Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Kenya (Ratification: 1979)

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Article 1 of the Convention. National policy and application of the Convention in practice. Following its previous comments, in which the Committee had taken note of the Policy on Elimination of Child Labour (NPCL) and of the National Plan of Action for Children 2015–22, the Committee observes that the Government does not provide information, in its report, on the development of a new national policy on child labour. The Government does, however, provide information on measures taken to combat child labour in the country. In particular, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the National Steering Committee, chaired by the Principal Secretary State Department for Labour and Skills Development, in coordination with the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection’s (MoLSP) Child Labour Division, and comprising employers’ and workers’ organizations, is the apex body that formulates policies and monitors the implementation of child labour policies and action plans.

The Committee also takes note of the child protection measures taken by the Government which can contribute to the elimination of child labour by mitigating certain factors that could lead children to work. For instance, the Government indicates that social protection programmes providing cash transfers to some of the most vulnerable families, continue to help preventing children from entering the workforce. In addition, the Committee takes note of the adoption of the Children Act No. 29 of 2022 and of the establishment of the National Council for Children’s Services (NCCS), which is its implementing body, which seek to ensure the protection and rights of children, including through such programmes as the National Care Reform Strategy 2022–32.

The Committee notes, however, that according to a press release from 14 March 2023 from the MoLSP, the figures of the last Child Labour Analytical Report developed in June 2008, which then indicated that 1.01 million children were in child labour have likely increased mainly due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the severe drought being experienced in the Horn of Africa. Indeed, according to a press release published jointly by the ILO and UNICEF on 12 June 2021, data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows that 8.5 percent of children, or 1.3 million, are engaged in child labour. The highest child labour rates, at more than 30 percent, are in the arid and semi-arid land (ASAL) counties. The COVID-19 pandemic also had an important impact, with a growing number of families at risk of resorting to sending their children to work given massive job losses. In this regard, the Committee notes that the MoLSP announced that, in collaboration with the ILO, Kenya was set to conduct a Child Labour Survey in 2023 in order to produce accurate and reliable data on child labour in the country and ultimately, to inform planning and implementation of targeted programmes. While taking note of certain measures taken by the Government, the Committee must once again express its concern at the significant number of children who are involved in child labour, including in hazardous work. The Committee accordingly urges the Government to strengthen its efforts to improve the situation of children under the age of 16 years and to provide information on the impact of these measures on the progressive elimination of child labour in the country. In this regard, the Committee requests the Government to take measures to develop, adopt and implement targeted plans of action on the elimination of child labour, based on the information collected through the new Child Labour Survey. It also requests the Government to communicate the data collected through this survey, in particular on the nature, extent and trends of child labour, and indicating the sectors of economic activity where child labour is most prevalent. The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing information on the impact of its child protection policies on the elimination of child labour.

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