Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

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

Articles 3(a), 5 and 7(1) of the Convention. Sale and trafficking of children, monitoring mechanisms and sanctions. In its previous comments the Committee noted that the labour inspectors and the Ministry of Home Affairs jointly conducts inspections and ensures the investigation and prosecutions of criminal offences related to trafficking of persons. Noting the Government’s statement that trafficking is a problem in Zambia, the Committee urged the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that in-depth investigations and effective prosecutions are conducted against persons who engage in the sale and trafficking of children under 18 years of age.

The Committee notes the Government’s information in its report that the activities implemented within the framework of the Joint Programme under the International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) Counter Trafficking Assistance Programme include: the reinforcement of capacities of the law enforcement and civil society to operationalize the Anti-Trafficking Law of 2008, such as providing training for enforcement officers and developing a Standard Operating Procedure for law enforcement in handling cases related to trafficking in persons; and direct assistance to victims of trafficking, including the provision of safe and secure shelter, medical and psychosocial care, and repatriation and reintegration assistance. The Committee also notes that the Government refers, in its report under the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), to cases related to trafficking in persons, including children, but does not provide any information related to the prosecution or penalties applied in such cases. The Committee also notes the Government’s statement in its report under Convention No. 29 that financial constraints, lack of technical knowledge, lack of vehicles to conduct investigations and corruption by government officials are real impediments for the fight against trafficking in persons. The Committee further notes the Government’s statement that internal trafficking of children for domestic work, work in mining and agriculture and sexual exploitation, are common in the country. Children from poor households, as well as orphans and street children are particularly vulnerable to trafficking. The Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that thorough investigations and robust prosecutions of persons who traffic in children for the purpose of labour and sexual exploitation are carried out. In this regard, it requests the Government to strengthen the capacity of the law enforcement officials and provide the appropriate funds for their effective functioning. It also requests the Government to provide statistical information on the number of infringements reported, investigations, prosecutions and penal sanctions applied for the offences related to the trafficking of children under the age of 18 years.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Identifying and reaching out to children at special risk. Child orphans of HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable children (OVCs). The Committee previously noted the various measures taken by the Government, including the Public Welfare Assistance Scheme, the Social Cash Transfer Scheme as well as several action programmes to prevent and withdraw children at risk of entering into the worst forms of child labour. However, noting with deep concern the high number of children orphaned in Zambia as a result of HIV/AIDS the Committee urged the Government to strengthen its efforts to protect such children from the worst forms of child labour.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that the Public Welfare Assistance Scheme, which provides social and educational assistance to children affected by HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable children currently covers all the 103 districts while the Social Cash Transfer Scheme covers an additional 125,000 households. The Committee also notes that, according to the Zambia Country Report of 30 April 2015 to the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on AIDS (UNGASS report), the multisectoral approach of the National AIDS Strategic Framework (NASF) programmes, through the formation of the District AIDS Task Force (DATF), in districts countrywide has provided successful achievements in mobilizing a substantial number of community-based organizations and other NGOs to respond to the needs of OVCs and vulnerable households by providing health-related and other services. The UNGASS report also indicates that the current school attendance among orphans and non-orphans aged 10–14 years is 87.8 per cent. The Committee further notes, that according to the 2015 UNAIDS estimates, an average of 380,000 children aged 0–17 years are orphans due to HIV/AIDS, which indicates a significant decrease from the 2011 estimates of 680,000 children. Considering that children orphaned by HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable children are at an increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee urges the Government to continue to strengthen its efforts to protect such children from these worst forms. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the measures taken in this regard and the results achieved.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.