Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

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

Article 3 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. Clause (c). Use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that street children were used by adults in illegal activities, such as housebreaking and petty theft. In this regard it noted that section 45(b) of the Children’s Protection and Welfare Act of 2011 provides for penalties to any person who causes or allows a child (defined as a person under the age of 18 years pursuant to section 3 of the same Act) to be on any street, premises or place for the purposes of carrying out illegal hawking, gambling or other illegal activities. The penalties include a fine not exceeding 10,000 Lesotho maloti (approximately US$722) or imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten months or to both. Noting the absence of information in the Government’s report, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the application of section 45(b) of the Children’s Protection and Welfare Act, including the number of offences detected related to the use of children under 18 years for illegal activities and penalties applied.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Trafficking. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the adoption of the immigration regulations in 2015 according to which minors who are travelling across borders are required to produce, in addition to their passport, an unabridged birth certificate, copies of affidavits from parents confirming permission to travel, and copies of passports of parents or legal guardians. It also noted from the Government’s report to the Human Rights Council of October 2014 that the Multi-sectoral Committee for Combating Trafficking in Persons (Multi-sectoral Committee) provides guidance and spearheads the migration management agenda in Lesotho, which includes trafficking in persons and smuggling. The Committee requested the Government to provide information on the activities of the Multi-sectoral Committee in combating the trafficking of children.

The Committee notes the Government’s information in its report that the Multi-Sectoral Committee provided training to 33 police officers on the investigation of trafficking cases; trained three prosecutors on implementing the provisions of the Anti-Trafficking Act of 2011; sensitized 24 newly appointed diplomats on anti-trafficking measures; and trained ten labour inspectors on identifying trafficking cases. The Government further indicates that to date, there are 56 cases of trafficking recorded of which 24 cases were closed and declared as not related to trafficking while investigations are ongoing in 12 cases. One person has been convicted and sentenced to two years imprisonment and two accused have been acquitted. The convict had been in custody for eight years prior to his conviction. The Committee also notes from the Progress Report on the implementation of the Action Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (APEC Progress Report) 2013–18 that the Ministry of Home Affairs has embarked on the Lesotho Special Permit Dispensation with the Republic of South Africa in 2016 to combat trafficking of persons. The Committee further notes from the Government’s report of November 2019 to the Human Rights Council that a pilot project called “Counter Trafficking and Addressing Irregular Migration Through Strengthening Border and Migration Management, Sensitisation on Trafficking in Persons and Building Capacity of Law Enforcement and Border Officials in Lesotho” has been initiated in 2019. This project is intended to address the existing challenges at the key ports of entry and counter trafficking targeting vulnerable communities living near hotspots along the official and unofficial border crossings in Lesotho (A/HRC/WG.6/35/LSO/1, paragraph 58). The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the specific measures taken within the framework of the Counter Trafficking and Addressing Irregular Migration project to combat trafficking of children, and the results achieved. It also requests the Government to provide information on the impact of the Lesotho Special Permit Dispensation in combating trafficking of children. The Committee further requests the Government to continue providing information on the activities of the Multi-sectoral Committee in combating the trafficking of children under the age of 18 years including the number of cases of trafficking of children identified, investigations carried out, prosecutions, convictions and penal sanctions applied.

Article 6. Programmes of action to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. Action plan to combat trafficking in persons. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the specific measures taken, within the framework of the National Anti-Trafficking in Persons Strategic Framework and Action Plan 2014–16, (NATSF–AP) to combat the trafficking of children under 18 years of age.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that the NATSF–AP has been revised for the period from 2018 to 2023. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the concrete measures taken within the framework of the NATSF–AP 2018–2023 to combat the trafficking of children under 18 years of age. It also requests the Government to provide information on its implementation and 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. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the achievements made with regard to access to education of children through the implementation of various measures including the school feeding programme and the provision of school meals and the granting of bursaries. However, it noted that according to UNESCO statistics, the net enrolment rate in primary education was 79.6 per cent in 2013 while the net enrolment rate in secondary education was 34.1 per cent. The Committee encouraged the Government to pursue its efforts to facilitate access to free basic education, including measures to increase school enrolment, attendance and completion rates both at primary and secondary level.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that in 2018, a non-formal education policy was adopted to provide basic skills for children who are not enrolled in formal education. The Government also indicates that the National Strategic Development Plan II envisages to strengthen distance education. The Committee further notes from the APEC Progress Report that programmes for bringing out-of-school children and school dropouts to formal education and measures to promote universal secondary education have been adopted. Moreover, areas with insufficient numbers of basic education schools have been identified and measures to make schools accessible are in place. The Committee also notes from the Government’s report to the Human Rights Council of November 2019 that a School Improvement Plan Manual aimed at retaining students in school was adopted and 150 facilitators were engaged in 2017 to implement this manual. Furthermore, the Lesotho Basic Improvement Project 2016–21 financed by the International Development Association aims to address challenges in the basic education system and student retention in targeted primary and junior secondary schools. This project targets the 300 poorest performing primary schools across all districts in the country and 65 junior secondary schools (A/HRC/WG.6/35/LSO/1, paragraphs 102 and 105). The Committee notes, however, that the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), in its concluding observations of June 2018, expressed concern at the hidden costs of public primary education, such as for transportation, and high school fees for secondary education. The CRC also expressed concern at the low enrolment rates in secondary schools, particularly for boys in rural areas (CRC/C/LSO/CO/2, paragraph 53). In this regard, the Committee notes that according to the UNICEF Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey of 2018, the net attendance and completion rates is 95 per cent and 80 per cent at the primary level and 58 per cent and 44 per cent at the secondary level, respectively. This report also indicates that there were twice as many girls of upper secondary school-going age attending school than boys of the same age. Considering that education is key in preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee encourages the Government to strengthen its efforts to facilitate access to free basic education of all children and particularly of boys in the rural areas. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken in this regard, and the results achieved, particularly with regard to increasing school enrolment, attendance and completion rates, both at primary and secondary level, and reducing school dropout rates as well as the number of out-of-school children.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that the results of the Labour Force Survey which included a module on child labour and its worst forms is yet to be published. The Committee requests the Government to provide statistical information on the worst forms of child labour, once the Labour Force Survey results are available.