Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

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

Article 5 of the Convention. Monitoring mechanisms. Trafficking. The Committee previously noted the Government’s indication that a multi-sectoral committee to combat trafficking in persons was established, with the objectives of recommending policy and legislative measures to facilitate the effective prevention of trafficking, the prosecution of identified traffickers and the protection of victims of trafficking. It requested information on the activities of this Committee.

The Committee notes an absence of information on this point in the Government’s report. However, it notes the statement in the draft Action Plan for the Elimination of Child Labour (APEC) of January 2012, submitted with the Government’s report, that child trafficking has been reported in the Mafeteng border area. The draft APEC also refers to a study undertaken by the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2010, which found that human trafficking, including child trafficking, did occur in Lesotho, particularly in districts such as Quthing. The Committee also notes the statement of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), in its concluding observations of 8 November 2011, that it remained concerned at the continuing prevalence of trafficking in women and girls in the country and at the low reporting rate, in addition to the lack of shelters and counselling services for victims of trafficking (CEDAW/C/LSO/CO/1-4, paragraph 24). The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to combat the trafficking of children, including through strengthening the capacity of the relevant law enforcement agencies. It requests the Government to provide information on the concrete measures taken in this regard, and on the results achieved, particularly on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions related to the trafficking of persons under the age of 18.

Article 6. Programmes of action to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. The Committee previously noted the information from ILO–IPEC that the Programme Advisory Committee on Child Labour endorsed the APEC in 2008. However, the Government subsequently indicated that the APEC had not been operationalized and that it needed to be revisited to ensure its continued relevance, prior to its implementation.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement that the APEC has been finalised, and has received the approval of the National Advisory Committee on Labour. A workshop will be held in 2013 to present the APEC. According to the draft APEC, the Plan contains six main objectives, including the withdrawal, rehabilitation and protection of children from the worst forms of child labour. It contains measures to establish clear institutional arrangements to identify, withdraw and socially integrate children involved in the worst forms of child labour, the development of standard procedures, protocols and guidelines for dealing with the worst forms, measures to prevent and eliminate hazardous child labour, and the formulation of a programme to ensure the safety and health of working children above the minimum age but below the age of 18. The Committee urges the Government to pursue its efforts to ensure the adoption of the APEC, in the near future. It requests the Government to provide information, in its next report, on the implementation of measures to address the worst forms of child labour within the APEC, as well as the results achieved.

Article 7(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 that many children, in particular herd boys, children living in poverty and children in remote rural communities, lacked access to education. However, it noted the adoption of the Education Act in 2010, section 3 of which seeks to provide for both free and compulsory primary education.

The Committee notes the statement in the draft APEC that a significant number of children are still unable to access education. In this regard, the draft APEC contains several measures to improve access to basic education, such as the design and implementation of a policy for getting out-of-school children into school, including subsidies to needy children as well as programmes to ensure geographical accessibility to basic education. Moreover, the draft APEC seeks to strengthen education delivery to out-of-school children, by improving access to alternative education. The Committee also notes that, according to the UNESCO Global Monitoring Report of 2012, the net enrolment rate in primary education rose from 56 per cent in 1999 to 73 per cent in 2010. This report further indicates that, over the same period, the number of out-of-school children of primary school age decreased from 160,000 to 99,000. Considering that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee encourages the Government to pursue its efforts to facilitate access to free basic education. It requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken in this regard, including through the APEC, and to provide information on the impact of these measures on increasing school attendance rates and reducing school drop-out rates as well as the number of out-of-school children.

Clause (d). Identify and reach out to children at special risk. 1. Herd boys. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the 2004 Lesotho Child Labour Survey, herding often prevented the boys involved from attending school, involved long hours and night work, and exposed the children to extreme weather conditions in isolated areas. The Committee also noted the information in a joint document produced by ILO–IPEC and the Ministry of Employment and Labour in 2006 that between 10 and 14 per cent of boys of school-going age were involved in herding, about 18 per cent of whom were not employed by their own family. This report stated that the herding of animals was considered to be the most common form of paid child labour, and also the single most hazardous. However, the Committee noted that section 230 of the Children’s Welfare and Protection Act, adopted in 2010, specifies that herding animals at cattle posts is a hazardous form of work that is prohibited to all persons under 18 years of age.

The Committee notes the information in the draft APEC that children engaged as herd boys often work under poor conditions, receiving inadequate food and clothing, working on difficult terrain and in harsh weather conditions, and do not attend school. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to protect children from hazardous work as herd boys. In this regard, it requests the Government to provide information on measures taken to apply section 230 of the Children’s Welfare and Protection Act in practice.

2. Orphans and other vulnerable children (OVCs) of HIV/AIDS. The Committee previously noted the Government’s statement that the number of children orphaned or made vulnerable by the impact of HIV and AIDS had been growing in Lesotho for over a decade. Data from 2006 indicated that there were an estimated 221,403 OVCs in the country. While OVCs were benefiting from school bursaries, practical support and a child grant programme, many children still remained out of reach for the support and assistance that they required.

The Committee notes the statement in the draft APEC that the HIV/AIDS pandemic has made the situation of children more precarious, and has therefore been a major influence on child labour. Educational opportunities are compromised as children are withdrawn from school to care for ill family members and to supplement family income. Orphaned children are particularly at risk for engagement in child labour, and children in child-headed households are particularly vulnerable to labour exploitation. However, the draft APEC indicates that the Government introduced a bursary scheme for education specifically targeting OVCs. Moreover, the draft APEC includes measures to reach out to vulnerable children, including the development and implementation of a programme to promote and strengthen home-based care for HIV/AIDS patients, as well as the establishment of community registers of child-headed households for use in support programmes. The Committee further notes the Government’s statement in its report that OVCs receive grants through UNICEF. However, the Committee notes that CEDAW, in its concluding observations of 8 November 2011, took note of the adoption in 2011 of the National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan and the National Action Plan on Women, Girls and HIV/AIDS 2011–16, but also expressed deep concern that Lesotho faces a serious epidemic and that women and girls are disproportionately affected by HIV (CEDAW/C/LSO/CO/1-4, paragraph 34). Recalling that children orphaned by HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable children affected by this epidemic are at an increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee urges the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure that such children are protected from these worst forms. It requests the Government to provide information on specific measures taken in this regard, including through the APEC, and on the results achieved, particularly the number of OVCs benefiting from these initiatives.