the Committee again requests the Government to supply information on the measures taken or contemplated, and also on the results achieved in terms of the number of children actually withdrawn from places of apprenticeship.

Article 7(1), (3) and (4). Admission to light work and determination of these types of work. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the National Labour Council approved a draft order amending Order No. 371 of 26 August 1987 issuing exemptions from the minimum age for admission to employment for children during its June 2010 session. According to the Government, this Order increases the minimum age for the admission of children to light work. The Committee also notes that the draft Child Protection Code has been transmitted to the Supreme Court for opinion.

The Committee reminds the Government that, under the terms of Article 7(1) and (4) of the Convention, national laws or regulations may permit the employment of children between 12 and 14 years of age in light work or their performance of such work provided that the work concerned is: (a) not likely to be harmful to their health or development; and (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. It also recalls that, under the terms of Article 7(3) of the Convention, the competent authority shall determine the activities in which employment or light work may be permitted and shall prescribe the number of hours during which and the conditions in which such employment or work may be undertaken. The Committee again expresses the strong hope that the draft order amending Order No. 371 and also the draft Child Protection Code will be adopted as soon as possible and that their provisions will be in conformity with Article 7 of the Convention. It requests the Government to continue to supply information on progress made in this respect.

Part V of the report form. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the results of the 2008 national survey on child labour in Benin, conducted by the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Analysis (INSAE) in cooperation with IPEC/SIMPOC. It notes that, according to this survey, one in three children (34 per cent) between 5 and 17 years of age engage in economic activity and nearly 24 per cent work under hazardous conditions (69.3 per cent of children engaging in economic activity). Nearly 30 per cent of children in the 5–11 age group work, and two-thirds of these (20 per cent) are obliged to engage in hazardous work. The majority of children involved in economic activity work in agriculture (70.2 per cent of the 5–11 age group and 63.9 per cent of the 12–13 age group) and in services (18.2 per cent of the 5–11 age group and 23.6 per cent of the 12–13 age group). The results of the survey show that the proportion of children working in agriculture decreases as the age of the children increases, which means that children between 5 and 11 years of age are more numerous in this sector than children from other age groups. The vast majority of children in agriculture are unpaid workers in family undertakings (90.8 per cent of the 5–11 age group and 80.9 per cent of the 12–13 age group). Data contained in the study show that the degree of involvement in the work increases with age. Accordingly, children aged 12 or 13 years who do not attend school work an average of 37 hours per week compared with 18 hours for children who combine school and work. Furthermore, regardless of the age group, the school attendance of children engaging in economic activity is less than that of children who do not work. The percentage of working children who attend school varies from 64 per cent for the 6–11 age group to 59 per cent for the 12–13 age group. As regards the reasons put forward for not attending school, the survey shows that boys often speak of the long distance from school while girls focus on their inability to pay school fees and their lack of interest in school. While duly noting the efforts made by the Government to bring its legislation into conformity with the Convention, the Committee expresses its concern at the high number of children who are working in Benin and whose age is below the minimum age for admission to employment or work, and also at the high proportion of such children who are working in hazardous conditions. It encourages the Government to redouble its efforts to improve the situation of child labour in the country and requests it to continue to supply information in its next report on the application of the Convention in practice, including extracts from inspection reports showing the number and nature of violations reported and the penalties imposed.