Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Algeria (Ratification: 2001)

Article 6 of the Convention. Programmes of action. The Committee takes due note of the preparation of a National Plan of Action (NPA) for Children in Algeria covering the period from 2008 to 2015, adopted under the aegis of the Ministry responsible for family and the situation of women and with the participation of the national institutions concerned (20 ministerial departments, ten national institutions), civil society, an advisory group of children and young persons and UNICEF. This Plan of Action, officially launched on 25 December 2008 on the theme of “Algeria worthy of children”, covers four main fields of action: (1) the rights of the child; (2) the promotion of a healthy life and a better existence; (3) the quality of education; and (4) the protection of the child. The Committee notes that the fourth field of action relating to the protection of the child includes a section on child labour. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the National Plan of Action for Children and its impact in terms of the elimination of the worst forms of child labour.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (b). Preventing children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, providing assistance for the removal of children from these worst forms of child labour and ensuring their rehabilitation and social integration. Trafficking of children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, in its concluding observations of October 2005 (CRC/C/15/Add.269, paragraph 78), the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) expressed serious concern at the inadequate nature of the services for the recovery and reintegration of child victims of trafficking. The Committee notes that, in the context of the Plan of Action for children in Algeria, it is planned to strengthen services for children and programmes to combat poverty with a view to preventing children from being abandoned, exploited, trafficked and to protect them from violence and all situations of vulnerability. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate the extent to which the activities carried out in the context of the Plan of Action for children in Algeria contribute to preventing children under 18 years of age from becoming victims of trafficking for economic or sexual exploitation, and for the provision of the necessary and appropriate direct assistance for the rehabilitation and social integration of these children.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. The Committee previously noted that, in its concluding observations of October 2005 (CRC/C/15/Add.269, paragraph 76), the CRC took note of the conclusions of a study conducted in 2001 according to which socio-economic problems, such as poor housing conditions, unemployment and poverty, and also family problems, such as violence and abuse in the family, drive children to live in the streets. The CRC also expressed concern at the limited access of street children to adequate social and health services and at their vulnerability to economic and sexual exploitation.

The Committee notes that, according to information contained in a report from 2009 on the worst forms of child labour in Algeria, available on the website of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, a number of children still work in the streets as traders or messengers. These children are exposed to a broad range of dangers, such as harsh meteorological temperatures, accidents caused by their proximity to vehicles and their vulnerability to criminal elements. The Committee notes that the Plan of Action for Children in Algeria provides, among other activities, for the development of national programmes for the prevention and coverage of street situations. Noting once again the absence of information in the Government’s report, the Committee underlines that street children are particularly exposed to the worst forms of child labour. The Committee urges the Government to take necessary measures, in the context of the National Plan of Action for Children in Algeria, to protect children living in the streets against the worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the progress achieved in terms of the number of street children removed from the worst forms of child labour who are subsequently rehabilitated and socially integrated.

Article 8. Cooperation. Cooperation agreements. In its previous comments, the Committee indicated that bilateral or international cooperation between enforcement bodies and judicial authorities is essential to prevent and eliminate the worst forms of child labour, and particularly the sale and trafficking of children, through the gathering and exchange of information and through assistance in identifying and prosecuting the individuals involved and repatriating victims. The Committee notes that, in the context of National Plan of Action for Children in Algeria, the development of bilateral agreements is envisaged with a view to preventing the trans-border trafficking of children and facilitating cooperation between countries. Noting the absence of information in the Government’s report, the Committee urges it to provide information on the progress achieved in the conclusion of bilateral or multilateral agreements and the adoption of cooperation programmes with countries of origin and of transit of child victims of trafficking.

Part V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that in 2008, out of a total of 4,820 establishments inspected employing 38,650 workers, 68 child workers under 16 years of age were identified. In 2009, inspections of 1,314 agricultural undertakings resulted in the identification of 49 children under 16 years of age engaged in work. However, the Committee notes that the Government has not provided any information on the number of children engaged in the worst forms of child labour, including those working on their own account or in the informal economy. The Committee urges the Government to provide information in its next report on the application of the Convention in practice, including statistics and information on the nature, extent and trends of the worst forms of child labour, and particularly on children working on their own account or in the informal economy. To the extent possible, the information provided should be disaggregated by age and sex.