Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Lao People's Democratic Republic (Ratification: 2005)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It is therefore bound to repeat its previous comments.

Repetition

Article 1 of the Convention. National policy and application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously requested the Government to provide information on the implementation of the National Strategy and Plan of Action on Prevention and Elimination of Child Labour (2014-2020), which aims at improving access for child labourers and vulnerable children to services and interventions, maintaining children in school and mainstreaming child labour concerns into agriculture sector policies and interventions. The Committee also requested the Government to provide information on the development of a database on child labour and school attendance and of the second National Child Labour Survey, planned for 2020.

The Government indicates in its report that it has collected data in two provinces (Savannakhet and Salavan), within the framework of the National Strategy and Plan of Action on Prevention and Elimination of Child Labour (2014–2020). The Committee observes however that the corresponding data has not been provided by the Government. The Committee notes from the Government’s report to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) of October 2017, that the National Strategy and Plan of Action on Prevention and Elimination of Child Labour (2014–2020) institutionalized mandatory training on child labour for law enforcement officials, prosecutors, judges and labour inspectorates (CRC/C/LAO/3-6, paragraph 178).

The Committee observes that according to the Lao Social Indicator Survey II 2017 (LSIS II), issued in 2018 by the Lao Statistics Bureau and UNICEF, 41.5 per cent of children aged 5–14 years are engaged in child labour. It further notes that 16.5 per cent of children aged 5–11 years and 39.3 per cent of children aged 12–14 years are involved in hazardous types of work. A total of 27.9 per cent of children aged 5–17 years work under hazardous conditions (26.7 per cent of girls and 29 per cent of boys). The Committee is therefore bound to express its concern at the significant number of children below the minimum age for admission to employment who are engaged in child labour, including in hazardous conditions.The Committee requests the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the progressive elimination of child labour in all economic activities. It requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken in this respect as well as on the results achieved, including within the framework of the National Strategy and Plan of Action on Prevention and Elimination of Child Labour (2014–2020).

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

The Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to take the necessary action in the near future.