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

Individual Case (CAS) - Discussion: 2016, Publication: 105th ILC session (2016)



The Government provided the following written information:

National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour (NAP)

Formulation of a National Action Plan. Madagascar began actively campaigning against child labour as early as 1997, when it conducted its first studies on the subject. In 2000, Madagascar ratified the ILO Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), which sets the minimum working age at 15, and in 2001 the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182). Having ratified these two fundamental Conventions on child labour, the country was then able to formulate the NAP which it validated in 2004.

Broad lines of the NAP. The NAP is a framework reference document for all activities aimed at combatting child labour in Madagascar. It is a 15 year national action plan (2004–19) that focuses on the worst forms of child labour. Madagascar is one of the very few African countries to have adopted such a plan. The implementation of the NAP is in three phases: launching and implementation (2004–09), during which a framework of laws and regulations is formulated and strengthened at all levels; extension (2009–14), during which the measures taken are broadened both in terms of target population and target areas; and consolidation (2014–19), during which children are effectively removed from the worst forms of child labour in accordance with the objectives. The NAP lists the four worst forms of child labour as: domestic work by children; the commercial sexual exploitation of children; work in mines and quarries; and dangerous and unhealthy work in urban or rural areas.

Objectives of the NAP

The objectives of the NAP are to: prevent the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour; the removal of children from such work and their reinsertion in society; the protection of all working children under the minimum age for admission to employment from exploitation and dangerous work. The objective is to reduce significantly the incidence of child labour by 30 per cent by the end of the first phase, to 5 per cent by the end of the second phase, and to under 1 per cent by the end of the third phase of the programme.

Strategic areas of the NAP

Strategic area No. 1: creation of an institutional framework and capacity building; development of coordination and follow-up structures; promotion of external relations in order to foster synergy with other programmes; long-term follow-up of working children and child labour; and strengthening the capacity of ministerial personnel, NGOs and civil society partners.

Strategic area No. 2: improvement of the legal and regulatory framework; harmonization of laws and regulations (Penal Code, Labour Code and other official texts) so as to bring them into line with ILO Conventions Nos 138 and 182 ratified by Madagascar; publication and dissemination of the laws and regulations governing child labour; establishment of appropriate machinery and methods of intervention; strengthening of supervisory bodies and the capacity of personnel; and implementation of sanctions.

Strategic area No. 3: improvement of the living conditions and income of parents at risk and of their families; increasing productivity in the urban and rural informal sectors so as to reduce the economic vulnerability of families whose children are liable to be employed in the worst forms of child labour; promoting village agreements prohibiting hazardous and unhealthy work in urban and rural areas; and extending social protection to the rural population.

Strategic area No. 4: improvement, reinforcement and promotion of children’s access to quality education; promoting and improving access to education; improving and broadening access to vocational training; and promoting the access of children engaged in the worst forms of child labour to a transitional and non-formal system of education (reinsertion, rehabilitation).

Strategic area No. 5: strengthening and improvement of public awareness and social mobilization; ensuring the commitment of the public at large; securing the involvement of decision-makers, public opinion leaders, judicial and military authorities and civil society organizations; and promoting public awareness of the legislation.

Sexual exploitation of children

Strategic area No. 1: reinforcement, improvement and application of preventive and protective measures to combat the sexual exploitation of children; implementation of laws and regulations on children’s rights (specifically, provisions relating to their sexual exploitation) and the application of provisions dealing with communication and the dissemination of information; ensuring that the expectations and needs of children are duly taken into account; and securing the support of all the parties concerned.

Strategic area No. 2: identification and implementation of measures designed to protect sexually exploited children and favour their reinsertion in society; promoting appropriate health measures and advisory services; and organizing vocational training.

Domestic work

Strategic area No. 1: improvement, strengthening and application of prevention and protection measures for domestic work; enforcement of laws and regulations on the right of the child, particularly texts on domestic work.

Strategic area No. 2: consideration and application of rehabilitation measures for child victims of domestic work; organization of occupational training.

Unhealthy work in rural and urban areas

Strategic area No. 1: improvement, strengthening and application of prevention and protection measures against unhealthy work; enforcement of laws and regulations on the rights of the child, particularly texts on unhealthy work in rural and urban areas.

Strategic area No. 2: consideration and application of protection and rehabilitation measures for child victims of unhealthy work in rural and urban areas: identifying and applying appropriate social protection measures; and increasing access to occupational training.

Work in quarries and mines

Strategic area No. 1: improvement, strengthening and application of prevention and protection measures against work in quarries and mines; enforcement of laws and regulations on the rights of the child, particularly texts on work in quarries and mines; and providing protection measures.

Partners and financing

Financing is obtained from funds for social action within the framework of the Public Investment Programme; ILO International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC); UNICEF; external funds with budget lines for social action; and the various centralized and decentralized structures.

Follow-up and monitoring

Follow-up focuses on the use of inputs; delivery of output and activities; and achievement of the aims of the project. Monitoring includes three mid-term evaluations conducted every 18 months of each phase; a biennial national evaluation workshop organized by the National Committee to Combat Child Labour; and a final evaluation focusing on the relevance of the aims of the programme.

Awareness raising and social mobilization

Each year, the Government of Madagascar participates in the commemoration of the World Day against Child Labour. Since 2005, public awareness-raising actions have been launched in many regions, through the Ministry of Labour and its partners. Commemorations have been held successively since 2005 in Analamanga, Diana, Haute Matsiatra, Boeny, Atsinanana, Atsimo Andrefana, Alaotra Mangoro, Vakinankaratra, Maevatanana and recently in Sakaraha. Local authorities, religious leaders, members of the National Committee to Combat Child Labour and the regional committees to combat child labour are all involved in awareness-raising actions related to the World Day against Child Labour. The awareness-raising programmes focus on a particular aspect of child labour or on an alternative to the problem. They target the general public and the authorities and deal essentially with the dangers and risks faced by children. Awareness is raised mainly through audiovisual messages, posters in fokontanies (village districts) and popular neighbourhoods, dialogue with parents, local authorities and community leaders, and mobilization of schools through various competitions and cultural events.

Campaigns

- 2005: child labour in quarries and mines; a national commemoration in Analamanga.

- 2006: no to the commercial sexual exploitation of children; a national commemoration in the Diana region; other commemoration sites were Antsiranana, Ambilobe, Ambanja, Nosy Be, Mahajanga, Ilakaka, Tuléar, Taolagnaro, Toamasina, Antananarivo and Fianarantsoa.

- 2007: child labour in agriculture; a national commemoration in the Haute Matsiatra region; other campaign areas were Analamanga, Vakinakaratra, Atsinanana, Diana, Atsimo Andrefana and Boeny.

- 2008: education and action to combat against child labour in Atsinanana, Analamanga, Haute Matsiatra, Boeny, Vakinakaratra, Diana, Atsimo Andrefana and Alaotra Mangoro.

- 2009: give girls a chance: abolish child labour in Mahajanga.

- 2010: direct action to abolish child labour in the Atsinanana region.

- 2011: wake up! Children in hazardous work: let’s abolish child labour in the Diana region.

- 2012: human rights and social justice: let’s abolish child labour in the Vakinakaratra region.

- 2013: no to child domestic labour in Maevatanana.

- 2014: let’s abolish child labour by extending social protection; a national commemoration in Sakaraha; other commemoration sites were Sava, Atsimo Andrefana, Amoron’i Mania and Vatovavy Fitovinany.

- 2015: no to child labour, yes to quality education in the Analamanga region.

- 2016: let’s abolish child labour in production lines: everyone’s business (under preparation); in the Sava region.

Most of the vanilla export enterprises in the Sava region have signed the Code of Conduct on Child Labour in the Vanilla Industry. Twenty-one vanilla grower cooperatives are engaged in combating the employment of children in the industry.

In addition, before the Committee, a Government representative indicated, with regard to domestic child labour, that inspections were carried out to ensure compliance with the legislation regulating work by children aged from 15 to 18 years. The Government encouraged the population to report abusive or dangerous cases so that employers could be identified and prosecuted. Mass awareness-raising activities, through the media or otherwise, on the risks of domestic work were carried out for parents, children, religious leaders and members of civil society. They were concentrated in four regions from which children came. Concerning the sexual exploitation of children, joint brigades composed of labour inspection officials, the police responsible for juveniles and morals, carried out checks in at-risk zones, after which local monitoring units raised awareness and provided information to communities. Moreover, awareness-raising activities had been developed on the risks of sex tourism, particularly at sea resorts. With regard to action to combat child labour in mines and quarries, the legislation on the subject had been disseminated, and awareness raising was being undertaken through radio broadcasts and community discussions. Unannounced inspections of mines and quarries had taken place in four regions. For dangerous work in saltworks and agriculture, the Government was working with local governments, concluding partnership agreements with saltworks operators and raising awareness among heads of enterprises so that they would not establish commercial relations with production units that used child labour, particularly in the vanilla, clove, coffee, cocoa, rice and coconut sectors. The measures taken by the Government were also aimed at raising family incomes by creating income-generating activities and at expanding catch-up classes and vocational training. In this field, the areas of intervention were increasing due to the increase in poverty.

Finally, with regard to the enforcement of criminal legislation in the areas of prostitution, human trafficking and sex tourism, various ministries were involved depending on their competence, such as, for example, the Ministry of Labour, through labour inspection, or the Ministry of Internal Security, through the police responsible for juveniles and morals, which centralized complaints and conducted investigations. The Government representative concluded by emphasizing that the Government had taken steps – even if they were insufficient – to bring an end to the worst forms of child labour.

The Employer members commended the Government on having been candid and frank in describing the issues in the country. The worst forms of child labour consisted of children forced to work in mines and quarries and in the agricultural sector (in particular those engaged in picking vanilla), trafficking for sexual exploitation both to foreign countries and the coastal zones of the country (with sex tourism being on the rise), and the situation of street children, who were particularly vulnerable and often had no other option than to engage in begging and waste collection. While a substantive legal framework existed (in particular Decree No. 2007-563 on child labour which prohibited the procuring, use, offering or employment of children of either sex for prostitution, as well as Act No. 2007-038 establishing effective and dissuasive sanctions for the engagement, abduction or deception of a person with a view to their engagement in prostitution, sexual exploitation or sex tourism), these laws had not yet had any significant impact. On the contrary, there had been an increase in sex tourism, child prostitution and trafficking in persons. It was still too soon to assess the impact of Act No. 2014-040 of 20 January 2015 on trafficking in persons, which criminalized all forms of trafficking and provided for imprisonment and fines. However, the main issue with regard to the worst forms of child labour concerned the effective application and implementation of the national legal framework. The number of prosecutions appeared to be low. According to the United States Department of Labor, 187 cases had been investigated, but no information was available on whether these cases had also been prosecuted. All investigations, including those by the joint task forces, had to be followed up by prosecutions to achieve a deterrent effect (through the threat of fines or imprisonment). Moreover, there were only three labour inspectors employed in the Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE), and the situation concerning inspection staff remained difficult due to budgetary cuts. In conclusion, the Employer members reiterated that, while an adequate legal framework was in place, it did not appear to be implemented in practice, and it was questionable whether sufficient measures were taken to address the problems in relation to the worst forms of child labour.

The Worker members referred, with regard to child prostitution, to Decree No. 2007-563, which prohibited the procuring, use, offering or employment of children for the purposes of prostitution, and to the Penal Code, which established effective and dissuasive sanctions. However, according to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, child prostitution and sex tourism were on the increase in the country. The Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA) reported that 50 per cent of prostitutes in the capital were minors and were reportedly the victims of assault and sexual violence. Despite capacity building for entities engaged in tourism to combat the commercial sexual exploitation of children, thousands of children were victims of sexual exploitation, and sex tourism involving children was growing. Furthermore, prostitution affected the whole country, particularly urban areas and tourist resorts. The Committee of Experts had noted the lack of information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions, while the Convention required immediate measures to prohibit and eliminate the worst forms of child labour. With regard to children performing work likely to harm their health, safety or morals, according to the observations of the General Confederation of Workers’ Unions of Madagascar (CGSTM), children were working in precarious and dangerous conditions in mines and stone quarries. The Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery had noted that children worked from five to ten hours a day in the transportation of blocks of stone or water. Children between 3 and 7 years of age carried baskets of stones or bricks on their heads, on average 47 hours a week. A survey carried out with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the ILO had shown that more than 1.5 million children aged between 5 and 17 were engaged in hazardous work, which was prohibited by the Convention. Work in mines and quarries could, moreover, be qualified as a contemporary form of slavery, as in some cases it involved debt bondage.

The Worker members regretted the insufficient nature of the measures taken by the Government. The programmes described were intended to remove 40 children from the worst forms of child labour each year, but the number of street children had increased in recent years and now stood at several thousand. The Convention required not only the prohibition of the worst forms of child labour, but also their elimination, which presupposed significant programme measures to combat the underlying causes of child labour. The Government’s attitude went against Article 7 of the Convention, which obliged member States to take effective and time-bound measures to eradicate the sale and trafficking of children for economic and sexual exploitation as soon as possible. In that regard, recalling that child prostitution and hazardous child labour had already been the subject of a direct request in 2005, the Worker members deplored the fact that the Convention had not been applied in practice for ten years. The Convention did not provide for any exceptions, in view of the fact that certain forms of child labour were so intolerable that no derogation could be permitted. That justified the decision of the Committee of Experts to request the Government to provide information to the Conference Committee.

The Worker member of Madagascar, speaking on behalf of all Malagasy trade unions, supported the findings of the Committee of Experts and expressed the hope that it would help the country to bring an end to child labour and protect children’s rights. The use of children in hazardous sectors, such as mines, domestic work and prostitution, led to their physical, psycho-social, cultural and spiritual destruction. In practice, shortcomings remained in the implementation of legislation and functioning of the labour inspection services. For example, while Decree No. 2007-563 provided for dissuasive sanctions for procuring or offering a child for prostitution, the number of investigations and prosecutions was low. This was despite the fact that the number of children in prostitution and sex tourism was increasing, particularly in central urban areas, and affected young girls of barely 12 years of age. The situation needed to be addressed as a matter of urgency to protect these young girls at risk and remedy the harm caused by these indecent forms of child labour. In fact, 10 per cent of Malagasy children were victims of forced sexual exploitation. Some 40 per cent of girls were victims of abuse or forced sexual exploitation and 80 per cent of those did not report to the authorities because they feared retaliation. With regard to children engaged in hazardous work in mines or quarries, a high rate of accidents had been noted due partly to the absence of monitoring by the labour inspectorate. She called on the ILO to continue to support the Government of Madagascar to improve its legislative framework, strengthen enforcement, particularly through labour inspection, and ensure provision of free compulsory education for all children.

The Government member of the Netherlands, speaking on behalf of the European Union (EU) and its Member States, as well the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Norway and the Republic of Moldova, recalled the cooperation between Madagascar and the EU in respect of the abolition of the worst forms of child labour. The high rate of child labour in the country was a matter of deep concern, with one fourth of children between 5 and 17 being affected by this phenomenon, and half a million children affected by contemporary forms of slavery. It was regrettable that despite the alarming increase in child prostitution and sex tourism, there was an extremely low number of investigations and prosecutions. While noting the measures taken by the Government, she called on the Government to act urgently and to intensify its efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. In particular, steps should be taken to: ensure that children were no longer engaged in work that was likely to harm their health, safety or morals, with special attention on those who worked in mines, quarries and domestic work; combat child prostitution and sex tourism, which included the prosecution and conviction of persons procuring, offering or employing children in prostitution; and ensure the rehabilitation and reintegration in society of street children, including the development and better targeting of school enrolment programme and training projects.

The Government member of Switzerland noted the comments of the Committee of Experts and highlighted the gravity of the problem of child labour, in particular prostitution and sex tourism, which were violations liable to criminal proceedings. This problem was everyone’s responsibility: governments, social partners and the tourism industry. Around two million children were victims of sexual exploitation by tourists. For several years, Switzerland had been combating this exploitation. The awareness-raising campaign, “Don’t look away” had been launched which, since 2013, had been extended to other European countries and aimed to protect children in tourist areas, inform travellers and encourage them to participate in combating child sexual exploitation. In addition, the Government supported initiatives, such as the Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism, which was a voluntary tool for corporate social responsibility aimed at the tourist industry. Switzerland encouraged the Government of Madagascar to promote the Code of Conduct.

The Worker member of Italy recalled that a very high number of children of school age were engaged in the worst forms of child labour. UNICEF reported that 47 per cent of children under 5 suffered from chronic malnutrition and child prostitution in the country had reached alarming levels and affected the whole of the country. Child labour proliferated in the national context of widespread poverty, leading to an increase in child sexual exploitation and child sex tourism, and leaving behind a generation of broken girls. While the Government had adopted updated anti-trafficking legislation in December 2014, which extended the scope of the previous legislation to cover sexual exploitation, labour trafficking, forced labour, forced begging and debt bondage, the number of prosecutions and convictions remained extremely low, leading to a situation very close to widespread impunity. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) emphasized the inability of the Government to guarantee the rule of law. She urged the Government to ensure immediately the investigation and prosecution of those procuring, using, offering or employing children for prostitution and to impose penalties constituting an effective deterrent. A radical change in the attitude of the Government towards the issue was required not only to address the visible negative effects of structural problems, but also to combat their root causes. The Government should take concrete action to: adopt a national programme to assess the physical and mental health damage to child workers, implement an active policy to raise awareness of the risks and negative effects of child labour, and grant access to education for all children of school age. In conclusion, she called on the Government, without delay, to protect the right of children to a future in which they could live in peace and safety.

The Government member of Canada recalled that various United Nations bodies had expressed deep concern at the growing child sex tourism, insuffient measures and child prostitution, which had reached alarming levels. She urged the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that thorough investigations and robust prosecutions were undertaken of persons suspected of procuring, using, offering or employing children, and that penalties were imposed that would serve as an effective deterrent. She also noted with concern the situation of children working in mines and quarries, and the growing number of street children. The Government should be urged to take the necessary steps, as called for by the Committee of Experts, to eliminate the worst forms of child labour.

The Worker member of France emphasized that, in ratifying the Convention in 2001, Madagascar had been aware of the need to protect its young people. The Convention sought the immediate elimination of the worst forms of child labour, that is work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it was carried out, was likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children. However, the Committee of Experts noted that the work done by children in mines and quarries constituted a contemporary form of slavery. Hence, in the town of Ilakaka, children employed in sapphire mining were exposed to the risk of suffocation or death in the event of the accidental collapse of tunnels in the mines. They were at increased risk of respiratory ailments, and exposure to high temperatures and the transportation of heavy loads had a detrimental effect on their health. Children of barely 7 years of age were employed in gold mines in the regions of Analamanga, Vakinankaratra and Anosy, working ten hours a day for a wage of US$14 a week. An ILO–IPEC survey indicated that there were 1.5 million children in a total working population of just over 4 million. One out of two children between 7 and 17 years of age was working. Many of them were working in mines, which had the highest mortality rate in the world for children working in mines. In this regard, the Convention recalled the importance of education, and in particular access to free basic education, to combat the worst forms of child labour. The State should also use its labour inspection system to exercise appropriate controls to protect such highly vulnerable children. However, out of just over 120 labour supervisors and inspectors, 50 per cent worked in the capital.

The Worker member of Togo called on the Government to step up its efforts to adopt robust measures as a deterrent for individuals who were exploiting child labour. The Government had adopted certain provisions and launched actions to remedy the situation, such as: raising the awareness of 155 actors in the tourist industry with regard to the commercial sexual exploitation of children; implementing a programme of school enrolment and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP); conducting a National Survey of Employment and the Informal Sector (ENEMPSI 2012); and a base survey on child labour. However, in view of the seriousness of the situation, these measures were inadequate. The goal of removing 40 street children per year from the worst forms of child labour did not take sufficient account of the scale of the situation. Hence, according to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, some 4,500 children lived on the streets and 28 per cent of children between 5 and 17 years of age were economically active, including 81 per cent in hazardous work. The measures taken by the Government in the area of school enrolment and aid to poor families were limited in scope, which constituted an obstacle to removing children from the worst forms of child labour. Poor families in rural areas continued to send children to urban areas to be employed in domestic work and 10-year-old girls were forced to work in conditions akin to slavery. In conclusion, he called on the Government to take effective action against the worst forms of child labour, involving the social partners and parents to seek lasting solutions.

An observer representing the International Transport Workers Federation (IFT) and the General Maritime Union of Madagascar (SYGMMA) addressed the issue of hazardous work in the fishing industry, as a sector in which the worst forms of child labour occurred. As observed by the Committee of Experts, of all the children working in the country, 88 per cent were working in agriculture and fishing. While the national legal framework provided for the prohibition of child labour, there were no laws specifically relating to the fishing sector. The Convention did not define hazardous work, although the Worst Forms of Child Labour Recommendation, 1999 (No. 190), provided some indications. Fishing was defined as the harvesting of wild fish and encompassed a range of tasks, from light work to hazardous work. However, this work was not for children, as tasks such as crew work, hauling nets, line fishing and diving usually entailed long hours, extreme temperatures and harsh weather conditions. While acknowledging the collaboration of the Government with the ILO in the framework of the ILO–IPEC, more had to be done to address this issue in the fishing sector. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and ILO Guidance on addressing child labour in fisheries and agriculture suggested a system of classification for determining hazardous work in this sector, and recommended that action against child labour should be composed of prevention (to address the root causes of the phenomenon), withdrawal (to rescue and rehabilitate children engaged in hazardous fishing activities) and protection. He called on the Government to ratify the Work in Fishing Convention, 2007 (No. 188), which specified the minimim age for work in this sector and called for consultations with the social partners on the scope of activities and conditions of work in the sector. The Government should avail itself of ILO technical assistance, as appropriate.

The Government member of Algeria recalled that child labour remained a crucial problem which affected Madagascar, as it did many other countries. The Government had provided information on the efforts made to combat this scourge and had taken positive measures, including: the enforcement of the relevant laws and regulations; the establishment of institutional structures, namely a national and a regional committee to combat child labour; the identification of hazardous types of work; the implementation of special programmes for the elimination of child labour, particularly in domestic work, sexual exploitation and in mines, quarries, saltworks and agriculture. It was to be hoped that the Government would pursue its efforts to combat child labour, a phenomenon that challenged the whole international community and made it necessary for governments and social partners to combine their efforts.

The Government representative emphasized that his Government was aware of the gravity of the problems being discussed by the Committee. After five years of political, economic and social crisis, Madagascar needed to redefine its policies. The efforts made had proved inadequate and the country was appearing before the Committee for the first time. The problems had become worse due to the increase in poverty. In order to address these serious issues, the Government had to demonstrate more zeal and secure the support of parents, of the public and of all community leaders so that they reported the violations. Lack of resources constituted the biggest obstacle to the will of the Government to adopt more robust measures. For example, labour inspectors had no means of transport and, in some cases, depended on employers’ vehicles, which undermined the performance of their duties. The National Committee to Combat Child Labour also constituted an important instrument established by the Government. Moreover, in response to poverty and despite free compulsory schooling, parents sent their children out to work, including girls for prostitution. He referred to a number of measures, such as the creation of income-generating activities and action programmes implemented in Nosy-be, in conjunction with the ILO, against the sexual exploitation of children, and also the legal framework for combating trafficking in persons. However, difficulties in applying the legislation existed because of a lack of coordination among the various ministries concerned. The Government was also considering the ratification of the Work in Fishing Convention, 2007 (No. 188), in the near future. The Government would continue to make every effort to address the issues under discussion and the content of the discussion in the Committee would be brought to the attention of the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister.

The Worker members said that the situation was catastrophic and that the political crisis had further aggravated the situation of children. There was hope of an exit to the crisis and the Government should introduce structural measures to combat the worst forms of child labour. All of the worst forms of child labour that existed in Madagascar required an immediate and effective response. For that purpose, the Government needed to take the following programme measures: prepare a study on the worst forms of child labour and establish a follow-up programme; improve the judicial and institutional framework, particularly with a view to aligning the minimum school leaving age and the minimum age for admission to employment; step up efforts to combat sex tourism; increase access to school; and undertake awareness-raising campaigns for teachers on the worst forms of child labour. In addition, in order to address the structural causes of this scourge, these measures should be developed within the framework of a plan to promote employment. International cooperation should also be strengthened, as envisaged by the Convention, and efforts should be intensified to implement the time-bound programme (TBP) for the abolition of the worst forms of child labour. Following these measures, the authorities should be in a position to report on swift and substantial improvements. Finally, in view of the gravity of the situation, the Worker members encouraged the Government to request the technical assistance of the Office and called for the establishment of an international follow-up mechanism and a national tripartite follow-up committee.

The Employer members indicated that the case under discussion had been a good case to start the discussions on the individual cases. The Committee dealt with contentious issues, and consensus was often hard or impossible to achieve. However, in relation to this serious and double-footnoted case, all speakers, including the Government representative, generally agreed on the problems at issue. The Government did not deny, but fully acknowledged the problems concerning the application of the Convention. While the adoption of a number of laws concerning child labour had to be acknowledged, these laws were not effective. As indicated earlier, in the present case, the problem lay in their effective implementation and enforcement. These problems had a number of reasons, including the lack of resources and the political situation. They agreed with the Worker members on the way forward. Technical assistance was a good start, and the Government should commit to increasing the funding for the Ministry of Labour to enable measures such as effective labour inspection, including of the joint task forces that had been set up. The collection of statistics was essential on the follow-up of investigations, as well as on prosecutions. Prosecution and the imposition of penalties on sex tourists should serve as a deterrent. Awareness-raising measures were definitely part of, but only one aspect of the solution. The Government should be commended for having taken initial measures, and particularly on having adopted adequate legislation. More should be done to better implement this legislation.

Conclusions

The Committee took note of the information provided by the Government representative and the discussion that followed on issues raised by the Committee of Experts.

The Committee deplored the lack of progress, and even worsening of the situation, in the country. The Committee noted the constructive attitude of the Government.

Taking into account the discussion of the case, the Committee urged the Government to provide an immediate and effective response for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including:

• - Strengthen its efforts to ensure the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, notably sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes, work in mines and quarries, and work of children in the informal sector and rural areas that the labour administration is unable to cover.
• - Improve the legal and institutional framework, including through a better alignment of the minimum school leaving age and the minimum working age.
• - Collect and make available without delay information and statistics on investigations, prosecutions and penalties relating to the worst forms of child labour according to national enforcement mechanisms.
• - Collect and make available without delay information and statistics on the phenomenon of child labour.
• - Intensify efforts to prevent sexual tourism, particularly through a campaign; and strengthen the penalties for cases of sexual tourism exploitation involving children.
• - Take measures to improve the capacity of the labour inspectorate, including providing adequate resources.
• - Increase funding for the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP) to withdraw street children from their situation and for awareness-raising campaigns.
• - Urgently seek technical assistance from the ILO to ensure the full conformity with the Convention in law and practice.

These initiatives should form part of broader programmatic measures for employment and access to education.

A national monitoring body which included the social partners should ensure supervision. The Government was invited to report to the Committee of Experts on the swift and substantial improvements at their November 2016 session.

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

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, and sanctions. Sale and trafficking. The Committee notes with regret the continued absence of information in the Government’s report on the number of cases of trafficking of children for labour or sexual exploitation, and on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions. The Committee notes the information contained in the Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2020 of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), according to which the police reported 39 victims of trafficking between 2017 and 2019, of whom 11 were girls and eight were boys, 23 cases of trafficking and 48 indictments. Moreover, the Ministry of Justice reported that 69 cases of trafficking were brought to the courts in 2017 and 2018 and that there were 38 female victims of trafficking during that period, of whom 16 were girls.

The Committee also notes that, in its report under the Forced Labour Convention, 1931 (No. 29), the Government indicates that a national data system on trafficking was established in 2020. The Committee notes in this regard that, in the annual report of Alliance 8.7 pathfinder countries of Madagascar for May 2020 to April 2021, the Government specifies that the national database, managed by the National Office to Combat Human Trafficking (BNLTEH), will act as a dashboard for assistance to victims, the profiling of victims and investigations and prosecutions of perpetrators of trafficking. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the effect given in practice to Act No. 2014-040 of 20 January 2015 to combat trafficking in persons, including statistics on the number and nature of the offences reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and the penalties imposed in cases involving child victims. It also requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the penalties imposed on persons guilty of trafficking children under 18 years of age are enforced in practice.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Regional Committees to Combat Child Labour. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are still facing the same problems, with labour inspectors and controllers being unavailable and that no inspections have been carried out. The Government adds that the Regional Committees to Combat Child Labour are responsible for the implementation of all action to combat child labour at the regional level. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the activities of the Regional Committees to Combat Child Labour in relation to the identification and elimination of the worst forms of child labour.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (c). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and access to free basic education for children removed from the worst forms of child labour. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of National Education (MEN) ensures the school attendance of the whole of the population, the prevention of school drop-outs and the reintegration in school of students who have had to leave school. The Committee also notes the Education Sectoral Plan (PSE), adopted for the period 2018–22. The Government also indicates that the establishment of a national system of catch-up courses (CRAN) for the reintegration of children under 16 years of age is one of the measures introduced by the Ministry, with UNICEF support. The objectives and activities of the CRAN are aligned with the strategic priorities of the PSE, particularly in relation to access and quality, targeting children who have dropped out of primary school and seeking the integration and reintegration of vulnerable children and young persons in the education system. The Government adds that the policy of free primary education pursued by the MEN has also been able to lighten the burden of parents and led to an increase in the gross school attendance rate in 2021.

The Committee notes the statistics provided by the Government. Among other trends, it notes that school drop-out rates appear to be decreasing, falling from 18 to 9.4 per cent at primary level between 2016–17 and 2019-20, and from 8.8 to 4 per cent for the first cycle of secondary school and from 1 to 0 per cent for the second cycle of secondary school. However, the Committee notes that the school attendance rates remain more or less the same and that school completion rates are still very low. In 2021, the (gross) school attendance and completion rates were 140.3 and 53.1 per cent, respectively, for primary school, 44 and 33.4 per cent for the first cycle of secondary school and 19.8 and 17 per cent for the second cycle of secondary school.

The Committee also notes the concern expressed by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child with regard, among other matters, to: the low rates of school enrolment, attendance and completion, with significant gaps between children in the various regions; the mediocre quality of education and the lack of qualified teachers; the limited access to on-line education during school closures related to the COVID-19 pandemic; and the low level of budgetary resources allocated to education. While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee requests it to redouble its efforts to improve the operation of the education system in the country by improving the quality of teaching and access to free basic education for all children. In this regard, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the specific measures adopted, within the framework of the PSE, the CRAN or any other project, and on the results achieved, particularly with regard to the increase in school attendance and completion rates.

Clause (d). Vulnerable children at special risk. Child orphans of HIV/AIDS The Committee notes the absence of information in the Government’s report on the subject of child HIV/AIDS orphans. It notes that, according to the concluding observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child of 9 March 2022, Madagascar has been making increased efforts to combat HIV/AIDS (CRC/C/MDG//CO/5-6, paragraph 34), and according to the Global AIDS Update 2020 for Madagascar, the country has made significant progress in specific areas of its multisectoral response, including the implementation of the National Strategic Plan 2018–22 of the multisectoral response to STDs, HIV and AIDS.

However, the Committee notes that, according to UNAIDS statistics, around 16,000 children were HIV/AIDS orphans in 2020, which represents a significant increase in relation to the 2,800 orphans recorded in 2010. Once again recalling that HIV/AIDS has negative consequences for orphans, who are greater risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to continue its efforts to prevent these children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. 1. Poverty reduction. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the National Development Plan (PND) envisages a reduction in the social divide and in inequalities between regions, towns and rural areas, as well as action to combat poverty. The Committee also notes that, according to a United Nations press release dated 11 November 2021, a new United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) was launched in November 2021. This Framework constitutes a further commitment to the emergence of Madagascar with a view to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and optimal reconstruction during the post COVID-19 pandemic period. The UNSDCF is based on four strategic priorities, including the strengthening of good governance, the development of human capital and the promotion of productive work and the creation of productive jobs for decent incomes and a competitive economy. The UNSDCF also targets the strengthening of sustainable environmental management and resilience, as the Grand Sud in Madagascar is seriously affected by the drought caused by climate change. Recalling that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee strongly encourages the Government to continue its efforts to reduce the incidence of poverty in Madagascar. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved, particularly in relation to the effective reduction of poverty among vulnerable households and the impact detected on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour.

2. Social protection. The Committee notes that the Government is implementing the Madagascar National Social Protection Policy (PNPS) 2015–30, which is designed to determine a global and coherent strategy for social protection with a view to achieving effective coverage of the population. The National Social Protection Strategy (SNPS) 2019–23, developed on the basis of the PNPS 2015-30, has also been brought into line with the major development objectives set out in the Madagascar Emergence Initiative, with a view to reinforcing the resilience of the population in the face of economic and natural difficulties, and to raise up and rehabilitate the most vulnerable categories of the population. In view of the direct correlation between child labour and poverty, the Committee emphasizes that programmes intended to improve the living standards of the population through the provision of social protection contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the eradication of the worst forms of child labour (2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, (paragraphs 624–625). The Committee requests the Government to indicate the results achieved through the implementation of the PNPS and the SNPS, particularly in terms of the impact detected on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour through the reduction of poverty for the most vulnerable households.

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

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and sanctions. Child prostitution. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indications in its report according to which, in view of the increase in child sex tourism (CST), various types of action have been taken by the Ministry of Tourism for its elimination, including various awareness-raising measures, the establishment of a unit to combat tourist scourges within the Ministry of Tourism and the promotion and implementation of a Code of Conduct for tourism actors. The Government indicates that specific results have been achieved as a result of the dissemination of the Code of Conduct to the various actors in the tourism sector. These include surveys undertaken in 736 establishments between November 2019 and March 2020, in collaboration with youth associations and local universities in the five areas (Nosybe, Tuléar, Majunga, Tamatave and Fort Dauphin). The Government adds that measures have been taken within the framework of the Alliance 8.7 project, including the monitoring, awareness raising and protection of children from child prostitution and the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) in the Atsimo Andrefana region in 2019, in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism to raise awareness of sex tourism and CSEC and enrol victims in schools.

While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that, not only has there been no follow-up to its request for data on the number of investigations carried out, prosecutions, convictions and penal sanctions imposed in cases of child prostitution in Madagascar, but establishments where cases of CST have been identified appear to have been subject only to administrative penalties. Moreover, the Government has not indicated the number of inspections carried out by youth and university associations. The Committee further notes the concern expressed by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child on 9 March 2020 in response to reports that the sexual exploitation of children is widespread and tolerated in Madagascar, especially in tourist destinations (CRC/C/MDG/CO/5-6, paragraph 24). The Committee therefore once again notes with deep concern that there still appears to be a prevailing climate of impunity for crimes relating to child prostitution in the country. With regard to penalties, it refers to its indications in its 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions (paragraphs 637–639). The Committee therefore once again urges the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that effective investigations and prosecutions are carried out and completed into persons suspected of procuring, using, offering and employing children for prostitution, and that sufficiently effective and dissuasive penalties are imposed. It requests the Government to provide information on statistics covering the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in this respect.

Articles 3(d) and 7(2)(a) and (b). Hazardous types of work and effective and time-bound measures. Children engaged in hazardous work in the agricultural sector. Supporting Vanilla Sector Stakeholders to Benefit Children in the SAVA region (the SAVABE project). The Committee notes that the SAVABE project, which aims to achieve a sustainable improvement in the living conditions of vanilla-producing communities by ensuring the absence of child labour, was implemented by the ILO in the SAVA region between 2016 and 2020. The components of the project included the reduction of child labour through the mobilization and involvement of exporters in supply chain policies and programmes and the strengthening of the enforcement of child labour laws and referral and shelter systems for the protection of children. Within the context of this project, a baseline survey was undertaken in 2018. The Committee notes with concern that this survey revealed that 16.6 per cent of children in the region were exposed to child labour, of whom 67.1 per cent, representing 11.1 per cent of all children in the regions concerned, were engaged in work considered to be hazardous. Over half (51.6 per cent) of children considered to be engaged in hazardous forms of work were in the agricultural sector (other than vanilla) and 15.2 per cent were in the vanilla sector. The great majority of children engaged in hazardous forms of work (75.3 per cent) were classified as such on the basis of their conditions of work. Almost half of the children (45.1 per cent) worked long hours. Boys were more numerous than girls in hazardous forms of work (17.9 per cent compared with 8.7 per cent).

The Committee notes that the SAVABE project has resulted in several achievements. In particular, it notes the renewed dynamic, restructuring, training and equipment of the Regional Committee to Combat Child Labour in the SAVA region and the establishment of 27 local committees to combat child labour. While noting the measures adopted, the Committee requests the Government to strengthen its efforts to prevent children from being engaged in hazardous types of work in agriculture, including in the vanilla sector, and to remove children who are already working there and ensure their social rehabilitation and integration. It also requests the Government to continue providing information on the measures adopted in this regard and the results obtained in terms of the number of children identified and removed from hazardous types of work in these sectors, including through the action of the local committees.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Labour inspection. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards had recommended the Government to take measures to improve the capacities of the labour inspection services, particularly to combat child labour in mines and quarries. The Committee notes that, within the framework of the European Union Trade for Decent Work (T4DW) project, of which Madagascar is one of the beneficiaries, 40 labour inspectors were trained in 2021 and 2022 on child labour in the mining sector, a practical guide for the use of labour inspectors was prepared on controlling child labour, and support was provided for the development of an overall strategic action plan for labour inspection, which envisages the strengthening of inspections in enterprises. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that, in the context of the Alliance 8.7 project, the capacities of the labour inspection services are being reinforced through the provision of the necessary resources for monitoring as a basis for the adoption of prevention and protection measures. To overcome the absence of certain working tools, the means of action of labour inspectors have been strengthened, particularly through the provision of information and communication equipment. The Government adds that measures have been taken to enable the labour inspection services to have access to difficult sites in several regions and sectors, including brick making, tourist areas and mines and quarries. The Committee further notes that, according to the annual report of Alliance 8.7 pathfinder countries for May 2020 to April 2021 of Madagascar, the reinforcement of the powers of labour inspectors is envisaged through a revision of the Labour Code, which was commenced in February 2021. The Committee encourages the Government to continue taking the necessary measures to improve the capacities of the labour inspection services, particularly through the provisions of the necessary resources to enable labour inspectors to have access to difficult sites, especially mines and quarries, so that they can take effective action to combat the worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to provide information on the measures adopted in this regard and on the number of children engaged in the worst forms of child labour who have been identified by labour inspectors as a result. The Government is also requested to report on progress in the revision of the Labour Code.

Article 6. Programmes of action. Joint National Plan to Combat Child Labour in the Mica Sector (PNC). The Committee notes that the Ministries of Labour, Population and Mines have joined efforts for the formulation of a Joint National Plan, with support from the ILO, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and UNICEF, and other technical partners, within the framework of the T4DW project, of which Madagascar is one of the beneficiaries. According to the report on the action proposed in five African projects under the T4DW project in 2021, the Government confirmed that child labour in mica mines is a scourge in the country. The PNC therefore targets: (i) the formalization of small-scale mining activities in the region; (ii) the involvement of the private sector in action to combat child labour; (iii) education, awareness raising and communication to change behaviour concerning the problem of children and the community; (iv) the reinforcement of the child protection system; (v) the establishment of a social protection programme to remove children from the worst forms of child labour; and (vi) the strengthening of the resilience of communities in mica mining areas through economic diversification. The Committee also notes that, within the framework of the T4DW project, a qualitative study is being undertaken of child labour in the mica sector. The Committee encourages the Government to reinforce its efforts to combat the worst forms of child labour in mines and quarries, including mica mines. In this regard, it requests the Government to provide information on the specific measures taken within the framework of the implementation of the PNC to combat child labour in the mica sector, and on the results achieved in eliminating the worst forms of child labour in this sector. It also requests the Government to provide the findings of the study on child labour in the mica sector when it has been completed.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP) has been withdrawn from the public finance heading and reassigned to the operating budget of the Department for Labour and the Promotion of Fundamental Rights (DTPDF). The Government adds that the Manjarysoa Centre has been established to combat the worst forms of child labour around 67 Ha (a settlement located in Antananarivo). During 2019-2020, some 70 children were protected by the Centre and have benefited from school and vocational integration activities. The Committee requests the Government to renew its efforts to protect street children from the worst forms of child labour and to ensure their rehabilitation and social integration, particularly through the reintegration of the PIP in the budget of the DTPDF. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of street children who have benefited from school and vocational rehabilitation through the Manjarysoa Centre or any other centre established for this purpose.

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

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2021, published 110th ILC session (2022)

The Committee notes with deep concern that the Government’s report has not been received. It expects that the next report will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous comments. The Committee informs the Government that, if it has not supplied replies to the points raised by 1 September 2022, then it may proceed with the examination of the application of the Convention on the basis of the information at its disposal at its next session.

Repetition

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, and sanctions. Sale and trafficking. The Committee previously noted the extent of trafficking in persons, and particularly children, from Madagascar to neighbouring countries and the Middle East for the purposes of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. It also noted that the Act against trafficking was not adequately enforced and had not resulted in any convictions. The Committee noted the adoption of Act No. 2014 040 of 20 January 2015 to combat trafficking in persons, of which sections 16 et seq. relate to offences against children under 18 years of age and establish penalties of forced labour for trafficking offences involving prostitution and penalties of from five to ten years of imprisonment and a fine of from 4 to 20 million Malagasy ariary (MGA) for trafficking for the exploitation of domestic work. The Act also establishes penalties of imprisonment of from five to ten years and a fine of from MGA2 to 10 million in the case of trafficking for forced labour and slavery-like practices. The Government also indicated that a National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons has been established in accordance with section 48 of the Act and is responsible for the prevention and follow-up of action to combat trafficking, as well as for the harmonization and coordination of the competent services. The Committee also noted that a National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, focusing on awareness-raising and training programmes to combat trafficking in persons, was validated in March 2015.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the statistics on the cases dealt with by the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM) show that there was only one case of trafficking in persons in 2015. The Committee also notes that in 2016 the Government introduced the necessary infrastructure for the effective operation of the National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons. It indicates that data on the activities of the Bureau are not yet available. Noting the absence of information in this regard, the Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure the effective enforcement of Act No. 2014-040 and to provide information on the effect given in practice to this Act, including statistics on the number and nature of the offences reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and the penalties imposed in cases involving child victims. It further requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that penalties against those guilty of trafficking children under 18 years of age are applied in practice.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE). The Committee also noted that Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are the regional subdivisions of the PACTE and have general responsibility for the regional coordination, monitoring and evaluation of all action to combat child labour, identifying activities for this purpose and analysing the data gathered. The Committee noted that the ORTEs play a principal role in the implementation of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA). However, the Government indicated that the ORTEs are experiencing staffing problems, with labour inspectors and controllers being unavailable or assigned to other duties, and therefore unable to devote themselves entirely to the ORTEs. The Government added that 74 labour inspectors have received training on action to combat child labour and that, in the context of the reinforcement of the monitoring of child domestic work, a training workshop for neighbourhood officials, known as fiantso, in the first-level territorial authorities (fokotany) was organized on conducting a census of child domestic workers in households with the objective of enabling the labour inspection services to carry out inspections under favourable conditions.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to collect and make available without delay information and statistics on investigations, prosecutions and penalties relating to the worst forms of child labour according to national enforcement mechanisms.

The Committee notes with concern the Government’s indication that the second phase of the work plan of the ORTEs has still not commenced due to the lack of budget, even though the project was launched in 2007. The Government indicates that no inspections have been carried out, and that the labour inspection services have not therefore been able to produce reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of offences relating to young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour. Noting that the ORTEs are essential in the implementation of the PNA, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that they are established and function effectively as soon as possible, and to provide information on the progress made in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to reinforce the resources available to labour inspectors, particularly through the provision of the necessary means to enable them to combat child labour effectively. It requests the Government to provide information on this subject, including extracts from reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of the violations reported relating to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour.

Articles 6 and 7(2). Programmes of action and effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (c). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and access to free basic education for children removed from the worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that there are reported to be over 1 million children who do not attend school, which appears to be explained by the school fees now imposed in most public and private schools. The Government indicated that it established a programme for school attendance and reintegration 2014–18 with a view to taking action to reduce costs for parents, a national system of second chance courses (CRAN) for the reintegration of children under 16 years of age, and a programme of schooling support measures for young Malagasies (ASAMA), consisting of accelerated schooling for the insertion and reintegration of young persons between 12 and 15 years of age. The Committee however noted that the net school enrolment rate in primary school was 69.3 per cent, and that the rate was 30.4 per cent for secondary school.

The Government indicates that the Ministry of National Education (MEN) is currently engaged in two main types of action to increase the enrolment rate in secondary school. These include, firstly, the continuation of the ASAMA programme, which resulted in the establishment in 2015 and 2016 of ASAMA centres in the capital and in the regions of Antsinanana, Amoron’i Mania and Analanjirofo. These centres, which are intended for young persons between 11 and 17 years of age, are intended to assist children in their reintegration into the school system for an intensive ten-month course. The second type of action taken by the MEN has been the establishment of school canteens in four regional national education departments. The Government indicates that the provision of meals every day to students is a means of combating school drop-outs and reducing costs for families. While noting the efforts made by the Government, the Committee recalls that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and requests the Government to continue its efforts to improve the operation of the education system in the country. In this regard, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the time-bound measures taken to increase the school enrolment rate and reduce the school drop-out rate, in both primary and secondary school.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Child HIV/AIDS orphans. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the estimates of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the number of HIV/AIDS orphans has risen to around 11,000 children, compared with 3,400 in 2008.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, due to the stigmatization that exists in Madagascar concerning HIV/AIDS, it is difficult to assess the number of HIV/AIDS orphans. It notes that 624 persons living with HIV/AIDS were provided with psychosocial support in 2014. The Government adds that the Ministry of Population, Social Protection and the Protection of Women carries out training for the various actors responsible at the regional level, such as associations, shelters for vulnerable children and villages. This training includes awareness-raising on HIV/AIDS, discrimination and stigmatization, and care for HIV/AIDS orphans. The Government also indicates that, with a view to removing the families of persons living with HIV/AIDS from vulnerability, equipment has been given to certain families, such as ice and pasta-making machines, pirogues and freezers, so that they can engage in income-generating activities. Recalling once again that HIV/AIDS has negative consequences for orphans, who are at greater risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to prevent these children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. The Committee previously noted that the National Development Plan (PND), the successor to the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP), is an instrument for reducing poverty, stimulating growth and ensuring the development of the country. It consists of the same four priority categories for action as the MAP, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mines and stone quarries, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy conditions in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee also noted that the Government, with the support of UNICEF and the World Bank, approved its first National Social Protection Policy, as part of the PND, in September 2015, with the objectives of protecting children, families and the most vulnerable communities, ensuring access to essential services and helping them to assert their rights.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that various measures have been adopted within the context of the PND in an effort to reduce poverty. However, the information provided by the Government is too general and does not include details on the content of these measures, or the results achieved. Nevertheless, the Government indicates that, in the context of the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy, funding has been provided to the Government by the World Bank with a view to the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. As a result, 6,500 households, with 5,850 children, have benefited from cash transfers for human development, and 39,000 other households will benefit from such transfers. The Committee also notes the new technical cooperation project, in collaboration with the ILO and financed by the United States Department of Labor, to address child labour in the vanilla plantations. The project will provide livelihood services to households whose children are engaged in child labour in the vanilla plantations. It will also work with vanilla stakeholders to implement the new vanilla Exporters’ Code of Conduct to eliminate child labour in the vanilla sector. Recalling that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to continue taking the necessary measures to ensure that the PND is implemented in such a way as to further the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly for the four priority categories for action. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved. It also requests it to provide information on the results achieved in terms of the elimination of the worst forms of child labour through the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the technical cooperation project and on the progress achieved in this regard.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2021, published 110th ILC session (2022)

The Committee notes with deep concern that the Government’s report has not been received. It is therefore bound to repeat its previous comments. The Committee informs the Government that, if it has not supplied replies to the points raised by 1 September 2022, then it may proceed with the examination of the application of the Convention on the basis of the information at its disposal at its next session.

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conference, 105th Session, May–June 2016)

The Committee notes the Government’s report, received on 25 October 2016, and the in-depth discussion on the application of the Convention by Madagascar in the Committee on the Application of Standards at the 105th Session of the International Labour Conference in June 2016.

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and sanctions. Child prostitution. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 respecting child labour categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering or employment of children of either sex for prostitution and that section 261 of the Labour Code and sections 354–357 of the Penal Code, which are referred to in Decree No. 2007 563, establish effective and dissuasive sanctions. The Committee noted the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA) indicating that the number of girls under the age of majority, some as young as 12 years old, who are engaged in prostitution is increasing especially in cities, that 50 per cent of prostitutes in the capital, Antananarivo, are minors, and 47 per cent engage in prostitution because of their precarious situation. For fear of reprisals, 80 per cent of them prefer not to turn to the authorities. Furthermore, the Government has strengthened the capacity of 120 actors engaged in tourism in Nosy-Be and 35 in Tuléar in relation to sexual exploitation for commercial purposes. However, the Committee noted the absence of information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions of those engaged in commercial sexual exploitation. It also noted the increase in sex tourism involving children, the insufficient measures taken by the Government to combat this phenomenon and the low number of prosecutions and convictions, all of which fosters impunity.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the elimination of the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes and sex tourism.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the Ministry of Internal Security, through the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM), is one of the agencies responsible for the enforcement of penal laws on the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes, including prostitution. The PMPM centralizes criminal charges concerning children and is responsible for conducting investigations into alleged perpetrators. The Government adds that the PMPM regularly makes unannounced raids on establishments that are open at night to monitor the identity and age of the persons present, but that it is difficult to determine whether the minors who are found are prostitutes. Moreover, the Committee notes that a code of conduct for actors in the tourism industry was signed in 2013. The code of conduct seeks to raise awareness among all actors in tourism with a view to bringing an end to sexual tourism in the country. The Committee also notes the statistics provided by the Government on the cases handled by the courts of first instance in Betroka, Ambatolampy, Arivonimamo, Nosy-be, Taolagnaro, Vatomandry, Mampikony and Ankazobe. It notes that in 2015 no cases of the exploitation of minors or of sex tourism involving minors were brought before these courts. The Committee is therefore once again bound to note with deep concern the absence of prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators, which is resulting in the continuation of a situation of impunity which seems to persist in the country. The Committee therefore urges the Government to take immediate and effective measures to ensure that robust investigations and effective prosecutions are carried out on persons suspected of procuring, using, offering and employing children for prostitution, and that sufficiently effective and dissuasive penalties are imposed. It requests the Government to continue providing statistical information on the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in this respect. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved as a result of the dissemination of the code of conduct among the various actors in the tourism sector.

Clause (d). Hazardous types of work. Children working in mines and quarries, and labour inspection. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that children work in the Ilakaka mines and in stone quarries under precarious and sometimes hazardous conditions, and that the worst forms of child labour are found in the informal economy and in rural areas, which the labour administration is unable to cover. The Committee also noted that the work carried out by children in mines and quarries is a contemporary form of slavery, as it involves debt bondage, forced labour and the economic exploitation of those concerned, particularly unaccompanied children working in small-scale mines and quarries. It noted that children work from five to ten hours a day, that they are engaged in transporting blocks of stone or water, and that some boys dig pits one metre in circumference and between 15 and 50 metres deep, while others go down the pits to remove the loose earth. Children between three and seven years of age, often working in family groups, break stones and carry baskets of stones or bricks on their heads, working an average of 47 hours a week when they are not enrolled in school. Moreover, the working conditions are unhealthy and hygiene is extremely poor. All of the children are also exposed to physical and sexual violence and to serious health hazards, particularly due to the contamination of the water, the instability of pits and the collapse of tunnels.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to take measures to improve the capacity of the labour inspectorate. It also notes the Government’s indication that, in the context of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA), the labour inspectorate envisages conducting inspections to take preventive and protective measures with a view to combating child labour in mines and quarries in the regions of Diana, Ihorombe and Haute Matsiatra. The Committee notes that the Government representative to the Conference Committee indicated that the lack of resources is a major obstacle to the adoption of rigorous measures. For example, labour inspectors do not have means of transport, even though the Government indicates in its report that one of the main obstacles to inspections by labour inspectors is the fact that mining sites, located on the outskirts of large cities, are often difficult to access. The Committee notes with deep concern the situation of children working in mines and quarries under particularly hazardous conditions. The Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that no children under 18 years of age can be engaged in work which is likely to harm their health, safety or morals. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect, particularly in the context of the PNA, and the results achieved in removing these children from this worst form of child labour. The Committee also requests the Government to improve the capacities of the labour inspectorate, in particular by providing the necessary resources, such as vehicles, to enable labour inspectors to have access to remote sites.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation (MTLS) was continuing its programme of school enrolment and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It however noted that the number of street children has increased in recent years and that the action taken by the Government to help them is still minimal. The Government indicated that the programmes financed under the PIP have the objective of removing 40 children a year from the worst forms of child labour, or 120 children over three years. The Committee nevertheless noted that there are about 4,500 street children in the capital, Antananarivo, most of whom are boys (63 per cent) who live from begging or sorting through rubbish. Girls living on the streets are frequently victims of sexual exploitation to meet their subsistence needs, or under pressure from third parties. Others are engaged in domestic work, swelling the ranks of exploited child workers.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee, in its conclusions, requested the Government to increase funding for the PIP with a view to removing children from the streets and for awareness-raising campaigns.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of the Population, Social Protection and the Promotion of Women has set up a census programme of children living and working on the streets and homeless families for the period 2015–16. The objective of this programme is to determine the number of children living and working on the streets, identify the needs of homeless families and develop a short-, medium- and long-term plan of action to deal with them. The Committee notes that studies have been carried out, data analysed and interpreted, and shelters set up. The next stages will consist of the provision of shelter, care, guidance, education, school enrolment and placement or repatriation of the persons concerned. The Committee requests the Government to continue taking effective and time-bound measures to ensure the targeted implementation of the PIP’s programmes, and requests it to intensify its efforts to ensure that street children are protected from the worst forms of child labour and are rehabilitated and integrated in society. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the data collected through the census programme on children living and working in the streets and homeless families, as well as the results achieved in removing them from this situation and preventing them from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted that 27.5 per cent of children, or 2,030,000, are engaged in work, of whom 30 per cent live in rural areas and 18 per cent in urban areas. The Committee also noted that 81 per cent of child workers between 5 and 17 years of age, or 1,653,000 children, are engaged in hazardous types of work. Agriculture and fishing account for the majority of child labour (89 per cent), and more than six out of ten working children have reported health problems resulting from their work over the past 12 months. The Committee further noted that child domestic labour is often a feature of the lives of poor rural families who send their children to urban areas in response to their precarious situation. Child domestic workers may be forced to work up to 15 hours per day, and most of them receive no wages, which are paid directly to their parents. In some cases, they sleep on the floor, and many are victims of psychological, physical or sexual violence. The Committee expressed its deep concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to perform hazardous types of work.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it is intensifying its efforts to combat child labour through the Manjary Soa project. The Manjary Soa Centre, established in 2001, offers selected children second chance education. Once these children have been reinserted into the public education system, the Centre covers their school fees and provides them with the necessary school supplies. The Committee also notes the 2014–16 project to combat child labour in the regions of Diana and Atsimo Andrefana. The Government indicates that the objective of this project is to reinforce action in support of the socio-economic reintegration of 100 girls under 18 years of age, who have been removed from sexual exploitation for commercial purposes in Nosy-be, Toliara and Mangily. The Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour, and particularly hazardous types of work, and to provide information on any progress made in this regard and the results achieved.

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

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

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

The Committee notes with concern that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that the next report will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous comments.

Repetition

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, and sanctions. Sale and trafficking. The Committee previously noted the extent of trafficking in persons, and particularly children, from Madagascar to neighbouring countries and the Middle East for the purposes of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. It also noted that the Act against trafficking was not adequately enforced and had not resulted in any convictions. The Committee noted the adoption of Act No. 2014 040 of 20 January 2015 to combat trafficking in persons, of which sections 16 et seq. relate to offences against children under 18 years of age and establish penalties of forced labour for trafficking offences involving prostitution and penalties of from five to ten years of imprisonment and a fine of from 4 to 20 million Malagasy ariary (MGA) for trafficking for the exploitation of domestic work. The Act also establishes penalties of imprisonment of from five to ten years and a fine of from MGA2 to 10 million in the case of trafficking for forced labour and slavery-like practices. The Government also indicated that a National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons has been established in accordance with section 48 of the Act and is responsible for the prevention and follow-up of action to combat trafficking, as well as for the harmonization and coordination of the competent services. The Committee also noted that a National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, focusing on awareness-raising and training programmes to combat trafficking in persons, was validated in March 2015.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the statistics on the cases dealt with by the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM) show that there was only one case of trafficking in persons in 2015. The Committee also notes that in 2016 the Government introduced the necessary infrastructure for the effective operation of the National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons. It indicates that data on the activities of the Bureau are not yet available. Noting the absence of information in this regard, the Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure the effective enforcement of Act No. 2014-040 and to provide information on the effect given in practice to this Act, including statistics on the number and nature of the offences reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and the penalties imposed in cases involving child victims. It further requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that penalties against those guilty of trafficking children under 18 years of age are applied in practice.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE). The Committee also noted that Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are the regional subdivisions of the PACTE and have general responsibility for the regional coordination, monitoring and evaluation of all action to combat child labour, identifying activities for this purpose and analysing the data gathered. The Committee noted that the ORTEs play a principal role in the implementation of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA). However, the Government indicated that the ORTEs are experiencing staffing problems, with labour inspectors and controllers being unavailable or assigned to other duties, and therefore unable to devote themselves entirely to the ORTEs. The Government added that 74 labour inspectors have received training on action to combat child labour and that, in the context of the reinforcement of the monitoring of child domestic work, a training workshop for neighbourhood officials, known as fiantso, in the first-level territorial authorities (fokotany) was organized on conducting a census of child domestic workers in households with the objective of enabling the labour inspection services to carry out inspections under favourable conditions.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to collect and make available without delay information and statistics on investigations, prosecutions and penalties relating to the worst forms of child labour according to national enforcement mechanisms.

The Committee notes with concern the Government’s indication that the second phase of the work plan of the ORTEs has still not commenced due to the lack of budget, even though the project was launched in 2007. The Government indicates that no inspections have been carried out, and that the labour inspection services have not therefore been able to produce reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of offences relating to young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour. Noting that the ORTEs are essential in the implementation of the PNA, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that they are established and function effectively as soon as possible, and to provide information on the progress made in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to reinforce the resources available to labour inspectors, particularly through the provision of the necessary means to enable them to combat child labour effectively. It requests the Government to provide information on this subject, including extracts from reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of the violations reported relating to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour.

Articles 6 and 7(2). Programmes of action and effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (c). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and access to free basic education for children removed from the worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that there are reported to be over 1 million children who do not attend school, which appears to be explained by the school fees now imposed in most public and private schools. The Government indicated that it established a programme for school attendance and reintegration 2014–18 with a view to taking action to reduce costs for parents, a national system of second chance courses (CRAN) for the reintegration of children under 16 years of age, and a programme of schooling support measures for young Malagasies (ASAMA), consisting of accelerated schooling for the insertion and reintegration of young persons between 12 and 15 years of age. The Committee however noted that the net school enrolment rate in primary school was 69.3 per cent, and that the rate was 30.4 per cent for secondary school.

The Government indicates that the Ministry of National Education (MEN) is currently engaged in two main types of action to increase the enrolment rate in secondary school. These include, firstly, the continuation of the ASAMA programme, which resulted in the establishment in 2015 and 2016 of ASAMA centres in the capital and in the regions of Antsinanana, Amoron’i Mania and Analanjirofo. These centres, which are intended for young persons between 11 and 17 years of age, are intended to assist children in their reintegration into the school system for an intensive ten-month course. The second type of action taken by the MEN has been the establishment of school canteens in four regional national education departments. The Government indicates that the provision of meals every day to students is a means of combating school drop-outs and reducing costs for families. While noting the efforts made by the Government, the Committee recalls that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and requests the Government to continue its efforts to improve the operation of the education system in the country. In this regard, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the time-bound measures taken to increase the school enrolment rate and reduce the school drop-out rate, in both primary and secondary school.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Child HIV/AIDS orphans. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the estimates of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the number of HIV/AIDS orphans has risen to around 11,000 children, compared with 3,400 in 2008.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, due to the stigmatization that exists in Madagascar concerning HIV/AIDS, it is difficult to assess the number of HIV/AIDS orphans. It notes that 624 persons living with HIV/AIDS were provided with psychosocial support in 2014. The Government adds that the Ministry of Population, Social Protection and the Protection of Women carries out training for the various actors responsible at the regional level, such as associations, shelters for vulnerable children and villages. This training includes awareness-raising on HIV/AIDS, discrimination and stigmatization, and care for HIV/AIDS orphans. The Government also indicates that, with a view to removing the families of persons living with HIV/AIDS from vulnerability, equipment has been given to certain families, such as ice and pasta-making machines, pirogues and freezers, so that they can engage in income-generating activities. Recalling once again that HIV/AIDS has negative consequences for orphans, who are at greater risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to prevent these children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. The Committee previously noted that the National Development Plan (PND), the successor to the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP), is an instrument for reducing poverty, stimulating growth and ensuring the development of the country. It consists of the same four priority categories for action as the MAP, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mines and stone quarries, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy conditions in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee also noted that the Government, with the support of UNICEF and the World Bank, approved its first National Social Protection Policy, as part of the PND, in September 2015, with the objectives of protecting children, families and the most vulnerable communities, ensuring access to essential services and helping them to assert their rights.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that various measures have been adopted within the context of the PND in an effort to reduce poverty. However, the information provided by the Government is too general and does not include details on the content of these measures, or the results achieved. Nevertheless, the Government indicates that, in the context of the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy, funding has been provided to the Government by the World Bank with a view to the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. As a result, 6,500 households, with 5,850 children, have benefited from cash transfers for human development, and 39,000 other households will benefit from such transfers. The Committee also notes the new technical cooperation project, in collaboration with the ILO and financed by the United States Department of Labor, to address child labour in the vanilla plantations. The project will provide livelihood services to households whose children are engaged in child labour in the vanilla plantations. It will also work with vanilla stakeholders to implement the new vanilla Exporters’ Code of Conduct to eliminate child labour in the vanilla sector. Recalling that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to continue taking the necessary measures to ensure that the PND is implemented in such a way as to further the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly for the four priority categories for action. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved. It also requests it to provide information on the results achieved in terms of the elimination of the worst forms of child labour through the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the technical cooperation project and on the progress achieved in this regard.

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

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

Repetition

The Committee notes the observations of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) received on 30 August 2017 and requests the Government to provide its comments in this respect.

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conference, 105th Session, May–June 2016)

The Committee notes the Government’s report, received on 25 October 2016, and the in-depth discussion on the application of the Convention by Madagascar in the Committee on the Application of Standards at the 105th Session of the International Labour Conference in June 2016.

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and sanctions. Child prostitution. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 respecting child labour categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering or employment of children of either sex for prostitution and that section 261 of the Labour Code and sections 354–357 of the Penal Code, which are referred to in Decree No. 2007 563, establish effective and dissuasive sanctions. The Committee noted the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA) indicating that the number of girls under the age of majority, some as young as 12 years old, who are engaged in prostitution is increasing especially in cities, that 50 per cent of prostitutes in the capital, Antananarivo, are minors, and 47 per cent engage in prostitution because of their precarious situation. For fear of reprisals, 80 per cent of them prefer not to turn to the authorities. Furthermore, the Government has strengthened the capacity of 120 actors engaged in tourism in Nosy-Be and 35 in Tuléar in relation to sexual exploitation for commercial purposes. However, the Committee noted the absence of information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions of those engaged in commercial sexual exploitation. It also noted the increase in sex tourism involving children, the insufficient measures taken by the Government to combat this phenomenon and the low number of prosecutions and convictions, all of which fosters impunity.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the elimination of the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes and sex tourism.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the Ministry of Internal Security, through the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM), is one of the agencies responsible for the enforcement of penal laws on the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes, including prostitution. The PMPM centralizes criminal charges concerning children and is responsible for conducting investigations into alleged perpetrators. The Government adds that the PMPM regularly makes unannounced raids on establishments that are open at night to monitor the identity and age of the persons present, but that it is difficult to determine whether the minors who are found are prostitutes. Moreover, the Committee notes that a code of conduct for actors in the tourism industry was signed in 2013. The code of conduct seeks to raise awareness among all actors in tourism with a view to bringing an end to sexual tourism in the country. The Committee also notes the statistics provided by the Government on the cases handled by the courts of first instance in Betroka, Ambatolampy, Arivonimamo, Nosy-be, Taolagnaro, Vatomandry, Mampikony and Ankazobe. It notes that in 2015 no cases of the exploitation of minors or of sex tourism involving minors were brought before these courts. The Committee is therefore once again bound to note with deep concern the absence of prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators, which is resulting in the continuation of a situation of impunity which seems to persist in the country. The Committee therefore urges the Government to take immediate and effective measures to ensure that robust investigations and effective prosecutions are carried out on persons suspected of procuring, using, offering and employing children for prostitution, and that sufficiently effective and dissuasive penalties are imposed. It requests the Government to continue providing statistical information on the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in this respect. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved as a result of the dissemination of the code of conduct among the various actors in the tourism sector.

Clause (d). Hazardous types of work. Children working in mines and quarries, and labour inspection. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that children work in the Ilakaka mines and in stone quarries under precarious and sometimes hazardous conditions, and that the worst forms of child labour are found in the informal economy and in rural areas, which the labour administration is unable to cover. The Committee also noted that the work carried out by children in mines and quarries is a contemporary form of slavery, as it involves debt bondage, forced labour and the economic exploitation of those concerned, particularly unaccompanied children working in small-scale mines and quarries. It noted that children work from five to ten hours a day, that they are engaged in transporting blocks of stone or water, and that some boys dig pits one metre in circumference and between 15 and 50 metres deep, while others go down the pits to remove the loose earth. Children between three and seven years of age, often working in family groups, break stones and carry baskets of stones or bricks on their heads, working an average of 47 hours a week when they are not enrolled in school. Moreover, the working conditions are unhealthy and hygiene is extremely poor. All of the children are also exposed to physical and sexual violence and to serious health hazards, particularly due to the contamination of the water, the instability of pits and the collapse of tunnels.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to take measures to improve the capacity of the labour inspectorate. It also notes the Government’s indication that, in the context of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA), the labour inspectorate envisages conducting inspections to take preventive and protective measures with a view to combating child labour in mines and quarries in the regions of Diana, Ihorombe and Haute Matsiatra. The Committee notes that the Government representative to the Conference Committee indicated that the lack of resources is a major obstacle to the adoption of rigorous measures. For example, labour inspectors do not have means of transport, even though the Government indicates in its report that one of the main obstacles to inspections by labour inspectors is the fact that mining sites, located on the outskirts of large cities, are often difficult to access. The Committee notes with deep concern the situation of children working in mines and quarries under particularly hazardous conditions. The Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that no children under 18 years of age can be engaged in work which is likely to harm their health, safety or morals. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect, particularly in the context of the PNA, and the results achieved in removing these children from this worst form of child labour. The Committee also requests the Government to improve the capacities of the labour inspectorate, in particular by providing the necessary resources, such as vehicles, to enable labour inspectors to have access to remote sites.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation (MTLS) was continuing its programme of school enrolment and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It however noted that the number of street children has increased in recent years and that the action taken by the Government to help them is still minimal. The Government indicated that the programmes financed under the PIP have the objective of removing 40 children a year from the worst forms of child labour, or 120 children over three years. The Committee nevertheless noted that there are about 4,500 street children in the capital, Antananarivo, most of whom are boys (63 per cent) who live from begging or sorting through rubbish. Girls living on the streets are frequently victims of sexual exploitation to meet their subsistence needs, or under pressure from third parties. Others are engaged in domestic work, swelling the ranks of exploited child workers.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee, in its conclusions, requested the Government to increase funding for the PIP with a view to removing children from the streets and for awareness-raising campaigns.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of the Population, Social Protection and the Promotion of Women has set up a census programme of children living and working on the streets and homeless families for the period 2015–16. The objective of this programme is to determine the number of children living and working on the streets, identify the needs of homeless families and develop a short-, medium- and long-term plan of action to deal with them. The Committee notes that studies have been carried out, data analysed and interpreted, and shelters set up. The next stages will consist of the provision of shelter, care, guidance, education, school enrolment and placement or repatriation of the persons concerned. The Committee requests the Government to continue taking effective and time-bound measures to ensure the targeted implementation of the PIP’s programmes, and requests it to intensify its efforts to ensure that street children are protected from the worst forms of child labour and are rehabilitated and integrated in society. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the data collected through the census programme on children living and working in the streets and homeless families, as well as the results achieved in removing them from this situation and preventing them from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted that 27.5 per cent of children, or 2,030,000, are engaged in work, of whom 30 per cent live in rural areas and 18 per cent in urban areas. The Committee also noted that 81 per cent of child workers between 5 and 17 years of age, or 1,653,000 children, are engaged in hazardous types of work. Agriculture and fishing account for the majority of child labour (89 per cent), and more than six out of ten working children have reported health problems resulting from their work over the past 12 months. The Committee further noted that child domestic labour is often a feature of the lives of poor rural families who send their children to urban areas in response to their precarious situation. Child domestic workers may be forced to work up to 15 hours per day, and most of them receive no wages, which are paid directly to their parents. In some cases, they sleep on the floor, and many are victims of psychological, physical or sexual violence. The Committee expressed its deep concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to perform hazardous types of work.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it is intensifying its efforts to combat child labour through the Manjary Soa project. The Manjary Soa Centre, established in 2001, offers selected children second chance education. Once these children have been reinserted into the public education system, the Centre covers their school fees and provides them with the necessary school supplies. The Committee also notes the 2014–16 project to combat child labour in the regions of Diana and Atsimo Andrefana. The Government indicates that the objective of this project is to reinforce action in support of the socio-economic reintegration of 100 girls under 18 years of age, who have been removed from sexual exploitation for commercial purposes in Nosy-be, Toliara and Mangily. The Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour, and particularly hazardous types of work, and to provide information on any progress made in this regard and the results achieved.

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.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

The Committee notes with concern that the Government’s report has not been received. It expects that the next report will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous comments.

Repetition

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, and sanctions. Sale and trafficking. The Committee previously noted the extent of trafficking in persons, and particularly children, from Madagascar to neighbouring countries and the Middle East for the purposes of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. It also noted that the Act against trafficking was not adequately enforced and had not resulted in any convictions. The Committee noted the adoption of Act No. 2014 040 of 20 January 2015 to combat trafficking in persons, of which sections 16 et seq. relate to offences against children under 18 years of age and establish penalties of forced labour for trafficking offences involving prostitution and penalties of from five to ten years of imprisonment and a fine of from 4 to 20 million Malagasy ariary (MGA) for trafficking for the exploitation of domestic work. The Act also establishes penalties of imprisonment of from five to ten years and a fine of from MGA2 to 10 million in the case of trafficking for forced labour and slavery-like practices. The Government also indicated that a National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons has been established in accordance with section 48 of the Act and is responsible for the prevention and follow-up of action to combat trafficking, as well as for the harmonization and coordination of the competent services. The Committee also noted that a National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, focusing on awareness-raising and training programmes to combat trafficking in persons, was validated in March 2015.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the statistics on the cases dealt with by the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM) show that there was only one case of trafficking in persons in 2015. The Committee also notes that in 2016 the Government introduced the necessary infrastructure for the effective operation of the National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons. It indicates that data on the activities of the Bureau are not yet available. Noting the absence of information in this regard, the Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure the effective enforcement of Act No. 2014-040 and to provide information on the effect given in practice to this Act, including statistics on the number and nature of the offences reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and the penalties imposed in cases involving child victims. It further requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that penalties against those guilty of trafficking children under 18 years of age are applied in practice.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE). The Committee also noted that Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are the regional subdivisions of the PACTE and have general responsibility for the regional coordination, monitoring and evaluation of all action to combat child labour, identifying activities for this purpose and analysing the data gathered. The Committee noted that the ORTEs play a principal role in the implementation of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA). However, the Government indicated that the ORTEs are experiencing staffing problems, with labour inspectors and controllers being unavailable or assigned to other duties, and therefore unable to devote themselves entirely to the ORTEs. The Government added that 74 labour inspectors have received training on action to combat child labour and that, in the context of the reinforcement of the monitoring of child domestic work, a training workshop for neighbourhood officials, known as fiantso, in the first-level territorial authorities (fokotany) was organized on conducting a census of child domestic workers in households with the objective of enabling the labour inspection services to carry out inspections under favourable conditions.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to collect and make available without delay information and statistics on investigations, prosecutions and penalties relating to the worst forms of child labour according to national enforcement mechanisms.

The Committee notes with concern the Government’s indication that the second phase of the workplan of the ORTEs has still not commenced due to the lack of budget, even though the project was launched in 2007. The Government indicates that no inspections have been carried out, and that the labour inspection services have not therefore been able to produce reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of offences relating to young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour. Noting that the ORTEs are essential in the implementation of the PNA, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that they are established and function effectively as soon as possible, and to provide information on the progress made in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to reinforce the resources available to labour inspectors, particularly through the provision of the necessary means to enable them to combat child labour effectively. It requests the Government to provide information on this subject, including extracts from reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of the violations reported relating to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour.

Articles 6 and 7(2). Programmes of action and effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (c). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and access to free basic education for children removed from the worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that there are reported to be over 1 million children who do not attend school, which appears to be explained by the school fees now imposed in most public and private schools. The Government indicated that it established a programme for school attendance and reintegration 2014–18 with a view to taking action to reduce costs for parents, a national system of second chance courses (CRAN) for the reintegration of children under 16 years of age, and a programme of schooling support measures for young Malagasies (ASAMA), consisting of accelerated schooling for the insertion and reintegration of young persons between 12 and 15 years of age. The Committee however noted that the net school enrolment rate in primary school was 69.3 per cent, and that the rate was 30.4 per cent for secondary school.

The Government indicates that the Ministry of National Education (MEN) is currently engaged in two main types of action to increase the enrolment rate in secondary school. These include, firstly, the continuation of the ASAMA programme, which resulted in the establishment in 2015 and 2016 of ASAMA centres in the capital and in the regions of Antsinanana, Amoron’i Mania and Analanjirofo. These centres, which are intended for young persons between 11 and 17 years of age, are intended to assist children in their reintegration into the school system for an intensive ten-month course. The second type of action taken by the MEN has been the establishment of school canteens in four regional national education departments. The Government indicates that the provision of meals every day to students is a means of combating school drop-outs and reducing costs for families. While noting the efforts made by the Government, the Committee recalls that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and requests the Government to continue its efforts to improve the operation of the education system in the country. In this regard, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the time-bound measures taken to increase the school enrolment rate and reduce the school drop-out rate, in both primary and secondary school.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Child HIV/AIDS orphans. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the estimates of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the number of HIV/AIDS orphans has risen to around 11,000 children, compared with 3,400 in 2008.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, due to the stigmatization that exists in Madagascar concerning HIV/AIDS, it is difficult to assess the number of HIV/AIDS orphans. It notes that 624 persons living with HIV/AIDS were provided with psychosocial support in 2014. The Government adds that the Ministry of Population, Social Protection and the Protection of Women carries out training for the various actors responsible at the regional level, such as associations, shelters for vulnerable children and villages. This training includes awareness-raising on HIV/AIDS, discrimination and stigmatization, and care for HIV/AIDS orphans. The Government also indicates that, with a view to removing the families of persons living with HIV/AIDS from vulnerability, equipment has been given to certain families, such as ice and pasta-making machines, pirogues and freezers, so that they can engage in income-generating activities. Recalling once again that HIV/AIDS has negative consequences for orphans, who are at greater risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to prevent these children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. The Committee previously noted that the National Development Plan (PND), the successor to the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP), is an instrument for reducing poverty, stimulating growth and ensuring the development of the country. It consists of the same four priority categories for action as the MAP, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mines and stone quarries, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy conditions in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee also noted that the Government, with the support of UNICEF and the World Bank, approved its first National Social Protection Policy, as part of the PND, in September 2015, with the objectives of protecting children, families and the most vulnerable communities, ensuring access to essential services and helping them to assert their rights.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that various measures have been adopted within the context of the PND in an effort to reduce poverty. However, the information provided by the Government is too general and does not include details on the content of these measures, or the results achieved. Nevertheless, the Government indicates that, in the context of the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy, funding has been provided to the Government by the World Bank with a view to the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. As a result, 6,500 households, with 5,850 children, have benefited from cash transfers for human development, and 39,000 other households will benefit from such transfers. The Committee also notes the new technical cooperation project, in collaboration with the ILO and financed by the United States Department of Labor, to address child labour in the vanilla plantations. The project will provide livelihood services to households whose children are engaged in child labour in the vanilla plantations. It will also work with vanilla stakeholders to implement the new vanilla Exporters’ Code of Conduct to eliminate child labour in the vanilla sector. Recalling that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to continue taking the necessary measures to ensure that the PND is implemented in such a way as to further the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly for the four priority categories for action. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved. It also requests it to provide information on the results achieved in terms of the elimination of the worst forms of child labour through the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the technical cooperation project and on the progress achieved in this regard.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

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

Repetition

The Committee notes the observations of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) received on 30 August 2017 and requests the Government to provide its comments in this respect.

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conference, 105th Session, May–June 2016)

The Committee notes the Government’s report, received on 25 October 2016, and the in-depth discussion on the application of the Convention by Madagascar in the Committee on the Application of Standards at the 105th Session of the International Labour Conference in June 2016.

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and sanctions. Child prostitution. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 respecting child labour categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering or employment of children of either sex for prostitution and that section 261 of the Labour Code and sections 354–357 of the Penal Code, which are referred to in Decree No. 2007 563, establish effective and dissuasive sanctions. The Committee noted the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA) indicating that the number of girls under the age of majority, some as young as 12 years old, who are engaged in prostitution is increasing especially in cities, that 50 per cent of prostitutes in the capital, Antananarivo, are minors, and 47 per cent engage in prostitution because of their precarious situation. For fear of reprisals, 80 per cent of them prefer not to turn to the authorities. Furthermore, the Government has strengthened the capacity of 120 actors engaged in tourism in Nosy-Be and 35 in Tuléar in relation to sexual exploitation for commercial purposes. However, the Committee noted the absence of information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions of those engaged in commercial sexual exploitation. It also noted the increase in sex tourism involving children, the insufficient measures taken by the Government to combat this phenomenon and the low number of prosecutions and convictions, all of which fosters impunity.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the elimination of the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes and sex tourism.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the Ministry of Internal Security, through the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM), is one of the agencies responsible for the enforcement of penal laws on the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes, including prostitution. The PMPM centralizes criminal charges concerning children and is responsible for conducting investigations into alleged perpetrators. The Government adds that the PMPM regularly makes unannounced raids on establishments that are open at night to monitor the identity and age of the persons present, but that it is difficult to determine whether the minors who are found are prostitutes. Moreover, the Committee notes that a code of conduct for actors in the tourism industry was signed in 2013. The code of conduct seeks to raise awareness among all actors in tourism with a view to bringing an end to sexual tourism in the country. The Committee also notes the statistics provided by the Government on the cases handled by the courts of first instance in Betroka, Ambatolampy, Arivonimamo, Nosy-be, Taolagnaro, Vatomandry, Mampikony and Ankazobe. It notes that in 2015 no cases of the exploitation of minors or of sex tourism involving minors were brought before these courts. The Committee is therefore once again bound to note with deep concern the absence of prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators, which is resulting in the continuation of a situation of impunity which seems to persist in the country. The Committee therefore urges the Government to take immediate and effective measures to ensure that robust investigations and effective prosecutions are carried out on persons suspected of procuring, using, offering and employing children for prostitution, and that sufficiently effective and dissuasive penalties are imposed. It requests the Government to continue providing statistical information on the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in this respect. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved as a result of the dissemination of the code of conduct among the various actors in the tourism sector.

Clause (d). Hazardous types of work. Children working in mines and quarries, and labour inspection. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that children work in the Ilakaka mines and in stone quarries under precarious and sometimes hazardous conditions, and that the worst forms of child labour are found in the informal economy and in rural areas, which the labour administration is unable to cover. The Committee also noted that the work carried out by children in mines and quarries is a contemporary form of slavery, as it involves debt bondage, forced labour and the economic exploitation of those concerned, particularly unaccompanied children working in small-scale mines and quarries. It noted that children work from five to ten hours a day, that they are engaged in transporting blocks of stone or water, and that some boys dig pits one metre in circumference and between 15 and 50 metres deep, while others go down the pits to remove the loose earth. Children between three and seven years of age, often working in family groups, break stones and carry baskets of stones or bricks on their heads, working an average of 47 hours a week when they are not enrolled in school. Moreover, the working conditions are unhealthy and hygiene is extremely poor. All of the children are also exposed to physical and sexual violence and to serious health hazards, particularly due to the contamination of the water, the instability of pits and the collapse of tunnels.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to take measures to improve the capacity of the labour inspectorate. It also notes the Government’s indication that, in the context of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA), the labour inspectorate envisages conducting inspections to take preventive and protective measures with a view to combating child labour in mines and quarries in the regions of Diana, Ihorombe and Haute Matsiatra. The Committee notes that the Government representative to the Conference Committee indicated that the lack of resources is a major obstacle to the adoption of rigorous measures. For example, labour inspectors do not have means of transport, even though the Government indicates in its report that one of the main obstacles to inspections by labour inspectors is the fact that mining sites, located on the outskirts of large cities, are often difficult to access. The Committee notes with deep concern the situation of children working in mines and quarries under particularly hazardous conditions. The Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that no children under 18 years of age can be engaged in work which is likely to harm their health, safety or morals. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect, particularly in the context of the PNA, and the results achieved in removing these children from this worst form of child labour. The Committee also requests the Government to improve the capacities of the labour inspectorate, in particular by providing the necessary resources, such as vehicles, to enable labour inspectors to have access to remote sites.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation (MTLS) was continuing its programme of school enrolment and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It however noted that the number of street children has increased in recent years and that the action taken by the Government to help them is still minimal. The Government indicated that the programmes financed under the PIP have the objective of removing 40 children a year from the worst forms of child labour, or 120 children over three years. The Committee nevertheless noted that there are about 4,500 street children in the capital, Antananarivo, most of whom are boys (63 per cent) who live from begging or sorting through rubbish. Girls living on the streets are frequently victims of sexual exploitation to meet their subsistence needs, or under pressure from third parties. Others are engaged in domestic work, swelling the ranks of exploited child workers.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee, in its conclusions, requested the Government to increase funding for the PIP with a view to removing children from the streets and for awareness-raising campaigns.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of the Population, Social Protection and the Promotion of Women has set up a census programme of children living and working on the streets and homeless families for the period 2015–16. The objective of this programme is to determine the number of children living and working on the streets, identify the needs of homeless families and develop a short-, medium- and long-term plan of action to deal with them. The Committee notes that studies have been carried out, data analysed and interpreted, and shelters set up. The next stages will consist of the provision of shelter, care, guidance, education, school enrolment and placement or repatriation of the persons concerned. The Committee requests the Government to continue taking effective and time-bound measures to ensure the targeted implementation of the PIP’s programmes, and requests it to intensify its efforts to ensure that street children are protected from the worst forms of child labour and are rehabilitated and integrated in society. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the data collected through the census programme on children living and working in the streets and homeless families, as well as the results achieved in removing them from this situation and preventing them from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted that 27.5 per cent of children, or 2,030,000, are engaged in work, of whom 30 per cent live in rural areas and 18 per cent in urban areas. The Committee also noted that 81 per cent of child workers between 5 and 17 years of age, or 1,653,000 children, are engaged in hazardous types of work. Agriculture and fishing account for the majority of child labour (89 per cent), and more than six out of ten working children have reported health problems resulting from their work over the past 12 months. The Committee further noted that child domestic labour is often a feature of the lives of poor rural families who send their children to urban areas in response to their precarious situation. Child domestic workers may be forced to work up to 15 hours per day, and most of them receive no wages, which are paid directly to their parents. In some cases, they sleep on the floor, and many are victims of psychological, physical or sexual violence. The Committee expressed its deep concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to perform hazardous types of work.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it is intensifying its efforts to combat child labour through the Manjary Soa project. The Manjary Soa Centre, established in 2001, offers selected children second chance education. Once these children have been reinserted into the public education system, the Centre covers their school fees and provides them with the necessary school supplies. The Committee also notes the 2014–16 project to combat child labour in the regions of Diana and Atsimo Andrefana. The Government indicates that the objective of this project is to reinforce action in support of the socio-economic reintegration of 100 girls under 18 years of age, who have been removed from sexual exploitation for commercial purposes in Nosy-be, Toliara and Mangily. The Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour, and particularly hazardous types of work, and to provide information on any progress made in this regard and the results achieved.

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

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

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2018, published 108th ILC session (2019)

The Committee notes with that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that the next report will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous comments initially made in 2016.

Repetition

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, and sanctions. Sale and trafficking. The Committee previously noted the extent of trafficking in persons, and particularly children, from Madagascar to neighbouring countries and the Middle East for the purposes of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. It also noted that the Act against trafficking was not adequately enforced and had not resulted in any convictions. The Committee noted the adoption of Act No. 2014 040 of 20 January 2015 to combat trafficking in persons, of which sections 16 et seq. relate to offences against children under 18 years of age and establish penalties of forced labour for trafficking offences involving prostitution and penalties of from five to ten years of imprisonment and a fine of from 4 to 20 million Malagasy ariary (MGA) for trafficking for the exploitation of domestic work. The Act also establishes penalties of imprisonment of from five to ten years and a fine of from MGA2 to 10 million in the case of trafficking for forced labour and slavery-like practices. The Government also indicated that a National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons has been established in accordance with section 48 of the Act and is responsible for the prevention and follow-up of action to combat trafficking, as well as for the harmonization and coordination of the competent services. The Committee also noted that a National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, focusing on awareness-raising and training programmes to combat trafficking in persons, was validated in March 2015.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the statistics on the cases dealt with by the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM) show that there was only one case of trafficking in persons in 2015. The Committee also notes that in 2016 the Government introduced the necessary infrastructure for the effective operation of the National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons. It indicates that data on the activities of the Bureau are not yet available. Noting the absence of information in this regard, the Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure the effective enforcement of Act No. 2014-040 and to provide information on the effect given in practice to this Act, including statistics on the number and nature of the offences reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and the penalties imposed in cases involving child victims. It further requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that penalties against those guilty of trafficking children under 18 years of age are applied in practice.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE). The Committee also noted that Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are the regional subdivisions of the PACTE and have general responsibility for the regional coordination, monitoring and evaluation of all action to combat child labour, identifying activities for this purpose and analysing the data gathered. The Committee noted that the ORTEs play a principal role in the implementation of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA). However, the Government indicated that the ORTEs are experiencing staffing problems, with labour inspectors and controllers being unavailable or assigned to other duties, and therefore unable to devote themselves entirely to the ORTEs. The Government added that 74 labour inspectors have received training on action to combat child labour and that, in the context of the reinforcement of the monitoring of child domestic work, a training workshop for neighbourhood officials, known as fiantso, in the first-level territorial authorities (fokotany) was organized on conducting a census of child domestic workers in households with the objective of enabling the labour inspection services to carry out inspections under favourable conditions.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to collect and make available without delay information and statistics on investigations, prosecutions and penalties relating to the worst forms of child labour according to national enforcement mechanisms.

The Committee notes with concern the Government’s indication that the second phase of the workplan of the ORTEs has still not commenced due to the lack of budget, even though the project was launched in 2007. The Government indicates that no inspections have been carried out, and that the labour inspection services have not therefore been able to produce reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of offences relating to young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour. Noting that the ORTEs are essential in the implementation of the PNA, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that they are established and function effectively as soon as possible, and to provide information on the progress made in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to reinforce the resources available to labour inspectors, particularly through the provision of the necessary means to enable them to combat child labour effectively. It requests the Government to provide information on this subject, including extracts from reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of the violations reported relating to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour.

Articles 6 and 7(2). Programmes of action and effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (c). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and access to free basic education for children removed from the worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that there are reported to be over 1 million children who do not attend school, which appears to be explained by the school fees now imposed in most public and private schools. The Government indicated that it established a programme for school attendance and reintegration 2014–18 with a view to taking action to reduce costs for parents, a national system of second chance courses (CRAN) for the reintegration of children under 16 years of age, and a programme of schooling support measures for young Malagasies (ASAMA), consisting of accelerated schooling for the insertion and reintegration of young persons between 12 and 15 years of age. The Committee however noted that the net school enrolment rate in primary school was 69.3 per cent, and that the rate was 30.4 per cent for secondary school.

The Government indicates that the Ministry of National Education (MEN) is currently engaged in two main types of action to increase the enrolment rate in secondary school. These include, firstly, the continuation of the ASAMA programme, which resulted in the establishment in 2015 and 2016 of ASAMA centres in the capital and in the regions of Antsinanana, Amoron’i Mania and Analanjirofo. These centres, which are intended for young persons between 11 and 17 years of age, are intended to assist children in their reintegration into the school system for an intensive ten-month course. The second type of action taken by the MEN has been the establishment of school canteens in four regional national education departments. The Government indicates that the provision of meals every day to students is a means of combating school drop-outs and reducing costs for families. While noting the efforts made by the Government, the Committee recalls that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and requests the Government to continue its efforts to improve the operation of the education system in the country. In this regard, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the time-bound measures taken to increase the school enrolment rate and reduce the school drop-out rate, in both primary and secondary school.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Child HIV/AIDS orphans. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the estimates of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the number of HIV/AIDS orphans has risen to around 11,000 children, compared with 3,400 in 2008.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, due to the stigmatization that exists in Madagascar concerning HIV/AIDS, it is difficult to assess the number of HIV/AIDS orphans. It notes that 624 persons living with HIV/AIDS were provided with psychosocial support in 2014. The Government adds that the Ministry of Population, Social Protection and the Protection of Women carries out training for the various actors responsible at the regional level, such as associations, shelters for vulnerable children and villages. This training includes awareness-raising on HIV/AIDS, discrimination and stigmatization, and care for HIV/AIDS orphans. The Government also indicates that, with a view to removing the families of persons living with HIV/AIDS from vulnerability, equipment has been given to certain families, such as ice and pasta-making machines, pirogues and freezers, so that they can engage in income-generating activities. Recalling once again that HIV/AIDS has negative consequences for orphans, who are at greater risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to prevent these children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. The Committee previously noted that the National Development Plan (PND), the successor to the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP), is an instrument for reducing poverty, stimulating growth and ensuring the development of the country. It consists of the same four priority categories for action as the MAP, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mines and stone quarries, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy conditions in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee also noted that the Government, with the support of UNICEF and the World Bank, approved its first National Social Protection Policy, as part of the PND, in September 2015, with the objectives of protecting children, families and the most vulnerable communities, ensuring access to essential services and helping them to assert their rights.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that various measures have been adopted within the context of the PND in an effort to reduce poverty. However, the information provided by the Government is too general and does not include details on the content of these measures, or the results achieved. Nevertheless, the Government indicates that, in the context of the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy, funding has been provided to the Government by the World Bank with a view to the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. As a result, 6,500 households, with 5,850 children, have benefited from cash transfers for human development, and 39,000 other households will benefit from such transfers. The Committee also notes the new technical cooperation project, in collaboration with the ILO and financed by the United States Department of Labor, to address child labour in the vanilla plantations. The project will provide livelihood services to households whose children are engaged in child labour in the vanilla plantations. It will also work with vanilla stakeholders to implement the new vanilla Exporters’ Code of Conduct to eliminate child labour in the vanilla sector. Recalling that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to continue taking the necessary measures to ensure that the PND is implemented in such a way as to further the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly for the four priority categories for action. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved. It also requests it to provide information on the results achieved in terms of the elimination of the worst forms of child labour through the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the technical cooperation project and on the progress achieved in this regard.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2018, published 108th ILC session (2019)

The Committee notes the observations of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) received on 30 August 2017 and requests the Government to provide its comments in this respect.

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It is therefore bound to repeat its previous comments initially made in 2016.

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conference, 105th Session, May–June 2016)

The Committee notes the Government’s report, received on 25 October 2016, and the in-depth discussion on the application of the Convention by Madagascar in the Committee on the Application of Standards at the 105th Session of the International Labour Conference in June 2016.

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and sanctions. Child prostitution. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 respecting child labour categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering or employment of children of either sex for prostitution and that section 261 of the Labour Code and sections 354–357 of the Penal Code, which are referred to in Decree No. 2007 563, establish effective and dissuasive sanctions. The Committee noted the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA) indicating that the number of girls under the age of majority, some as young as 12 years old, who are engaged in prostitution is increasing especially in cities, that 50 per cent of prostitutes in the capital, Antananarivo, are minors, and 47 per cent engage in prostitution because of their precarious situation. For fear of reprisals, 80 per cent of them prefer not to turn to the authorities. Furthermore, the Government has strengthened the capacity of 120 actors engaged in tourism in Nosy-Be and 35 in Tuléar in relation to sexual exploitation for commercial purposes. However, the Committee noted the absence of information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions of those engaged in commercial sexual exploitation. It also noted the increase in sex tourism involving children, the insufficient measures taken by the Government to combat this phenomenon and the low number of prosecutions and convictions, all of which fosters impunity.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the elimination of the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes and sex tourism.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the Ministry of Internal Security, through the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM), is one of the agencies responsible for the enforcement of penal laws on the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes, including prostitution. The PMPM centralizes criminal charges concerning children and is responsible for conducting investigations into alleged perpetrators. The Government adds that the PMPM regularly makes unannounced raids on establishments that are open at night to monitor the identity and age of the persons present, but that it is difficult to determine whether the minors who are found are prostitutes. Moreover, the Committee notes that a code of conduct for actors in the tourism industry was signed in 2013. The code of conduct seeks to raise awareness among all actors in tourism with a view to bringing an end to sexual tourism in the country. The Committee also notes the statistics provided by the Government on the cases handled by the courts of first instance in Betroka, Ambatolampy, Arivonimamo, Nosy-be, Taolagnaro, Vatomandry, Mampikony and Ankazobe. It notes that in 2015 no cases of the exploitation of minors or of sex tourism involving minors were brought before these courts. The Committee is therefore once again bound to note with deep concern the absence of prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators, which is resulting in the continuation of a situation of impunity which seems to persist in the country. The Committee therefore urges the Government to take immediate and effective measures to ensure that robust investigations and effective prosecutions are carried out on persons suspected of procuring, using, offering and employing children for prostitution, and that sufficiently effective and dissuasive penalties are imposed. It requests the Government to continue providing statistical information on the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in this respect. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved as a result of the dissemination of the code of conduct among the various actors in the tourism sector.

Clause (d). Hazardous types of work. Children working in mines and quarries, and labour inspection. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that children work in the Ilakaka mines and in stone quarries under precarious and sometimes hazardous conditions, and that the worst forms of child labour are found in the informal economy and in rural areas, which the labour administration is unable to cover. The Committee also noted that the work carried out by children in mines and quarries is a contemporary form of slavery, as it involves debt bondage, forced labour and the economic exploitation of those concerned, particularly unaccompanied children working in small-scale mines and quarries. It noted that children work from five to ten hours a day, that they are engaged in transporting blocks of stone or water, and that some boys dig pits one metre in circumference and between 15 and 50 metres deep, while others go down the pits to remove the loose earth. Children between three and seven years of age, often working in family groups, break stones and carry baskets of stones or bricks on their heads, working an average of 47 hours a week when they are not enrolled in school. Moreover, the working conditions are unhealthy and hygiene is extremely poor. All of the children are also exposed to physical and sexual violence and to serious health hazards, particularly due to the contamination of the water, the instability of pits and the collapse of tunnels.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to take measures to improve the capacity of the labour inspectorate. It also notes the Government’s indication that, in the context of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA), the labour inspectorate envisages conducting inspections to take preventive and protective measures with a view to combating child labour in mines and quarries in the regions of Diana, Ihorombe and Haute Matsiatra. The Committee notes that the Government representative to the Conference Committee indicated that the lack of resources is a major obstacle to the adoption of rigorous measures. For example, labour inspectors do not have means of transport, even though the Government indicates in its report that one of the main obstacles to inspections by labour inspectors is the fact that mining sites, located on the outskirts of large cities, are often difficult to access. The Committee notes with deep concern the situation of children working in mines and quarries under particularly hazardous conditions. The Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that no children under 18 years of age can be engaged in work which is likely to harm their health, safety or morals. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect, particularly in the context of the PNA, and the results achieved in removing these children from this worst form of child labour. The Committee also requests the Government to improve the capacities of the labour inspectorate, in particular by providing the necessary resources, such as vehicles, to enable labour inspectors to have access to remote sites.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation (MTLS) was continuing its programme of school enrolment and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It however noted that the number of street children has increased in recent years and that the action taken by the Government to help them is still minimal. The Government indicated that the programmes financed under the PIP have the objective of removing 40 children a year from the worst forms of child labour, or 120 children over three years. The Committee nevertheless noted that there are about 4,500 street children in the capital, Antananarivo, most of whom are boys (63 per cent) who live from begging or sorting through rubbish. Girls living on the streets are frequently victims of sexual exploitation to meet their subsistence needs, or under pressure from third parties. Others are engaged in domestic work, swelling the ranks of exploited child workers.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee, in its conclusions, requested the Government to increase funding for the PIP with a view to removing children from the streets and for awareness-raising campaigns.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of the Population, Social Protection and the Promotion of Women has set up a census programme of children living and working on the streets and homeless families for the period 2015–16. The objective of this programme is to determine the number of children living and working on the streets, identify the needs of homeless families and develop a short-, medium- and long-term plan of action to deal with them. The Committee notes that studies have been carried out, data analysed and interpreted, and shelters set up. The next stages will consist of the provision of shelter, care, guidance, education, school enrolment and placement or repatriation of the persons concerned. The Committee requests the Government to continue taking effective and time-bound measures to ensure the targeted implementation of the PIP’s programmes, and requests it to intensify its efforts to ensure that street children are protected from the worst forms of child labour and are rehabilitated and integrated in society. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the data collected through the census programme on children living and working in the streets and homeless families, as well as the results achieved in removing them from this situation and preventing them from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted that 27.5 per cent of children, or 2,030,000, are engaged in work, of whom 30 per cent live in rural areas and 18 per cent in urban areas. The Committee also noted that 81 per cent of child workers between 5 and 17 years of age, or 1,653,000 children, are engaged in hazardous types of work. Agriculture and fishing account for the majority of child labour (89 per cent), and more than six out of ten working children have reported health problems resulting from their work over the past 12 months. The Committee further noted that child domestic labour is often a feature of the lives of poor rural families who send their children to urban areas in response to their precarious situation. Child domestic workers may be forced to work up to 15 hours per day, and most of them receive no wages, which are paid directly to their parents. In some cases, they sleep on the floor, and many are victims of psychological, physical or sexual violence. The Committee expressed its deep concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to perform hazardous types of work.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it is intensifying its efforts to combat child labour through the Manjary Soa project. The Manjary Soa Centre, established in 2001, offers selected children second chance education. Once these children have been reinserted into the public education system, the Centre covers their school fees and provides them with the necessary school supplies. The Committee also notes the 2014–16 project to combat child labour in the regions of Diana and Atsimo Andrefana. The Government indicates that the objective of this project is to reinforce action in support of the socio-economic reintegration of 100 girls under 18 years of age, who have been removed from sexual exploitation for commercial purposes in Nosy-be, Toliara and Mangily. The Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour, and particularly hazardous types of work, and to provide information on any progress made in this regard and the results achieved.

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.

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

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, and sanctions. Sale and trafficking. The Committee previously noted the extent of trafficking in persons, and particularly children, from Madagascar to neighbouring countries and the Middle East for the purposes of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. It also noted that the Act against trafficking was not adequately enforced and had not resulted in any convictions. The Committee noted the adoption of Act No. 2014 040 of 20 January 2015 to combat trafficking in persons, of which sections 16 et seq. relate to offences against children under 18 years of age and establish penalties of forced labour for trafficking offences involving prostitution and penalties of from five to ten years of imprisonment and a fine of from 4 to 20 million Malagasy ariary (MGA) for trafficking for the exploitation of domestic work. The Act also establishes penalties of imprisonment of from five to ten years and a fine of from MGA2 to 10 million in the case of trafficking for forced labour and slavery-like practices. The Government also indicated that a National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons has been established in accordance with section 48 of the Act and is responsible for the prevention and follow-up of action to combat trafficking, as well as for the harmonization and coordination of the competent services. The Committee also noted that a National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, focusing on awareness-raising and training programmes to combat trafficking in persons, was validated in March 2015.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the statistics on the cases dealt with by the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM) show that there was only one case of trafficking in persons in 2015. The Committee also notes that in 2016 the Government introduced the necessary infrastructure for the effective operation of the National Bureau to Combat Trafficking in Persons. It indicates that data on the activities of the Bureau are not yet available. Noting the absence of information in this regard, the Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure the effective enforcement of Act No. 2014-040 and to provide information on the effect given in practice to this Act, including statistics on the number and nature of the offences reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and the penalties imposed in cases involving child victims. It further requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that penalties against those guilty of trafficking children under 18 years of age are applied in practice.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE). The Committee also noted that Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are the regional subdivisions of the PACTE and have general responsibility for the regional coordination, monitoring and evaluation of all action to combat child labour, identifying activities for this purpose and analysing the data gathered. The Committee noted that the ORTEs play a principal role in the implementation of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA). However, the Government indicated that the ORTEs are experiencing staffing problems, with labour inspectors and controllers being unavailable or assigned to other duties, and therefore unable to devote themselves entirely to the ORTEs. The Government added that 74 labour inspectors have received training on action to combat child labour and that, in the context of the reinforcement of the monitoring of child domestic work, a training workshop for neighbourhood officials, known as fiantso, in the first-level territorial authorities (fokotany) was organized on conducting a census of child domestic workers in households with the objective of enabling the labour inspection services to carry out inspections under favourable conditions.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to collect and make available without delay information and statistics on investigations, prosecutions and penalties relating to the worst forms of child labour according to national enforcement mechanisms.

The Committee notes with concern the Government’s indication that the second phase of the workplan of the ORTEs has still not commenced due to the lack of budget, even though the project was launched in 2007. The Government indicates that no inspections have been carried out, and that the labour inspection services have not therefore been able to produce reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of offences relating to young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour. Noting that the ORTEs are essential in the implementation of the PNA, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that they are established and function effectively as soon as possible, and to provide information on the progress made in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to reinforce the resources available to labour inspectors, particularly through the provision of the necessary means to enable them to combat child labour effectively. It requests the Government to provide information on this subject, including extracts from reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of the violations reported relating to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour.

Articles 6 and 7(2). Programmes of action and effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (c). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and access to free basic education for children removed from the worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that there are reported to be over 1 million children who do not attend school, which appears to be explained by the school fees now imposed in most public and private schools. The Government indicated that it established a programme for school attendance and reintegration 2014–18 with a view to taking action to reduce costs for parents, a national system of second chance courses (CRAN) for the reintegration of children under 16 years of age, and a programme of schooling support measures for young Malagasies (ASAMA), consisting of accelerated schooling for the insertion and reintegration of young persons between 12 and 15 years of age. The Committee however noted that the net school enrolment rate in primary school was 69.3 per cent, and that the rate was 30.4 per cent for secondary school.

The Government indicates that the Ministry of National Education (MEN) is currently engaged in two main types of action to increase the enrolment rate in secondary school. These include, firstly, the continuation of the ASAMA programme, which resulted in the establishment in 2015 and 2016 of ASAMA centres in the capital and in the regions of Antsinanana, Amoron’i Mania and Analanjirofo. These centres, which are intended for young persons between 11 and 17 years of age, are intended to assist children in their reintegration into the school system for an intensive ten-month course. The second type of action taken by the MEN has been the establishment of school canteens in four regional national education departments. The Government indicates that the provision of meals every day to students is a means of combating school drop-outs and reducing costs for families. While noting the efforts made by the Government, the Committee recalls that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and requests the Government to continue its efforts to improve the operation of the education system in the country. In this regard, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the time-bound measures taken to increase the school enrolment rate and reduce the school drop-out rate, in both primary and secondary school.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Child HIV/AIDS orphans. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the estimates of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the number of HIV/AIDS orphans has risen to around 11,000 children, compared with 3,400 in 2008.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, due to the stigmatization that exists in Madagascar concerning HIV/AIDS, it is difficult to assess the number of HIV/AIDS orphans. It notes that 624 persons living with HIV/AIDS were provided with psychosocial support in 2014. The Government adds that the Ministry of Population, Social Protection and the Protection of Women carries out training for the various actors responsible at the regional level, such as associations, shelters for vulnerable children and villages. This training includes awareness-raising on HIV/AIDS, discrimination and stigmatization, and care for HIV/AIDS orphans. The Government also indicates that, with a view to removing the families of persons living with HIV/AIDS from vulnerability, equipment has been given to certain families, such as ice and pasta-making machines, pirogues and freezers, so that they can engage in income-generating activities. Recalling once again that HIV/AIDS has negative consequences for orphans, who are at greater risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to prevent these children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. The Committee previously noted that the National Development Plan (PND), the successor to the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP), is an instrument for reducing poverty, stimulating growth and ensuring the development of the country. It consists of the same four priority categories for action as the MAP, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mines and stone quarries, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy conditions in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee also noted that the Government, with the support of UNICEF and the World Bank, approved its first National Social Protection Policy, as part of the PND, in September 2015, with the objectives of protecting children, families and the most vulnerable communities, ensuring access to essential services and helping them to assert their rights.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that various measures have been adopted within the context of the PND in an effort to reduce poverty. However, the information provided by the Government is too general and does not include details on the content of these measures, or the results achieved. Nevertheless, the Government indicates that, in the context of the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy, funding has been provided to the Government by the World Bank with a view to the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. As a result, 6,500 households, with 5,850 children, have benefited from cash transfers for human development, and 39,000 other households will benefit from such transfers. The Committee also notes the new technical cooperation project, in collaboration with the ILO and financed by the United States Department of Labor, to address child labour in the vanilla plantations. The project will provide livelihood services to households whose children are engaged in child labour in the vanilla plantations. It will also work with vanilla stakeholders to implement the new vanilla Exporters’ Code of Conduct to eliminate child labour in the vanilla sector. Recalling that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to continue taking the necessary measures to ensure that the PND is implemented in such a way as to further the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly for the four priority categories for action. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved. It also requests it to provide information on the results achieved in terms of the elimination of the worst forms of child labour through the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the technical cooperation project and on the progress achieved in this regard.

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

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conference, 105th Session, May–June 2016)

The Committee notes the Government’s report, received on 25 October 2016, and the in-depth discussion on the application of the Convention by Madagascar in the Committee on the Application of Standards at the 105th Session of the International Labour Conference in June 2016.

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour and sanctions. Child prostitution. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 respecting child labour categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering or employment of children of either sex for prostitution and that section 261 of the Labour Code and sections 354–357 of the Penal Code, which are referred to in Decree No. 2007 563, establish effective and dissuasive sanctions. The Committee noted the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA) indicating that the number of girls under the age of majority, some as young as 12 years old, who are engaged in prostitution is increasing especially in cities, that 50 per cent of prostitutes in the capital, Antananarivo, are minors, and 47 per cent engage in prostitution because of their precarious situation. For fear of reprisals, 80 per cent of them prefer not to turn to the authorities. Furthermore, the Government has strengthened the capacity of 120 actors engaged in tourism in Nosy-Be and 35 in Tuléar in relation to sexual exploitation for commercial purposes. However, the Committee noted the absence of information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions of those engaged in commercial sexual exploitation. It also noted the increase in sex tourism involving children, the insufficient measures taken by the Government to combat this phenomenon and the low number of prosecutions and convictions, all of which fosters impunity.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the elimination of the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes and sex tourism.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the Ministry of Internal Security, through the Police for Morals and the Protection of Minors (PMPM), is one of the agencies responsible for the enforcement of penal laws on the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes, including prostitution. The PMPM centralizes criminal charges concerning children and is responsible for conducting investigations into alleged perpetrators. The Government adds that the PMPM regularly makes unannounced raids on establishments that are open at night to monitor the identity and age of the persons present, but that it is difficult to determine whether the minors who are found are prostitutes. Moreover, the Committee notes that a code of conduct for actors in the tourism industry was signed in 2013. The code of conduct seeks to raise awareness among all actors in tourism with a view to bringing an end to sexual tourism in the country. The Committee also notes the statistics provided by the Government on the cases handled by the courts of first instance in Betroka, Ambatolampy, Arivonimamo, Nosy-be, Taolagnaro, Vatomandry, Mampikony and Ankazobe. It notes that in 2015 no cases of the exploitation of minors or of sex tourism involving minors were brought before these courts. The Committee is therefore once again bound to note with deep concern the absence of prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators, which is resulting in the continuation of a situation of impunity which seems to persist in the country. The Committee therefore urges the Government to take immediate and effective measures to ensure that robust investigations and effective prosecutions are carried out on persons suspected of procuring, using, offering and employing children for prostitution, and that sufficiently effective and dissuasive penalties are imposed. It requests the Government to continue providing statistical information on the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in this respect. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved as a result of the dissemination of the code of conduct among the various actors in the tourism sector.

Clause (d). Hazardous types of work. Children working in mines and quarries, and labour inspection. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that children work in the Ilakaka mines and in stone quarries under precarious and sometimes hazardous conditions, and that the worst forms of child labour are found in the informal economy and in rural areas, which the labour administration is unable to cover. The Committee also noted that the work carried out by children in mines and quarries is a contemporary form of slavery, as it involves debt bondage, forced labour and the economic exploitation of those concerned, particularly unaccompanied children working in small-scale mines and quarries. It noted that children work from five to ten hours a day, that they are engaged in transporting blocks of stone or water, and that some boys dig pits one metre in circumference and between 15 and 50 metres deep, while others go down the pits to remove the loose earth. Children between three and seven years of age, often working in family groups, break stones and carry baskets of stones or bricks on their heads, working an average of 47 hours a week when they are not enrolled in school. Moreover, the working conditions are unhealthy and hygiene is extremely poor. All of the children are also exposed to physical and sexual violence and to serious health hazards, particularly due to the contamination of the water, the instability of pits and the collapse of tunnels.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee recommended the Government to take measures to improve the capacity of the labour inspectorate. It also notes the Government’s indication that, in the context of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour (PNA), the labour inspectorate envisages conducting inspections to take preventive and protective measures with a view to combating child labour in mines and quarries in the regions of Diana, Ihorombe and Haute Matsiatra. The Committee notes that the Government representative to the Conference Committee indicated that the lack of resources is a major obstacle to the adoption of rigorous measures. For example, labour inspectors do not have means of transport, even though the Government indicates in its report that one of the main obstacles to inspections by labour inspectors is the fact that mining sites, located on the outskirts of large cities, are often difficult to access. The Committee notes with deep concern the situation of children working in mines and quarries under particularly hazardous conditions. The Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that no children under 18 years of age can be engaged in work which is likely to harm their health, safety or morals. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect, particularly in the context of the PNA, and the results achieved in removing these children from this worst form of child labour. The Committee also requests the Government to improve the capacities of the labour inspectorate, in particular by providing the necessary resources, such as vehicles, to enable labour inspectors to have access to remote sites.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation (MTLS) was continuing its programme of school enrolment and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It however noted that the number of street children has increased in recent years and that the action taken by the Government to help them is still minimal. The Government indicated that the programmes financed under the PIP have the objective of removing 40 children a year from the worst forms of child labour, or 120 children over three years. The Committee nevertheless noted that there are about 4,500 street children in the capital, Antananarivo, most of whom are boys (63 per cent) who live from begging or sorting through rubbish. Girls living on the streets are frequently victims of sexual exploitation to meet their subsistence needs, or under pressure from third parties. Others are engaged in domestic work, swelling the ranks of exploited child workers.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee, in its conclusions, requested the Government to increase funding for the PIP with a view to removing children from the streets and for awareness-raising campaigns.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of the Population, Social Protection and the Promotion of Women has set up a census programme of children living and working on the streets and homeless families for the period 2015–16. The objective of this programme is to determine the number of children living and working on the streets, identify the needs of homeless families and develop a short-, medium- and long-term plan of action to deal with them. The Committee notes that studies have been carried out, data analysed and interpreted, and shelters set up. The next stages will consist of the provision of shelter, care, guidance, education, school enrolment and placement or repatriation of the persons concerned. The Committee requests the Government to continue taking effective and time-bound measures to ensure the targeted implementation of the PIP’s programmes, and requests it to intensify its efforts to ensure that street children are protected from the worst forms of child labour and are rehabilitated and integrated in society. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the data collected through the census programme on children living and working in the streets and homeless families, as well as the results achieved in removing them from this situation and preventing them from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted that 27.5 per cent of children, or 2,030,000, are engaged in work, of whom 30 per cent live in rural areas and 18 per cent in urban areas. The Committee also noted that 81 per cent of child workers between 5 and 17 years of age, or 1,653,000 children, are engaged in hazardous types of work. Agriculture and fishing account for the majority of child labour (89 per cent), and more than six out of ten working children have reported health problems resulting from their work over the past 12 months. The Committee further noted that child domestic labour is often a feature of the lives of poor rural families who send their children to urban areas in response to their precarious situation. Child domestic workers may be forced to work up to 15 hours per day, and most of them receive no wages, which are paid directly to their parents. In some cases, they sleep on the floor, and many are victims of psychological, physical or sexual violence. The Committee expressed its deep concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to perform hazardous types of work.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it is intensifying its efforts to combat child labour through the Manjary Soa project. The Manjary Soa Centre, established in 2001, offers selected children second chance education. Once these children have been reinserted into the public education system, the Centre covers their school fees and provides them with the necessary school supplies. The Committee also notes the 2014–16 project to combat child labour in the regions of Diana and Atsimo Andrefana. The Government indicates that the objective of this project is to reinforce action in support of the socio-economic reintegration of 100 girls under 18 years of age, who have been removed from sexual exploitation for commercial purposes in Nosy-be, Toliara and Mangily. The Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour, and particularly hazardous types of work, and to provide information on any progress made in this regard and the results achieved.

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

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

The Committee notes the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA), which were received on 17 September 2013.

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery; sanctions. Sale and trafficking. The Committee previously noted the high level of trafficking in persons, particularly children, from Madagascar to neighbouring countries and the Middle East for purposes of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. The Committee also observed that the Act against trafficking was not sufficiently implemented and had not resulted in any convictions to date.

The Committee notes with interest the adoption of Act No. 2014-040 of 20 January 2015 against trafficking in persons. It notes that sections 16 ff. concerning offences against children under 18 years of age establish penalties of forced labour for trafficking for prostitution and imprisonment of five to ten years and a fine of 4 to 20 million Malagasy ariary (MGA) for trafficking for the exploitation of domestic labour. The Act also provides for imprisonment of five to ten years and a fine of MGA2 to 10 million for trafficking for forced labour and slavery-like practices. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a National Bureau for Combating Trafficking in Persons was established in accordance with section 48 of the Act and given responsibility for the prevention of trafficking and the monitoring of anti-trafficking action, and also for the harmonization and coordination of the competent services. The Government also indicates that a National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons was approved in March 2015. The Plan focuses in particular on awareness-raising and training programmes to combat trafficking in persons. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure the effective implementation of Act No. 2014-040 and to supply information on the application of the Act in practice, including statistics on the number and nature of violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in cases involving child victims. It also requests the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that the penalties established for the perpetrators of trafficking of children under 18 years of age are applied in practice.

Article 5 of the Convention. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council for Combating Child Labour (CNLTE). The Committee also noted that the Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are subdivisions of PACTE and have general responsibility for the regional coordination, monitoring and evaluation of all action against child labour, identifying activities to promote the elimination thereof, and compiling and analysing the data gathered. The Committee noted that the ORTEs play a vital role in the implementation of the National Plan of Action against child labour in Madagascar (PNA). The Government indicated that the ORTEs are facing staffing problems, with labour inspectors and supervisors unavailable or assigned to other duties and hence unable to devote themselves entirely to the ORTEs.

The Committee notes with regret the Government’s indication that the staffing problems of the ORTEs have still not been resolved, even though these observatories were set up in 2007. However, the Government indicates that 74 labour inspectors received training with regard to action against child labour. It also mentions that, in the context of stepping up the monitoring of child domestic labour, a training workshop for neighbourhood inspectors (fiantso) within the first-level territorial authorities (fokotany) was held in relation to conducting a census of child domestic workers in households, with a view to enabling labour inspections to be conducted under favourable conditions. Noting that the ORTEs are essential to the implementation of the PNA, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that they are established and function effectively as soon as possible, and to supply information on progress made in this respect. The Committee also requests the Government once again to provide information on the results achieved further to the interventions and inspections conducted by labour inspectors responsible for combating child labour, including extracts from reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of reported violations relating to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of labour.

Articles 6 and 7(2). Programmes of action and effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (c). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of labour and access to free basic education for children withdrawn from the worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the PNA is continuing and is in an extension phase in terms of staffing, beneficiaries and coverage (2010–15). It noted that action programmes focusing on prevention and the withdrawal of children from the worst forms of child labour – namely the Amoron’i Mania, Ambositra, Vakinankaratra (AMAV) project against child domestic labour, the Plan of Action to combat the commercial sexual exploitation of children, and the Plan of Action concerning child labour in mines and stone quarries in the Atsimo Andrefana region – were implemented under the ILO–IPEC project entitled “Tackle child labour through education in 11 countries” (TACKLE project). Lastly, the Committee noted the study carried out by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on exclusion from school and the means of inclusion in primary education in Madagascar, according to which there are over 1 million children who do not attend school.

The Committee notes the observations of SEKRIMA stating that school fees now imposed in most public and private schools pose a problem. SEKRIMA also mentions that there was a high drop-out rate in public schools in 2012–13.

The Committee notes the Government’s indications that national priority is given to combating exclusion from school, since the absence of over 1 million children from the school system represents an enormous social challenge. The Government indicates that it has set up a programme for the 2014–18 period aimed at integration and reintegration in school. This programme has enabled action aimed at reducing costs for parents, national arrangements for refresher courses (CRAN) for the reintegration of children under 16 years of age. In addition, the Asa Sekoly Avotra Malagasy (ASAMA) programme has sought to integrate or reintegrate children between 12 and 15 years of age in fast-track schooling. The Committee notes that, according to the UNICEF annual report for 2014, the number of children out of school has dropped by some 40,000 (page 24). The Committee further notes that in 2012–13 the TACKLE project made it possible to prevent the engagement of 1,847 children in the worst forms of child labour and to withdraw 1,985 children from these worst forms of labour. The Government also indicates that 2,923 children (of whom 1,470 were girls) received formal education, 345 children (of whom 182 were girls) received non-formal education and 564 children (of whom 383 were girls) received vocational training. In 2014, a total of 90 children between 13 and 17 years of age in Nosy Be and 80 children in Tuléar and Mangily Sud who were victims of commercial sexual exploitation were withdrawn and reintegrated in vocational training centres. The AMAV project enabled 165 boys between 15 and 17 years of age involved in domestic labour to receive vocational training in the Ambositra and Vakinakaratra regions. However, the Committee notes that, according to the National Survey of Employment and the Informal Sector (ENEMPSI 2012), the school drop-out rate is five times higher for children involved in work (41 per cent) than for those who are not (8 per cent). Lastly, it notes that, according to the national survey following up on the Millennium Development Goals 2012–13 and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) estimates for 2013, the net school enrolment rate was 69.3 per cent in primary education and 30.4 per cent in secondary education. Considering that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee firmly requests the Government to intensify its efforts to improve the functioning of the education system in the country. In this respect, it requests the Government to provide information on the time-bound measures taken to increase the school attendance rate and reduce school drop-out rates, for both primary and secondary education.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. HIV/AIDS orphans. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to estimates of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the number of HIV/AIDS orphans had risen to about 11,000, compared with 3,400 in 2008. The Committee also noted the Government’s indications that it is making every effort to optimize success in combating HIV/AIDS through the National Development Strategy.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the fight against HIV/AIDS is continuing through the National Development Strategy but that the latter has encountered various obstacles including the political crisis, which has resulted in a slowdown of activities. The Government also indicates that new structures and programmes of activities in the health sector have been adopted. The Committee notes with regret that the Government says nothing about progress made regarding the protection of HIV/AIDS orphans and observes that there are no recent statistics for this subject. Recalling the adverse effects for HIV/AIDS orphans, who are at an increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee urges the Government to intensify its efforts to prevent the engagement of these children in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. Poverty reduction. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the National Development Plan (PND), the successor to the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP), is an instrument for reducing poverty, stimulating growth and ensuring the development of the country. It has the same four priority categories for action as the MAP, namely commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mines and stone quarries, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee also notes that in September 2015 the Government, with the support of UNICEF and the World Bank, approved its first National Social Protection Policy as part of the PND, its objectives being to protect the most vulnerable children, families and communities, provide access to essential services and ensure the exercise of their rights. Noting that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the PND is implemented in such a way as to step up the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly with regard to the four priority categories for action. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved. Lastly, it requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the National Social Protection Policy in the context of the elimination of the worst forms of child labour.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

The Committee notes the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA), which were received on 17 September 2013.

Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour; sanctions. Child prostitution. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 concerning child labour categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering or employment of children of either sex for prostitution. The Committee noted that section 261 of the Labour Code and sections 354–357 of the Penal Code, which are referred to in Decree No. 2007-563, establish effective and dissuasive sanctions for offences including the procuring or offering of a child for prostitution. However, the Committee observed that, according to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), child prostitution and sex tourism are on the increase in the country, notwithstanding the low number of investigations into and prosecutions for child prostitution.

The Committee notes the observations of SEKRIMA stating that the number of girls under the age of majority, some as young as 12 years old, engaged in prostitution is increasing, especially in the cities. SEKRIMA indicates that 50 per cent of prostitutes in the capital Antananarivo are minors, and 47 per cent engage in prostitution because of their precarious situation. Some 40 per cent of these girls are reportedly the victims of assault, sexual violence and gang rape, while 80 per cent prefer not to turn to the authorities for fear of reprisals. SEKRIMA also states that despite the law punishing sex tourism, child prostitution is still nowhere near being eliminated.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it has strengthened the capacity of 120 entities engaged in tourism in Nosy Be and 35 in Tuléar with regard to sexual exploitation for commercial purposes. However, the Committee notes that there is no information on the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators of commercial sexual exploitation. The Committee notes that the CRC, in its concluding observations of 2015 relating to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (CRC/C/OPSC/MDG/CO/1), expressed deep concern that child sex tourism is growing and that the measures taken by the Government to combat this phenomenon are insufficient (paragraph 27). The CRC also expressed concern at the fact that thousands of children are victims of sexual exploitation for commercial purposes, of trafficking for domestic servitude and sexual exploitation, and that the number of prosecutions and convictions for offences covered by the Optional Protocol is extremely low, a situation that fosters impunity (paragraph 31). The Committee also observes that, according to the 2013 report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (A/HRC/25/48/Add.2, paragraph 10), child prostitution in Madagascar has reached alarming levels and affects the whole country, particularly urban and mining areas and tourist resorts. The Committee therefore expresses its deep concern at the large number of Malagasy girls under 18 years of age who are engaged in prostitution, particularly in the form of sex tourism, and also at the lack of prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators. The Committee therefore urges the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that persons suspected of procuring, using, offering or employing children for prostitution are thoroughly investigated and robustly prosecuted and that penalties constituting an effective deterrent are imposed on them. It requests the Government to provide statistical information on the number and nature of violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties imposed in this respect.

Clause (d). Hazardous work. Children working in mines and quarries. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the observations of the General Confederation of Workers’ Unions of Madagascar (CGSTM) stating that children are working in precarious and often dangerous conditions in the Ilakaka mines and in stone quarries. The CGSTM also indicated that the worst forms of child labour are to be found in the informal sector and rural areas, which the labour administration is unable to cover.

The Committee notes that, according to the 2013 report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery (A/HRC/24/43/Add.2, paragraphs 44–60), the work carried out by children in mines and quarries qualifies as a contemporary form of slavery owing to the debt bondage, forced labour and economic exploitation of those concerned, particularly unaccompanied children working in artisanal mining and quarries. The Committee notes that children work from five to ten hours a day, they take care of the transportation of blocks of stone or water and some boys dig mining holes 1 metre in circumference and between 15 and 50 metres deep, while others go down the holes to collect the earth. The children start working with their parents from 5 years of age while unaccompanied children start at 12 years of age. Furthermore, in stone quarries on the outskirts of the major towns, children between 3 and 7 years of age, often working in family groups, break stones and carry baskets of stones or bricks on their heads, working an average of 47 hours a week in cases where they do not attend school. Conditions are unsanitary and hygiene is poor. All the children are also exposed to physical and sexual violence and to serious health hazards, particularly because of contamination of the water, the instability of mining holes and the collapse of tunnels. Noting with concern the situation of children working in mines and quarries, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that no children under 18 years of age can be engaged in work which is likely to harm their health, safety or morals. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation (MTLS) was continuing its programme of school enrolment and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It noted the CGSTM’s allegation that the number of street children has increased in recent years and that the action taken by the Government to help them was still minimal. In reply, the Government indicated that the programmes financed under the PIP aim to remove 40 children per year from the worst forms of child labour, or 120 children over three years.

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government to the effect that the implementation of the PIP programmes has enabled 40 children per year to be withdrawn from the worst forms of child labour. However, the Committee notes that, according to the 2013 report on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (A/HRC/25/48/Add.2, paragraph 36), although there are no specific data on the actual number of street children in Madagascar, the Special Rapporteur nevertheless witnessed the scale of the problem and quotes an estimated figure of about 4,500 street children in the capital Antananarivo. The Committee further notes that, in the 2014 UNICEF analysis of the situation of mothers and children in Madagascar, referred to a 2012 survey of 950 street children in Antananarivo, which indicated that most of these children are boys (63 per cent) who live from begging or garbage picking. According to the UNICEF report, girls living on the streets frequently become victims of sexual exploitation in meeting their subsistence needs or as a result of pressure from third parties. Others are engaged in domestic work, swelling the ranks of exploited child workers (page 110). Noting with concern the growing number of street children, the Committee requests the Government to take effective and time-bound measures to ensure the targeted implementation of the PIP programmes, and requests it to intensify its efforts to ensure that street children are protected from the worst forms of child labour, and are rehabilitated and integrated in society. It once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in this respect.

Application in practice. The Committee previously noted the detailed results of the 2007 National Survey on Child Labour (ENTE), according to which more than one in four Malagasy children between 5 and 17 years of age (28 per cent) are economically active, namely 1,870,000 children.

The Committee notes the Government’s indications that a National Survey of Employment and the Informal Sector (ENEMPSI 2012), including statistics on child labour, was carried out with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the ILO. The survey shows that 27.5 per cent of children are working, namely 2,030,000, of whom 30 per cent live in rural areas and 18 per cent in urban areas. Most children work in agriculture and fishing (88 per cent). Children working in urban areas are engaged in domestic work (10 per cent) and commerce (11 per cent). Moreover, 91 per cent of child workers have the status of an unpaid family helper. The ENEMPSI also indicates that 81 per cent of child workers between 5 and 17 years of age are engaged in hazardous work, namely 1,653,000 children. Agriculture, livestock farming and fishing account for the majority of children’s work (89 per cent) and more than six out of ten working children have reported health problems resulting from their work in the last 12 months. The Committee also notes that a baseline study of child domestic labour covering three regions was conducted in 2012. The study reveals that child domestic labour is often a feature of the lives of poor rural families, who send their children to urban areas in response to their precarious situation. Child domestic workers may be forced to work up to 15 hours per day, most of them receive no wages, the latter being paid directly to their parents, in some cases they sleep on the floor and many are victims of psychological, physical or sexual violence. The Committee further notes that, according to the 2013 report on contemporary forms of slavery (A/HRC/24/43/Add.2, paragraph 81), the Special Rapporteur observed girls as young as 10 years of age working in slavery-like conditions. The Committee expresses its deep concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to perform hazardous work. It urges the Government to intensify its efforts to eliminate these worst forms of child labour and requests it to continue providing information on any progress made in this respect and on the results achieved. The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing information on the worst forms of child labour including, for example, studies and statistical surveys on the subject and information on the nature, extent and trends of the worst forms of child labour, the number of children covered by the measures giving effect to the Convention, the number and nature of violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and criminal penalties applied. All information provided should, as far as possible, be disaggregated by age and sex.

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

[The Government is asked to supply full particulars to the Conference at its 105th Session and to reply in detail to the present comments in 2016.]

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Article 5 of the Convention. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CMLTE) and that, in this capacity, its mandate is to coordinate, communicate, train, engage in research and development, administer, finance, follow-up and evaluate all activities in the context of the elimination of child labour. The Committee also noted that the Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs), created and established by Order No. 13-520 of 17 August 2007, are the regional bodies of the PACTE and have general responsibility for coordinating, monitoring and evaluating all activities relating to the elimination of child labour at the regional level, identifying activities to promote its elimination, and compiling and analysing the data gathered with a view to reporting to the PACTE. The Committee noted that the ORTEs play a vital role in the implementation of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar (PNA). However, the Government indicated that the establishment of the ORTEs was still at its initial stage. The PACTE was, therefore, planning to carry out an analysis on the progress achieved in establishing these structures, following which measures would be taken to intensify their institutional development.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, following this analysis, it was found that the ORTEs are facing problems in relation to personnel. There are problems of availability for labour inspectors and controllers, or they are assigned to other functions, which mean that they cannot devote themselves entirely to the ORTEs. The Government adds that, with a view to remedying this situation, the PACTE plans to make requests to those responsible to assign personnel on a permanent basis to the ORTEs so that they can discharge their functions appropriately. Noting that the ORTEs are essential for the implementation of the PNA, the Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure their establishment and effective operation in the very near future, and to provide information on the progress achieved in this respect. The Committee also once again requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved following the interventions and inspections carried out by labour inspectors assigned to the PACTE and to the ORTEs, including extracts from reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of the violations reported in relation to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of child labour.

Article 6. Programmes of action. National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar (PNA). The Committee previously noted the Government’s indication that the first phase of the PNA, intended to combat the worst forms of child labour in the rural sector, mining, manufacturing, domestic work and commerce and catering, as well as the commercial sexual exploitation of children, lasted five years and ended in 2009. The PNA is currently in an extension phase (2010–15), which is the extension of the activities initiated during its first phase in terms of staffing, beneficiaries and coverage.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that four programmes of action are currently being implemented: the AMAV project against child domestic labour; the plan of action to combat the commercial sexual exploitation of children; the plan of action against child labour in vanilla plantations in the Sava region; and the plan of action to combat child labour in mines and stone quarries in the Atsimo Andrefana region, implemented as part of the ILO–IPEC project entitled “Tackle Child Labour through Education in 11 Countries” (the TACKLE project). The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the results achieved as a result of the implementation of the second phase of the PNA, and in the context of the four programmes of action that are currently being implemented, in terms of the number of children prevented from entering or removed from the worst of child labour, and who subsequently benefitted from rehabilitation and social integration.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (b). Preventing children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour and direct assistance for the removal of children from these worst forms of child labour and to ensure their rehabilitation and social integration. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that Madagascar is one of the 11 countries involved in the implementation of the ILO–IPEC TACKLE project, the overall objective of which is to contribute to poverty reduction in the least developed countries by providing equitable access to primary education and skills development for the most underprivileged categories of society. The Committee took due note of the results achieved through the implementation of this project in terms of the number of children who benefited from educational measures that enabled them to avoid being engaged in the worst of child labour and who were removed from such work in 2009–10.

The Committee notes that, according to the information available through ILO–IPEC, three programmes of action have been implemented in Madagascar focusing on the prevention and removal of children from the worst forms of child labour. Certain children have benefited from non-formal education programmes and others have been reintegrated into the formal school system. In this respect, the Committee notes the Government’s indications that in 2010–11 the TACKLE project resulted in the prevention of 1,437 children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour and the removal of 1,255 children from these worst forms of child labour.

However, the Committee notes the study conducted by UNICEF in February 2012 on exclusion from school and means of inclusion in primary school in Madagascar. According to the study, with over 1 million children not attending school, exclusion from primary school is one of the most important problems in the education system in Madagascar. Each year, hundreds of thousands of children drop-out of primary school and over one quarter of them are ultimately deprived of any educational opportunities. The most recent data from the population census indicate that the net school enrolment rate for children between the ages of 6 and 10 years is 73.4 per cent, meaning that over one quarter of children of primary school age are currently the victims of exclusion from school. Between 2009–10 and 2010–11, over 700,000 children left the system between the first year of primary school (CP1) and the penultimate year of primary school (CM1). When the last year of primary school (CM2) and the first year of secondary school are included, this figure rises to 840,000. Considering that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee firmly requests the Government to intensify its efforts to improve the functioning of the education system in the country. In this respect, it requests the Government to provide information on the time-bound measures adopted as part of the implementation of the TACKLE project and in other contexts to increase the school attendance rate and reduce school drop-out rates, both for primary and secondary school. It also requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Clause (c). Access to free basic education for children removed from the worst forms of child labour. The Committee noted previously that, according to the National Survey on Child Labour (ENTE) of 2007, conducted by the National Statistical Institute in collaboration with ILO/IPEC/SIMPOC, in general approximately one out of two children engaged in harmful work (47 per cent) are enrolled in school. Children between 15 and 17 years of age have a low enrolment rate, which is under 12 per cent. The school enrolment rate for children between 10 and 14 years, who are still required to attend school, is below 60 per cent. In other words, around 40 per cent of children of school age, but who are engaged in harmful work, are no longer at school or have never been to school. The Committee also expressed concern at the situation of children who are in engaged in harmful work, and particularly the worst forms of such work, and who drop out of school as a result.

The Committee notes the Government’s indications concerning the number of children who were, in practice, removed from the worst forms of child labour in 2010–11 and reintegrated into the school system or into vocational training as a result of the TACKLE project. In total, 2,098 children (including 1,000 girls) were provided with formal education, 345 children (including 182 girls) received non formal education and 245 children (including 182 girls) received vocational training. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the results achieved in the implementation of the programmes of action of the TACKLE project in terms of the number of children who have in practice been removed from the worst forms of child labour and reintegrated into the school system or into pre-vocational or vocational training.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Child HIV/AIDS orphans. The Committee noted previously that the “Madagascar Action Plan” (MAP) for 2007–12 contains a specific chapter on health, family planning and action to combat HIV/AIDS, with the specific objective of reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS. The Committee noted the Government’s indications that it spares no effort to maximize the success of its campaign against HIV/AIDS through its National Development Strategy and the MAP. However, the Committee noted that, according to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS 2009) estimates, the number of child HIV/AIDS orphans was reported to have risen to 11,000 children, compared with 3,400 in 2008.

The Committee notes that, according to the UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS) activity report on the AIDS response in Madagascar of March 2012, the country recognizes the need to intensify the national response to the AIDS epidemic. For this purpose, a mid term review of the MAP was carried out in 2010 with a view to identifying new orientations for the implementation of the national strategy and to identify national priorities. However, the Committees notes the absence of information on this subject in the Government’s report. Recalling that HIV/AIDS has adverse consequences for orphans, who are at increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee strongly encourages the Government to intensify its efforts to prevent these children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. Poverty reduction. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the adoption of the MAP, which is aimed at effective poverty reduction and a tangible improvement in the living standards of the population of Madagascar. The Committee noted the Government’s indications that the issue of child labour has been integrated into the objectives of the MAP, and that a Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) was adopted for 2008–12, with a view to promoting access to employment for vulnerable groups by reinforcing their employability and improving the dynamic of the sectors that generate employment. The Committee, however, noted with concern the Government’s indication that, in view of the political crisis, the DWCP had not had a significant impact on the elimination of child labour.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the political context of the country, which is currently in transition and awaiting future elections, does not allow the implementation of a national poverty reduction plan. Noting that poverty reduction programmes contribute to breaking the cycle of poverty, which is essential for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the MAP and the DWCP are implemented in such a way as to step up the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly with regard to the four priority groups for intervention, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mining and stone quarrying, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this respect and the results achieved.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

The Committee notes the communication of the General Confederation of Workers’ Unions of Madagascar (CGSTM) of 27 August 2012, and the Government’s report.

Articles 3(a) and (b) and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, and sanctions. Sale and trafficking and the sexual exploitation of children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 15 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 concerning child labour (Decree No. 2007-563) prohibits all forms of forced or compulsory labour, including the sale and trafficking of young persons under 18 years of age. The Committee also noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering and employment of children of either sex for prostitution. The Committee noted that section 261 of the Labour Code and sections 334, 335 and 354–357 of the Penal Code, to which reference is made in Decree No. 2007-563, establish effective and dissuasive sanctions prohibiting, among other offences, the sale and trafficking of children and the procuring or offering of a child for prostitution.

The Committee notes the adoption of Act No. 2007-038 of 14 January 2008 amending and supplementing certain provisions of the Penal Code to combat trafficking in persons and sex tourism. Under the terms of section 5 of the Act, a section 331bis has now been inserted into the Penal Code and prohibits the debauchery, corruption or prostitution of children of either sex. Section 6 of the Act inserts sections 33ter, quarter and quinto, containing detailed provisions prohibiting all forms of trafficking of children under 18 years of age for exploitation, as well as the sale of children for any purpose, including sexual exploitation, forced labour, slavery or practices similar to slavery. Act No. 2007 038 also establishes effective and dissuasive sanctions for the engagement, abduction or deception of a person with a view to their engagement in prostitution, sexual exploitation or sex tourism.

However, the Committee notes that, while recognizing that Madagascar has adopted relevant legislative provisions to prevent and prohibit sexual exploitation, the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), in its concluding observations of 8 March 2012 (CRC/C/MDG/CO/3-4, paragraphs 61–63), notes with serious concern that child prostitution and sex tourism are on the rise in the country, with orphans being particularly vulnerable. Referring to the State party report (CRC/C/MDG/3-4, paragraph 787), the Committee on the Rights of the Child notes that a quarter of children aged 6–17 years who were working in Antsiranana in 2006 were victims of sexual exploitation and expresses concern at the low number of investigations into and prosecutions for child prostitution. The CRC is also greatly concerned at the high level of trafficking in persons, including children, from Madagascar to neighbouring countries and the Middle East for purposes of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation. While noting the adoption of Act No. 2007-038 of 2008, the CRC expresses concern that the law is not sufficiently implemented and, in particular, has not resulted in any convictions to date.

The Committee recalls that, under the terms of Article 7(1) of the Convention, the Government shall take all necessary measures to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of the provisions giving effect to the Convention, including the application of sufficiently effective and dissuasive penal sanctions. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the sanctions against persons found guilty of trafficking in children under 18 years of age or their use, procuring or offering for sexual exploitation, are applied in practice. The Committee also requests the Government to provide statistical data on the number and nature of the violations reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and the penal sanctions applied.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation (MTLS) was continuing its programme of school attendance and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It noted that the action of the PIP was extended to the regional level, under the direction of the labour and social legislation services in each region, and that the “Manjary Soa” centre, financed by the PIP, supports child victims of labour, and particularly of the worst forms of child labour, and offers them remedial teaching or vocational training. The Committee noted the CGSTM’s allegation that the number of street children has increased in recent years. The CGSTM added that the action taken by the Government to help them was still minimal. In reply, the Government indicated that the programmes financed in the context of the PIP aim to remove 40 children a year from the worst forms of child labour, or 120 children over three years.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the political and economic crisis currently faced by Madagascar has resulted in the loss of many jobs and the impoverishment of households, contributing to an increase in the number of children compelled to work. The Government adds that, in the context of the PIP, it is continuing to implement programmes for the social reintegration of victims of the worst forms of child labour, but that the crisis has had a direct effect on the financing of these programmes by the State. The Government, nevertheless, indicates that in 2012 the programme is providing support for 40 children engaged in the worst forms of child labour, such as prostitution, hazardous types of work and domestic work. While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee is bound to express its concern at the fact that the number of street children has recently increased and that the 2009 crisis appears to be affecting the implementation of PIP programmes and it, therefore, requests the Government to intensify its efforts to ensure that street children are protected from the worst forms of child labour, and are provided with support for their rehabilitation and social integration. It once again requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the results achieved in this respect.

Parts IV and V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee noted previously that, according to the National Survey on Child Labour (ENTE) of 2007, conducted by the National Statistical Institute in collaboration with ILO/IPEC/SIMPOC, more than one in four Malagasy children aged between 5 and 17 years (28 per cent) are economically active, or 1,870,000 children. The participation rate of children between the ages of 15 and 17 years in economic activities is 55 per cent, which may partly be explained by the fact that schooling is no longer compulsory for this age group. Furthermore, the majority of economically active children (82 per cent) are engaged in harmful work. In total, nearly 1,534,000 children are engaged in such activities. Among children aged 15 and over, approximately one economically active child out of two (49 per cent), or 328,000 children, are engaged in harmful work, that is in one of the worst forms of child labour. The ENTE also indicates that in Madagascar 23 per cent of economically active children between the ages of 5 and 17 years are engaged in hazardous types of work, or 438,000 children. The agricultural, stock-raising and fishing sectors account for most harmful types of work performed by children, in both rural and urban areas (88 and 72 per cent, respectively). In contrast with rural areas, child labour in urban areas is characterized by the importance of domestic work (11 per cent) and work in commerce and catering (10 per cent). Girls are often engaged in domestic work (17 per cent of girls between the ages of 15 and 17 years, compared with 9 per cent of boys in the same age group), or an activity in the commerce and catering sectors (5 and 7 per cent of girls aged between 10 and 14 and between 15 and 17 years of age, respectively).

The Committee previously noted the CGSTM’s allegations that the political and economic crisis in Madagascar resulted in even more under-age children entering labour and employment. With regard to the worst forms of child labour, the most affected sectors are mining, agriculture and manufacturing. The CGSTM indicated that children work in mines (Llakaka) and in stone quarries under precarious and sometimes dangerous conditions. Furthermore, the worst forms of child labour exist in the informal economy and in rural areas, which are not covered by the labour administration.

The Committee notes the CGSTM’s recent indication that it reiterates the allegations made in its previous communication.

The Committee notes the Government’s indications that the second phase of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar (PNA) is intended, inter alia, to improve legal frameworks, step up awareness-raising campaigns, mobilize funds to extend action against child labour and the worst forms of child labour, and update databases on child labour as the campaign advances to combat child labour. While noting the measures taken by the Government to combat child labour and the worst forms of child labour in the context of the PNA, the Committee is bound to express its concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to undertake hazardous work, and it urges the Government to intensify its efforts to eliminate these worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to continue providing information on any progress achieved in this respect and on the results achieved. The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the worst forms of child labour including, for example, studies and inquiries on the subject and information on the nature, extent and trends of the worst forms of child labour, the number of children covered by the measures giving effect to the Convention, the number and nature of infringements reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and penal sanctions applied. To the extent possible, all information provided should be disaggregated by age and sex.

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

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Article 5 of the Convention. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE) and that, in this capacity, its mandate is to coordinate, communicate, train, engage in research and development, administer, finance, follow up and evaluate all activities in the context of the elimination of child labour. Furthermore, the Committee noted that the Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs), established by the adoption of Order No. 13-520 of 17 August 2007, are the regional bodies of the PACTE and have general responsibility for coordinating, monitoring and evaluating all activities relating to the elimination of child labour at the regional level, identifying activities to promote its elimination, and compiling and analysing the data that have been gathered with a view to reporting to the PACTE. The Committee also noted that the PACTE would ensure the dissemination of a new system of observation and follow-up for child labour and its worst forms in the ORTEs.

The Committee notes that, according to the Government, the ORTEs play a vital role in the implementation of the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour (PNA). However, the Government indicates that the setting up of the ORTEs is still in its initial stage, although this should normally have been completed by now. The PACTE is therefore planning to carry out an analysis on the effectiveness of establishing these structures, and measures to step up institutional development will be taken on the basis of the findings of this analysis. Noting that the ORTEs are vital to the implementation of the PNA, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to set them up as soon as possible. The Committee also asks the Government to provide information on the findings reported following the interventions and inspections conducted by the labour inspectors assigned to the PACTE and to the ORTEs, by providing, in particular, extracts of reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of violations detected with regard to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of labour.

Article 6. Programmes of action. National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar. The Committee notes that, according to the Government, the first phase of the PNA, designed to combat the worst forms of child labour in the rural sector, mining industries, manufacturing, domestic work, and the sector of commerce and catering, as well as to put an end to the sexual exploitation of children for commercial purposes, lasted six years and ended in 2009. The PNA in operation at present is in its extension phase (2010–15), i.e. it is extending the activities instigated during the first phase in terms of staffing, beneficiaries and coverage. The Committee requests the Government to provide information, in its next report, on the results obtained following the implementation of the second phase of the PNA in terms of the number of children prevented or withdrawn from the worst forms of child labour, and who subsequently benefited from rehabilitation and social integration.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that Madagascar was one of the 11 countries involved in the implementation of the ILO–IPEC project entitled “Tackle child labour through education in 11 countries” (TACKLE project), the overall objective of which is to contribute towards poverty reduction in the least developed countries by providing equitable access to basic education and skills development to the most disadvantaged section of society.

The Committee takes due note that, according to the Government, 1,437 children benefited from educational measures that enabled them to avoid being engaged in the worst forms of child labour during the 2009–10 period, under the TACKLE project. The Committee notes that two new action programmes were implemented under the TACKLE project in 2010. Consequently, 660 children should be prevented from engaging in dangerous work in the rural area in the Marovoay district, and 400 children should be prevented from dangerous work in the region of Vakinankaratra, thanks to various formal and informal educational measures. The Committee encourages the Government to continue its efforts to prevent children under 18 years of age from engaging in the worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the results achieved through the implementation of the action programmes under the ILO–IPEC TACKLE project.

Clause (b). Removing children from the worst forms of child labour and ensuring their rehabilitation and social integration. Pursuant to its previous comments, the Committee notes with interest the Government’s information that, under the TACKLE project, 1,205 children were withdrawn from work in 2009–10 in the rural sectors, citrus-growing sector, domestic work, mines and quarries, and from sexual exploitation for commercial purposes.

Clause (c). Access to free basic education for children withdrawn from the worst forms of child labour. The Committee had noted that, according to the National Survey on Child Labour (ENTE) of 2007, conducted by the National Statistical Institute in collaboration with ILO–IPEC–SIMPOC, in general approximately one out of two children engaged in harmful work (47 per cent) was enrolled in education. Children between 15 and 17 years register a low enrolment rate, less than 12 per cent. The enrolment rate for children aged 10 to 14 years and who should still be enrolled in school is below 60 per cent. In other words, approximately 40 per cent of children who are of school age but who are compelled to engage in harmful work are no longer in school – or have never been. Their number is estimated to be approximately 355,000 children. Moreover, children who are not compelled to engage in harmful work account for an overall enrolment rate of 71 per cent, which is widely superior to that of children performing harmful work. The Committee had also expressed its concern at the situation of children who are found engaged in harmful work, particularly its worst forms, and drop out from school as a result.

The Committee notes that, according to the Government, 2,098 children (of which 1,000 girls) received a formal education, 345 children (of which 182 girls) received a non-formal education and 249 children (of which 182 girls) received vocational training under the TACKLE project. Furthermore, the Committee notes that, within the framework of two new action programmes in 2010 under the TACKLE project, 340 children should be withdrawn from dangerous work in the rural area in the district of Marovoay and 500 children should be withdrawn from dangerous work in various sectors, such as domestic work, agriculture, animal husbandry or the informal sector, in the region of Vakinankaratra. All these children should subsequently be reinstated in the school system or benefit from vocational training or an apprenticeship. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results obtained in the implementation of the action programmes under the TACKLE project in terms of the number of children engaged in the worst forms of child labour who have been effectively withdrawn from these worst forms of labour and reintegrated into the school system or in pre-vocational or vocational training.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Child orphans of HIV/AIDS. The Committee previously noted that, according to the October 2008 report of UNAIDS on Madagascar, carried out in cooperation with WHO and UNICEF, the number of child orphans of HIV/AIDS aged between 0 and 17 years was now estimated to be 3,400. The Committee observed that the “Madagascar Action Plan” (MAP) for 2007–12 contained a specific chapter entitled “Health, family planning and the fight against HIV/AIDS”, with the specific objective of reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that it is sparing no efforts to maximize the success of its campaign against HIV/AIDS through its national development strategy and the MAP. However, the Committee notes that, according to the 2009 estimates of UNAIDS, the number of orphans of HIV/AIDS had allegedly risen to about 11,000 children. Recalling that HIV/AIDS has adverse consequences for orphans because they run an increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee strongly encourages the Government to continue its efforts to prevent these children from engaging in the worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

Article 8. International cooperation. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the adoption of the MAP, which is aimed at effective poverty reduction and a tangible improvement in the living standards of the population of Madagascar. The Committee noted the information in the Government’s report, according to which the issue of child labour had been integrated within the objectives of the MAP, under commitment No. 8, challenge No. 4, and under the category “Improvement of support to the poor and vulnerable”. The Committee also noted that a Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) had been adopted for 2008–10, with a view to promoting access to employment for vulnerable groups by reinforcing their employability and improving the dynamic of the sectors that generate employment.

The Committee notes with concern that, according to the Government, the DWCP has not, given the political crisis, had a significant impact on the elimination of child labour. Noting that poverty reduction programmes contribute towards breaking the cycle of poverty, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the MAP and the DWCP are implemented in such a way as to step up the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly with respect to the four priority groups for intervention, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mining and quarrying, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results obtained.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

The Committee takes note of the communication from the General Confederation of Workers’ Unions of Madagascar (CGSTM) of 26 August 2011, as well as of the Government’s report.

Article 7(2) of the Convention. Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (d). Children at special risk. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee had noted the Government’s information that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation was continuing its programme of school attendance and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment for Social Action Programme (PIP). It had noted that the action of the PIP had been extended to the regional level, under the direction of the labour and social legislation services in each region, and that the “Manjary Soa” Centre, financed by the PIP, supported child victims of labour, in particular its worst forms, and offered them remedial teaching or vocational training.

The Committee notes the CGSTM’s allegation that the number of street children has increased over the past two years. The CGSTM also indicates that the action taken by the Government to help them is still minimal.

The Committee notes that, according to the Government, the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation is continuing to run programmes to reintegrate street children and those involved in the worst forms of child labour into school and occupations. The Government states that the programmes financed in the context of the PIP aim at withdrawing 40 children per year from the worst forms of child labour, i.e. 120 children over a three-year period. According to the Government, 105 children were supported by the programme during the 2009–11 period, of which 60 were reintegrated into the school system and 45 took up vocational training. While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee must express its concern that the number of street children has allegedly increased recently, and therefore requests the Government to redouble its efforts to ensure that children living in the streets are protected from the worst forms of child labour, and rehabilitated and socially integrated. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the results obtained.

Parts IV and V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee had noted that, according to the National Survey on Child Labour (ENTE) of 2007, conducted by the National Statistical Institute in collaboration with the ILO–IPEC–SIMPOC, more than one in four Malagasy children aged between 5 and 17 years (28 per cent) is economically active, which amounts to 1,870,000 children in absolute terms. The rate of children aged 15–17 years who are involved in economic activity is 55 per cent, which can partly be explained by the fact that school is no longer compulsory for this age group. Furthermore, the majority of economically active children (82 per cent) are engaged in harmful work. In total, almost 1,534,000 children are involved in this type of work. Among children aged 15 years or more, approximately one in two economically active children (49 per cent) – 328,000 children – is engaged in harmful work, i.e. the worst forms of child labour. The ENTE also indicates that 23 per cent of economically active children in Madagascar aged 5 to 17 years – 438,000 children – are engaged in a dangerous activity. The sectors of agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing monopolize most of where harmful child labour is found, both in the rural sector and the urban sector (88 and 72 per cent, respectively). As opposed to the rural sector, child labour in the urban sector is characterized by the prevalence of domestic work (11 per cent) and of commerce and catering (10 per cent). Girls often work as domestic workers (17 per cent of girls aged 15 to 17 years, as opposed to 9 per cent of boys from the same age group), or perform activities in the sector of commerce and catering (respectively, 5 and 7 per cent of girls aged 10 to 14 years and 15 to 17 years).

The Committee notes the CGSTM’s allegations that the political and economic crisis in Madagascar has resulted in even more under age children entering labour and employment. As regards the worst forms of child labour, the most affected sectors are mines, agriculture and manufacturing. The CGSTM states that children working in the mines (Llakaka) and in stone quarries do so under precarious and sometimes dangerous conditions. Furthermore, the worst forms of child labour exist in the informal sector and rural areas, which the labour administration services do not manage to cover.

The Committee notes that, according to the Government, the second phase of the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar (PNA) is geared, inter alia, towards improving legal frameworks, stepping up awareness-raising campaigns, harnessing funds for extending actions against child labour and its worst forms and updating databases on child labour as and when there is a need as the campaign advances. While noting the measures taken by the Government to combat the worst forms of child labour within the framework of the PNA, the Committee must express its concern at the situation and number of children under 18 years of age forced to undertake dangerous work, and urges the Government to redouble its efforts to eliminate these worst forms of child labour. It asks the Government to continue providing information on any progress made in this respect and on results achieved. Furthermore, the Committee asks the Government to continue providing information on the worst forms of child labour, and particularly studies and inquiries on this subject; information on the nature, extent and trends of these forms of child labour; the number of children covered by the measures giving effect to the Convention; the number and nature of violations reported; and the investigations, proceedings, sentences and penal sanctions. To the extent possible, all this information should be disaggregated by age and sex.

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

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

Article 3 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 15 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 respecting child labour (Decree No. 2007-563) prohibits all forms of forced or compulsory labour, including the sale and trafficking of young persons under 18 years of age, as well as forced or compulsory recruitment with a view to use them in armed conflict. The Committee also noted that section 13 of Decree No. 2007-563 categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering and employment of children of either sex for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances, or for commercial sexual exploitation, while section 14 prohibits the procuring, use, offering and employment of children of either sex in the production or trafficking of drugs. Section 2 of Decree
No. 2007-563 prohibits the engagement of young persons of 18 years of age and under in work which involves the risk of danger and in types of work which are likely to harm their health or their physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development. The Committee also observed that Decree No. 2007-563 applies to children bound by a contractual relationship as well as those working on their own account. However, the Committee noted the Government’s statement that Decree No. 2007-563 would enter into force following its publication in the Official Journal.

The Committee notes with interest the Government’s indication that Decree No. 2007-563 was published in the Official Journal and is now applicable within the whole territory of Madagascar.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the PACTE is the technical secretariat of the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE) and that, in this capacity, its mandate is to coordinate, communicate, train, engage in research and development, administer, finance, follow-up and evaluate all activities in the context of the elimination of child labour. Furthermore, the Committee noted that the Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are the regional bodies of the PACTE and have general responsibility for coordinating, monitoring and evaluating all activities relating to the elimination of child labour at the regional level, identifying activities to promote its elimination and compiling and analyzing the data that have been accumulated with a view to reporting to the PACTE.

The Committee notes, according to the information in the Government’s report, that the PACTE strengthened the capacity of the different actors involved in combating child labour (members of regional committees for combating child labour (CRLTE), local authorities in the regions and ORTE agents) with regard to child labour in general and its worst forms, the respective roles of the different actors, as well as the enacted legislative texts and the newly conducted studies on the issue. Awareness-raising activities have also been undertaken in the framework of regional interventions, essentially levelled at local authorities and relevant State agents. The Government thereby indicates that nine regions were subjected to interventions by the PACTE and that eight CRLTEs were created. Moreover, the PACTE will shortly ensure the dissemination of a new system of observation and follow-up for child labour and its worst forms in the ORTEs. In this regard, the Government indicates that three ORTEs are currently established throughout the country and are ready to operate. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results found following the interventions and inspections conducted by the labour inspectors assigned to the PACTE and to the ORTEs by providing, in particular, extracts of reports or documents indicating the extent and nature of violations detected with regard to children and young persons involved in the worst forms of labour.

Article 7, paragraph 2. Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour.
1. Time-bound Programme (TBP). In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, in the context of the ILO–IPEC TBP on the worst forms of child labour, it was envisaged that, out of the 14,000 girls and boys targeted by this programme, around 9,000 of them would be prevented from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee also noted that four major priority groups for intervention within the TBP had been identified, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children, child domestic labour, child labour in mining and quarrying, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors.

The Committee notes that, according to the technical progress report (TPR) of 13 March 2008 for the ILO–IPEC project entitled “Combating the worst forms of child labour in Madagascar – IPEC assistance to the National Action Plan to Eliminate Child Labour” (ILO–IPEC project to combat against child labour), the second edition of the “Presidential Dialogue” public forum was organized in November 2008. This forum set quantifiable indicators concerning the regression of the incidence of child labour. It was therefore expected that 12,000 children would be prevented from engaging in the worst forms of child labour in 2009 and that the incidence of child labour in the country would be reduced from 23 per cent to 10 per cent by 2012. In this regard, the Committee notes with interest the Government’s indication that, as of the end of February 2009, the number of children prevented from engagement in the worst forms of child labour had reached 13,457. Furthermore, the Committee notes that Madagascar is one of the 11 countries involved in the implementation of the ILO–IPEC project entitled “Tackle child labour through education in eleven countries” (ILO–IPEC TACKLE project), the overall objective of which is to contribute towards poverty reduction in the least developed countries by providing equitable access to basic education and skills development to the most disadvantaged section of the society. The Committee therefore encourages the Government to continue its efforts to prevent children under 18 years from engaging in the worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the results achieved through the implementation of the TBP and ILO–IPEC TACKLE Project, disaggregated according to the four priority groups for intervention identified in the TBP on the worst forms of child labour referred to above.

Clause (b). Removing children from the worst forms of child labour and ensuring their rehabilitation and social integration. The Committee previously noted that, according to the extract of the ILO–IPEC report on the prevention and removal of children from the worst forms of child labour provided by the Government with its report, 696 children have up to now been removed from the worst forms of child labour. Furthermore, according to the same extract, 36 additional programmes of action have been examined and 20 of them have been approved.

The Committee notes that, according to the TPR of 13 March 2008 for the ILO–IPEC project to combat child labour, the “Presidential Dialogue” forum of 2008 set as an objective the removal of 6,000 children from the worst forms of child labour in 2009. In this regard, the Committee notes with interest the Government’s indication that, as of the end of February 2009, 5,711 children had already been removed from the worst forms of child labour. The Committee encourages the Government to continue its efforts and requests it to provide information on the number of children who benefited from rehabilitation and social integration after their removal from the worst forms of child labour. Furthermore, it requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of children who will effectively be removed from the worst forms of child labour following the implementation of the action programmes.

Clause (c). Access to free basic education for children withdrawn from the worst forms of child labour. Referring to its previous comments, the Committee notes that, according to the National Survey on Child Labour (ENTE) of 2007, conducted by the National Statistical Institute in collaboration with
ILO–IPEC–SIMPOC, in general, approximately one in two children engaged in harmful work (47 per cent) is currently enrolled in education. Children between 15 and 17 years register a low enrolment rate, less than 12 per cent. The enrolment rate for children aged 10–14 years and who should still be enrolled in school is below 60 per cent. In other words, approximately 40 per cent of children who are of school age but who are compelled to engage in harmful work have never returned or have never been to school. Their number is estimated to be approximately 355,000 children. Moreover, children who are not compelled to engage in harmful work register an overall enrolment rate of 71 per cent, which is widely superior to that of children performing harmful work. While education is not compulsory for children as of 15 years of age, children between 15 and 17 years of age who do not perform harmful work are clearly more educated (63 per cent as opposed to 12 per cent). The Committee further notes that, according to the ENTE, school dropouts are five times more frequent among children engaged in work which should be abolished (26 per cent), as opposed to children who are not engaged in such work (5 per cent).

The Committee notes with interest the Government’s indication that, in the framework of the TBP, 14,539 children were rehabilitated through basic education and 1,628 children rehabilitated through pre-vocational or vocational training. The Committee, however, expresses its concern at the situation of children who are found engaged in harmful work, particularly its worst forms, and drop out from school as a result. The Committee therefore requests the Government to redouble its efforts to ensure that children who are engaged in the worst forms of child labour and who, as a result, have dropped out from school, are removed from these worst forms of child labour and rehabilitated through the educational system or through pre-vocational or vocational training. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the results achieved.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. 1. Child orphans of HIV/AIDS. The Committee previously noted that around 13,000 children aged between 0 and 17 years were HIV/AIDS orphans. The Committee observed that section 38 of Act No. 2005-040 of 20 February 2006 to combat HIV/AIDS (Act No. 2005-040) provides that “The children of persons deceased as a result of AIDS-related diseases shall be taken into care by their family or by the community of origin including host families or, if this is not possible, by public or private institutions for the shortest possible period”. Furthermore, the Committee noted that section 45 of Decree No. 2006-902 of 19 December issued under Act
No. 2005-040 specifies that, with a view to the promotion of a conducive environment for underprivileged groups, it is necessary to establish national policies to reduce the vulnerability of underprivileged groups, promote the participation of young persons, improve the quality and coverage of school programmes which include issues related to HIV/AIDS, and provide care and support for orphans and persons living with HIV. In this regard, the Committee observed that the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP) for 2007–12 contains a specific chapter entitled “Health, family planning and the fight against HIV/AIDS” with the specific objective that HIV/AIDS will not advance any further. The Committee notes with interest that, according to the October 2008 report of UNAIDS, in collaboration with WHO and UNICEF, on Madagascar, the number of child orphans of HIV/AIDS aged between 0 and 17 years is now estimated to be 3,400. Recalling that HIV/AIDS has adverse consequences for orphans because they run an increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee strongly encourages the Government to continue its efforts to prevent these children from engaging in the worst forms of child labour. It requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved.

2. Street children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s information that that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation is continuing its programme of school attendance and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It noted that the action of the PIP has been extended to the regional level, under the direction of the labour and social legislation services in each region. The Committee notes the information in the Government’s report according to which the “Manjary Soa” centre, financed by the PIP, supports child victims of labour, in particular its worst forms, and offers them remedial teaching or vocational training. Therefore, 345 children received assistance from this centre, 160 of which received vocational training and 185 of which received remedial teaching courses. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of street children who are protected from the worst forms of child labour and rehabilitated and socially integrated.

Article 8. International cooperation. In its previous comments the Committee noted the adoption of the MAP 2007–12, which is aimed at the effective reduction of poverty and a tangible improvement in the living standards of the population of Madagascar. The Committee notes the information in the Government’s report according to which the issue of child labour has been integrated within the objectives of the MAP, under commitment No. 8, challenge No. 4, and under the category “Improvement of support to the poor and vulnerable”. The Government also indicates that the MAP was used as an awareness-raising tool with regard to the commitment of the Government to the elimination of child labour in the country, in particular during the course of awareness-raising activities conducted by the authorities in different regions where interventions were performed. The Committee further notes that a Decent Work Country Programme was adopted for 2008–10, with a view to promote the access to employment for vulnerable groups by reinforcing their employability and improving the dynamic of the sectors that generate employment. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any notable impact of the MAP and the Decent Work Country Programme on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, in particular with regard to the four priority groups for intervention, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic labour, child labour in mining and quarrying, and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors.

Parts IV and V of the report form. Practical application of the Convention. The Committee notes that, according to the ENTE, more than one in four Malagasy children aged between 5 and 17 years (28 per cent) is economically active, which is 1,870,000 children in absolute terms. The rate of children aged 15–17 years who are involved in economic activity is of 55 per cent, which can partly be explained by the fact that school is not compulsory for this age group. Furthermore, the majority of economically active children (82 per cent) are engaged in harmful work, i.e. work that should be abolished by virtue of the legislative framework concerning child labour in Madagascar. In total, almost 1,534,000 children are involved in this type of work. Among children aged 15 years or more, approximately one in two economically active children (49 per cent) – 328,000 children – is engaged in harmful work, i.e. in a worst form of child labour. The ENTE also indicates that 23 per cent of economically active children in Madagascar aged 5–17 years – 438, 000 children – are engaged in a dangerous activity. While older children are more prone to perform this type of activity, it is noteworthy that 91,000 children aged 5–9 years and approximately 190,000 children aged 10–14 years are also estimated to be subject to it. In general, economically active children performing harmful work are mainly found in the sector of agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing (86 per cent). This situation affects boys as much as girls, particularly among the younger ones. However, when children get older, they are more inclined to work in other sectors, especially girls. Indeed, girls often work as domestic workers (17 per cent of girls aged 15–17 years, as opposed to 9 per cent of boys from the same age group) or perform activities in the sector of commerce and restoration (respectively 5 and 7 per cent of girls aged 10–14 years and 15–17 years). The sector of agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing monopolizes most of where harmful child labour is found, both in the rural sector and the urban sector (respectively 88 and 72 per cent). As opposed to the rural sector, child labour in the urban sector is characterized by the importance of domestic work (11 per cent) and of commerce and restoration (10 per cent). While noting the measures taken by the Government to combat child labour and its worst forms within the framework of the TBP, the Committee urges the Government to redouble its efforts to eliminate these worst forms of child labour, which are still a cause of concern in Madagascar. It requests the Government to continue providing information on any progress made in this regard and the results achieved.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2007, published 97th ILC session (2008)

The Committee notes the Government’s report. It requests the Government to provide information on the following points.

Article 3 of the Convention. The worst forms of child labour. Clause (a). All form of slavery or practices similar to slavery. 1. Sale and trafficking of children. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that sections 354–357 of the Penal Code addressed the issue of the abduction of minors. It noted that sections 354 and 356 prohibit any person, employing fraud or violence, or without fraud or violence, from abducting a minor or from causing a minor to be abducted, taken away or removed from a location where the minor had been placed or entrusted. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that these sections are of a general nature and do not specifically address the sale and trafficking of children. However, the Committee notes with interest that section 15 of Decree No. 2007-563 of 3 July 2007 respecting child labour (Decree No. 2007-563), which will enter into force following its publication in the Official Journal, prohibits all forms of forced or compulsory labour, including the sale and trafficking of young persons under 18 years of age. The Decree defines the term “trafficking of children” as consisting of the procuring, transport, transfer, lodging or receiving of a child for the purposes of exploitation. The Committee hopes that Decree No. 2007-563 will be published and will enter into force in the very near future.

2. Forced recruitment of children for use in armed conflict. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes that Decree No. 2007-563, in section 15, prohibits all forms of forced or compulsory labour, including forced or compulsory recruitment with a view to the use of young persons under 18 years of age in armed conflict. Furthermore, also under the terms of section 15, “children should in no event be subject to compulsory recruitment into the armed forces”.

Clause (b). Use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, although the Penal Code contains provisions criminalizing intermediaries involved in prostitution, the national legislation does not criminalize the client. The Committee also noted that the legislation does not appear to contain provisions prohibiting pornographic performances involving minors. The Committee notes with interest that section 13 of Decree No. 2007‑563 categorically prohibits the procuring, use, offering and employment of children of either sex for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances, or for commercial sexual exploitation. For the purposes of his section, the term “procuring, use, exploitation, offering and employment of children” means any act involving the engagement of a child in any sexual activity and the transfer of the child to another person or another group of persons in exchange for remuneration or the promise of a benefit of whatever nature. Furthermore, the terms “child prostitution” and “commercial sexual exploitation” mean any use of a child for sexual activities in exchange for remuneration or any other form of benefit. Finally, the term “pornography involving children” means any representation, through whatever media, of a child engaging in explicit sexual activities, real or simulated, or any representation of the sexual organs of a child for principally sexual purposes.

Clause (c). Use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities. The Committee notes that, in addition to the provisions contained in Act No. 97-039 on the control of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors in Madagascar, section 14 of Decree No. 2007-563 prohibits the procuring, use, offering and employment of children of either sex in the production or trafficking of drugs.

Article 3(d). Hazardous work. 1. General prohibition. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes that section 25 of Decree No. 2007-563 repeals Decree No. 62-152 of 28 March 1962 establishing the working conditions of children, women and pregnant women. It notes that section 2 of Decree No. 2007-563 prohibits the engagement of young persons of 18 years of age and under in work which involves the risk of danger and in types of work which are likely to harm their health or their physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development.

2. Self-employed workers. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that Decree No. 2007-563 applies to children bound by a contractual relationship as well as those working on their own account, and protects all of them from types of work which, by their nature or the circumstances in which they are carried out, are likely to harm their health, safety or morals.

Article 4, paragraphs 1 and 3. Determination and revision of the list of hazardous types of work. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that Decree No. 62-152, which establishes a list of types of work prohibited for young persons under 18 years of age, was adopted in 1962. The Committee reminded the Government that, under the terms of Article 4, paragraph 3, of the Convention, the list of hazardous types of work determined has to be periodically examined and, if necessary, revised in consultation with the concerned employers’ and workers’ organizations. In this respect, the Committee notes with interest that sections 10–22 of Decree No. 2007-563 revise the list of hazardous types of work, establishing a substantial list in three sections, namely: (1) work of an immoral nature, including the employment of children for prostitution, pornography or the trafficking of drugs; (2) forced labour, including the employment of children as domestics or household staff; and (3) hazardous or unhealthy types of work, including the employment of children on worksites on which vehicles are used or in places in which toxic or inflammable substances are handled. The Committee notes the Government’s indications that the list of hazardous types of work contained in Decree No. 2007-563 was formulated following tripartite consultations, which were held during the process of preparation of the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour (PNA), and that it was examined by the National Council to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE) and the National Labour Council (CNT), a tripartite body composed of representatives of the State, employers and workers. The Committee further notes the Government’s indications on the establishment, by Order No. 13-520 of 17 August 2007, of regional monitoring bodies, which will be responsible for identifying new types of hazardous work in their respective areas. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of Order No. 13-520 with its next report.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. 1. Labour inspection. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that labour inspectors have been provided with awareness raising and training courses on the worst forms of child labour. It notes that, according to the Technical Progress Report of March 2007 for the project “Combating the worst forms of child labour in Madagascar (WFCL) – IPEC’s contribution to the National Action Plan to Eliminate Child Labour”,
the ILO/IPEC project is involved in various measures to increase knowledge and basic capacities for planning, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of interventions for children engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The
ILO/IPEC project has participated, among other activities, in the development of the action plan entitled “Common Action Plan for the Protection of Hard-working Children”, initiated by UNICEF in October 2006, and the ILO/IPEC regional workshop for Africa held in Addis Ababa from 27 November to 1 December 2006, The Committee further notes that, according to the same report, 134 institutions, which are at various levels of negotiation and participation, participated in the training envisaged by ILO/IPEC to increase knowledge and basic capacities to facilitate the planning, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of interventions in relation to children engaged in work.

2. Division for the Prevention, Abolition and Monitoring of Child Labour (PACTE). Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the PACTE is in a certain manner the technical secretariat of the CNLTE and that, in this capacity, its mandate is to coordinate, communicate, train, engage in research and development, administer, finance, follow-up and evaluate all activities in the context of the elimination of child labour. Furthermore, the Committee notes that the Regional Child Labour Observatories (ORTEs) are the regional bodies of the PACTE and have general responsibility for coordinating, monitoring and evaluating all activities relating to the elimination of child labour at the regional level, identifying activities to promote its elimination and compiling and analysing the data that have been accumulated with a view to reporting to the PACTE. Finally, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the programme of action to reinforce the capacity of the PACTE to intervene will provide an opportunity for labour inspectors to improve their knowledge of inspection of the rights of children and the worst forms of child labour. Accordingly, all labour inspectors in Madagascar, the PACTE team, which is entirely composed of labour inspectors, and the employees of the ORTEs, under the direction of labour inspectors and supervisors, will benefit from this programme. The Committee requests the Government to provide additional information on the operation of the ORTEs, and on any progress achieved in their establishment and the commencement of their activities. It also requests the Government to provide information on the activities undertaken by the PACTE and the ORTEs, and the results reported as a result of the interventions and inspections carried out by labour inspectors assigned to these bodies, particularly with regard to the worst forms of child labour.

Article 7, paragraph 1. Sanctions. The Committee notes that the worst forms of child labour will henceforth be penalized under the provisions of Decree No. 2007-563. Under the terms of section 23 of the Decree, any violation of its provisions shall be punished in accordance with section 261 of Act No. 2003-044 of 28 July 2004 issuing the Labour Code, namely, either a fine of between 5,000 and 15,000 Malgasy francs and imprisonment of from one to three years, or one of these penalties. However, in relation to violations of sections 11–13 of Decree No. 2007-563, namely the provisions relating to the employment of children in work of an immoral nature and the procuring, use, offering and employment of children for prostitution or pornography and commercial sexual exploitation, they shall be punished in accordance with sections 332 to 347 of the Penal Code. The Committee trusts that Decree No. 2007-563 will enter into force in the very near future and requests the Government to provide information on the application of these sanctions in practice once the Decree has come into force.

Article 7, paragraph 2. Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of chid labour. In its previous comments the Committee noted that, in the context of the ILO/IPEC Time-bound Programme (TBP) on the worst forms of child labour, it was envisaged that around 9,000 girls and boys would be prevented from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee also noted that, according to the document entitled “Combating the worst forms of chid labour in Madagascar – IPEC assistance to the National Action Plan to Eliminate Child Labour” four major priority groups for intervention within the TBP had been identified, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children, child domestic labour, child labour in mining and quarrying and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee notes that the programme of action of 2006 to reinforce preventive action against early work by children, the removal of children from the worst forms of child labour and the improvement of the working conditions of children is an example of these preventive programmes and is targeted at 205 children and workers between the ages of 8 and 18 years in the region of Analamanga. The Committee also notes that, according to the extract from the ILO/IPEC report on the prevention and removal or children from the worst forms of child labour provided by the Government with its report, 3391 children have up to now been prevented from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee requests the Government to provide more detailed information on the number of children who in practice are prevented from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour as a result of the implementation of the TBP. More specifically, it requests the Government to disaggregate this information according to the four priority groups for intervention identified in the National Action Plan against child labour referred to above.

Clause (b). Removing children from the worst forms of child labour and ensuring their rehabilitation and social integration. The Committee notes that, according to the Technical Progress Report of July–December 2006 of the project to contribute to the elimination of child labour in Madagascar, the process of the launching and implementation of the four programmes of action in the context of the Vocational Training and Apprenticeship Strategy (SFPA) was carried out in 2006. The programmes of action concerned are as follows: (1) vocational training and apprenticeship for children engaged in work in Andohatapenaka, Ankasina, Ampasika and Ampefiloha Ambodirano (70 children targeted); (2) reinforcement of preventive action against early work by children, removal of children from the worst forms of child labour and improvement of the conditions of working children (205 children targeted); (3) accompanying young persons in the street towards social and vocational integration (150 children targeted); and (4) reinforcing human and vocational capacities in the context of eliminating child labour in the Antohomadinka district of Antananarivo city. The Committee notes that, according to the extract of the ILO/IPEC report on the prevention and removal of children from the worst forms of child labour provided by the Government with its report, 696 children have up to now been removed from the worst forms of child labour. Furthermore, according to the same extract, 36 additional programmes of action have been examined and 20 of them have been approved. The Committee encourages the Government to continue its efforts and requests it to provide information on the number of children who have benefited from rehabilitation and social integration after being removed from the worst forms of child labour. It also requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of children who are in practice removed from the worst forms of child labour as a result of the implementation of the programmes of action.

Clause (c). Access to free basic education. The Committee noted previously that educational measures are envisaged for 10,000 of the 14,000 children targeted by the TBP. It notes that, according to the Progress Report of March 2007 of the project entitled “Combating the worst of child labour in Madagascar (WFCL) – IPEC’s contribution to the National Action Plan to Eliminate Child Labour”, during the period between September 2005 and February 2006, 500 children were removed from the worst forms of child labour in the informal sector in the Tana region and received grants to attend primary school. According to the same report, 18 children were removed during the period between September 2006 and February 2007 from the worst forms of child labour and received vocational training. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of children who, when they have been removed from work, have in practice been reintegrated into basic education or are following pre-vocational or vocational training.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. 1. HIV/AIDS. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes that, according to the most recent UNAIDS data, around 13,000 children aged between 0 and 17 years are AIDS orphans. The Committee notes that section 38 of Act No. 2005-040 of 20 February 2006 to combat HIV/AIDS (Act No. 2005-040) provides that “The children of persons deceased as a result of AIDS-related diseases shall be taken into care by their family or by the community of origin including host families or, if this is not possible, by public or private institutions for the shortest possible period”. Furthermore, section 44 of Decree No. 2006-902 of 19 December issued under Act No. 2005-040 establishes the principle that children in general are a vulnerable category who require the promotion of a conducive environment. Section 45 of the Decree specifies that, with a view to the promotion of a conducive environment for underprivileged groups, it is necessary to establish national policies to reduce the vulnerability of underprivileged groups, promote the participation of young persons, improve the quality and coverage of school programmes which include issues related to HIV/AIDS, and provide care and support for orphans and persons living with HIV. In this respect, the Committee notes that the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP) for 2007–12 contains a specific Commitment entitled “Health, family planning and the fight against HIV/AIDS” with the specific objective that HIV/AIDS will not advance any further. Finally, the Committee notes that a World Bank project entitled “Second multi-sectoral STI/HIV/AIDS prevention project” is currently being implemented in Madagascar and is designed to provide support to the Government for the promotion of a multi-sectoral approach to respond to the rise in the incidence of HIV/AIDS in the country. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the effect given in practice to the legislation on the protection of HIV/AIDS orphans. It also requests the Government to provide information on the impact of these measures, plans and projects for the prevention of HIV/AIDS orphans from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of Decree No. 2006-902 of 19 December issued under Act No. 2005-040 with its next report.

2. Street children. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s information that the Ministry of Labour and Social Legislation is continuing its programme of school attendance and training for street children in the context of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). It notes that the action of the PIP has been extended to the regional level, under the direction of the labour and social legislation services in each region. Moreover, the Ministry is currently seeking other partners with a view to offering the same services to underprivileged children in other regions which have not yet been covered. The Committee further notes that a programme of action was commenced in 2006 for 16 months by the NGO ENDA Indian Ocean, in collaboration with ILO/IPEC, to accompany children in the streets towards social and vocational integration. This programme targeted 150 young persons between the ages of 12 and 18 years, including 110 boys and 40 girls in the streets in the central districts of Antananarivo, who were to be accompanied by ENDA Indian Ocean for the development of their career plans by providing them with the necessary basis for their development. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the measures adopted or envisaged in relation to the protection of children living in the streets from the worst forms of child labour. It also requests the Government to provide information on the number of children who have up to now been removed from the streets and reintegrated into society.

Clause (e). Special situation of girls. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the programmes of action validated by the CNLTE accord special attention to girls engaged in the worst forms of child labour. For example, the Committee notes a programme to strengthen human and professional capacities in the context of combating child labour in the Anohomadinika district of Antananarivo city, undertaken by the private school Notre-Dame du Rosaire in collaboration with ILO/IPEC in 2006, is targeted exclusively at 125 girls, composed of 75 girls in domestic service and young mothers between the ages of 13 and 18 years and 50 girls who are the victims of or who are exposed to the worst forms of child labour, and particularly commercial sexual exploitation, between the ages of 13 and 18 years.

Article 8. International cooperation. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Government was implementing a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) in collaboration with the World Bank. In this respect, the Committee notes the adoption of the Madagascar Action Plan (MAP) 2007–12, which replaces the PRSP and is aimed at the effective reduction of poverty and a tangible improvement in the living standards of the population of Madagascar. According to the Government, the aim of the MAP is to achieve a leap forward in the development process of the country through an innovative five-year plan which will mobilize the people and international partners, launch rapid growth, achieve a reduction of poverty and ensure the development of the country in the context of globalization. The Committee notes that, according to the Technical Progress Report of March 2007 for the ILO/IPEC project “Combating the worst of child labour in Madagascar (WFCL) – IPEC contribution to the National Action Plan to Eliminate Child Labour”, ILO/IPEC, in collaboration with the members of the CNLTE and the PACTE, are currently working on the process of the integration of child labour issues into the objectives of the MAP. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any substantial impact of the MAP on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly with regard to the four priority groups for intervention, namely the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities, child domestic work, child labour in mines and stone quarries, and child labour in unhealthy and hazardous environments in the rural and urban sectors.

Parts IV and V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes that a national survey of child labour, undertaken by the National Statistical Institute in collaboration with ILO/IPEC, is currently being carried out. According to the information supplied by the Government, the survey is being conducted in 150 locations in the 22 regions of the country and covers all sectors. The results, a first part of which will be available at the beginning of 2008, will serve as a national database on child labour in Madagascar. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide a copy of the results gathered by the national survey as soon as they are available.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

The Committee notes the Government’s first report.

Article 3 of the Convention. The worst forms of child labour. Clause (a). All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery. 1. Sale and trafficking of children. The Committee notes that the national legislation does not include any specific provision concerning the sale and trafficking of children. It notes, however, that sections 354 to 357 of the Penal Code address the issue of abduction of minors. Thus, under the terms of section 354, paragraph 1, of the Penal Code, penalties shall be imposed against any person who, employing fraud or violence, abducts a minor or has a minor abducted, or leads them away, entices them from or removes them from the locality where they have been placed by the authorities into whose care they had been placed or entrusted. By virtue of section 356, paragraph 1, of the Code, penalties are envisaged for any person who, without employing fraud or violence, has abducted, enticed, or has attempted to abduct or entice, a minor under the age of 18. The Committee requests the Government to indicate to what extent section 354, paragraph 1, and section 365, paragraph 1, of the Penal Code prohibits the sale and trafficking of children under the age of 18, for the purpose of both economic and sexual exploitation.

2. Forced or compulsory labour. The Committee notes that, by virtue of section 3, paragraph 1, of the Labour Code, forced or compulsory labour is forbidden. The term "forced or compulsory labour" means all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.

3. Forced recruitment of children for use in armed conflict. The Committee notes that, according to the information made available to the Office, the age of conscription for military service is 18. It requests the Government to supply information in this regard and to transmit a copy of Decree No. 78-003 on national service, of 6 March 1978.

Clause (b). 1. Use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution. The Committee notes that, by virtue of section 334 of the Penal Code, all persons shall be held to be procurers and penalized as such who: (1) in any way knowingly aid, assist, or protect the prostitution of others or the solicitation for the purposes of prostitution; (4) engage, entice, or support, even with their consent, a person, even an adult, for the purpose of engaging in prostitution or debauchery, or deliver a person into prostitution or debauchery; (5) serve as intermediaries, in any form whatsoever, between persons engaging in prostitution or debauchery and individuals who exploit or remunerate the prostitution or debauchery of others. The Committee also notes that, under the terms of section 335, paragraph 1, of the Penal Code, sanctions are envisaged for any individual keeping, directly or through an intermediary, an establishment of prostitution, as well as tolerating prostitution activities in a hotel, lodging house, boarding house, drinking establishment, club, society, dancing hall or performance hall or their annexes, or any premises open to the public kept, managed or left in the charge of the individual in question.

The Committee notes that, in 2002, ILO/IPEC carried out a "rapid assessment" concerning the scope of the phenomenon of the sexual exploitation of children in Madagascar, in the towns of Antsiranana, Toliara and the capital, Antananarivo. This study reveals the existence of the commercial sexual exploitation of children. Both girls and boys are affected. Generally speaking, boys and girls are "recruited" in the street or in nightclubs. However, boys in Antsiranana also have contact persons - generally hotel receptionists - who transmit offers or requests between the boys and their clients. Furthermore, according to the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour, the commercial sexual exploitation of children occurs in most of the urban areas of Madagascar. Certain locations in particular, such as tourist towns and coastal villages, are affected. Most of the clients involved in the commercial sexual exploitation of children are Malagasy nationals. The use of intermediaries varies between 15 and 47 per cent in the three cities of Antananarivo, Antsiranana and Toliara. The average age at which children start work in this sector varies between 13 and 15.

Although the national legislation envisages provisions that criminalize intermediaries involved in prostitution, the Committee notes that no such provisions exist regarding the clients. It therefore requests the Government to transmit information concerning the measures taken or envisaged in order to criminalize any client using or recruiting a child under the age of 18 for prostitution and to adopt appropriate sanctions to this end. The Committee also requests the Government to transmit information concerning the application of sanctions in practice, providing, amongst other documents, reports regarding the number of convictions.

2. Use, procuring or offering of a child for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances. The Committee notes that, by virtue of section 346, paragraph 1, of the Penal Code, the broadcasting, fixing, recording or transmission of the image of a minor when that image is pornographic in nature is subject to punishment. The Committee notes, however, that the national legislation does not seem to contain provisions prohibiting pornographic performances involving the participation of children. The Committee reminds the Government that, by virtue of Article 1 of the Convention, it is obliged to take immediate and effective measures to secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour as a matter of urgency. It thus requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to prohibit, in accordance with Article 3(b) of the Convention, the use, procuring or offering of a child under the age of 18 for the production of pornographic performances and to adopt sanctions to this end. The Committee also requests the Government to transmit a copy of Law No. 98-024, of January 1998, altering the sections of the Malagasy Penal Code concerning paedophilia.

Clause (c). Use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities. The Committee notes that article 108 of Law No. 97-039 on the control of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors in Madagascar (Law No. 97-039), envisages increased sentences when a minor is involved in the perpetration of the offences envisaged under articles 95 to 102. According to these provisions, sanctions are envisaged for those having contravened provisions concerning the cultivation, production, manufacture, supply, sale and trafficking of high-risk drugs or those drugs listed in the tables included in the annex to the law.

Article 3(d). Hazardous work. 1. General prohibition. The Committee notes that, by virtue of article 1 of Decree No. 62-152, of 28 March 1962, establishing the working conditions of children, women and pregnant women (Decree No. 62-152) under article 94 of the Labour Code, children of both sexes under the age of 18 may not be employed in work exceeding their physical capacities, presenting danger, or which by its nature and the condition in which it is undertaken, is likely to harm their morals.

2. Self-employed children. The Committee notes that, by virtue of article 1 of the Labour Code, the Code applies to workers who have an employment contract concluded in Madagascar. The Committee notes that, by virtue of this provision, the Labour Code does not apply to children under the age of 18 without a contractual employment relationship who are carrying out hazardous work. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the manner in which the national legislation envisages that these categories of children under the age of 18 will enjoy the protection envisaged in Article 3(d) of the Convention against being employed in work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm their health, safety or morals.

Article 4, paragraphs 1 and 3. Determination and revision of the list of hazardous work. The Committee notes that Decree No. 62-152 envisages a list of work prohibited to children under the age of 18, as well as giving reasons for the prohibition. It notes in particular that the Decree includes two tables, with table A including two parts: part I refers exclusively to children; part II refers to children and women. Moreover, under the terms of article 18 of Decree No. 62-152, children are not permitted to enter premises where work listed in table A is carried out. Moreover, article 10 of Decree No. 62-152 prohibits the employment of children for the greasing, cleaning and visits to running machinery or mechanisms. Article 11 of the Decree prohibits the employment of children on premises where hand or motor-driven machinery is used and where dangerous parts are not equipped with the appropriate protective measures. Furthermore, article 15 of Decree No. 62-152 prohibits the employment of children with regard to the use and handling of explosives.

The Committee notes that Decree No. 62-152 was adopted in 1962, over 40 years ago. In this regard, the Committee states that, according to the information made available to the Office, Decree No. 62-152 should be revised and a bill is currently being examined which is aimed at revising Law No. 94-029, of 25 August 1995, establishing a Labour Code. Thus, it reminds the Government that, under the terms of Article 4, paragraph 3, of the Convention, the list of hazardous work must be periodically examined and, if necessary, revised in consultation with the concerned employers’ and workers’ organizations. In this regard, the Committee draws the Government’s attention to Paragraph 3 of the Worst Forms of Child Labour Recommendation, (No. 190) 1999, which states that, in determining the types of work referred to under Article 3(d) of the Convention, and in identifying where they exist, consideration should be given, inter alia, to: (a) work which exposes children to physical, psychological or sexual abuse; (b) work underground, under water, at dangerous heights or in confined spaces; (c) work with dangerous machinery, equipment and tools, or which involves the manual handling or transport of heavy loads; (d) work in an unhealthy environment which may, for example, expose children to hazardous substances, agents or processes, or to temperatures, noise levels, or vibrations damaging to their health; (e) work under particularly difficult conditions such as work for long hours or during the night or work where the child is unreasonably confined to the premises of the employer.

The Committee hopes that, should the types of hazardous work prohibited to children under the age of 18 included in Decree No. 62-152 be revised, the Government will take into consideration the activities listed in Paragraph 3 of Recommendation No. 190. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on consultations held with employers’ and workers’ organizations.

Article 4, paragraph 2. Identification of types of hazardous work. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, following the regional workshops held since 2000 to identify the worst forms of child labour, a number of activities have frequently been cited. Amongst these activities the following priority groups have been identified for intervention within the time-bound programme (TBP), in particular child domestic labour; child labour in mining and quarrying; and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors. The Committee notes that, according to the document entitled "Combating the worst forms of child labour in Madagascar - IPEC assistance to the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour" - four towns accounting for a significant number of children engaged in the worst forms of child labour are targeted by the TBP, namely Mahajanga, Antananarivo, Toliara and Toamasina. Furthermore, the TBP also covers the towns of Fianarantsoa, Antsiranana and the rural areas of the south of the Amboasary region, as pilot projects.

Article 5. Mechanisms to monitor the implementation of the provisions of this Convention. 1. Labour inspection. The Committee notes that, by virtue of article 131 of the Labour Code, labour inspectors are responsible for, amongst other things, ensuring that legal provisions or regulations related to working conditions and to the protection of workers, such as those provisions related to child and adolescent labour, are applied. It also notes that, by virtue of article 135 of the Code, labour inspectors are assisted by contrôleurs du travail (officials who assist labour inspectors in their work). Under the terms of article 133 of the Labour Code, labour inspectors have autonomy under the legislation and regulations in force with regard to visits and inquiries. They may freely and without prior warning enter any establishment subject to inspection. Moreover, according to section 134 of the Labour Code, labour inspectors may carry out inquiries regarding enterprises and trade unions and may request that any document or piece of information of a professional, economic, accounting, financial or administrative nature which might be of use to them in their work, be supplied to them. Referring to its previous comments concerning the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81), and Labour Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 (No. 129), the Committee notes that, in the wake of the ratification of Convention No. 182, the Government has launched various awareness-raising campaigns regarding the issue of child labour within the framework of the IPEC. It notes in particular the measures aimed at training labour inspectors in this field, as well as the implementation by the ministries responsible for labour and justice, in collaboration with IPEC, of a programme to strengthen the concerned institutions. The Committee requests the Government to supply information, especially by means of extracts of reports or documents, concerning the functions of labour and welfare inspectors, in particular with regard to the worst forms of child labour.

2. Other mechanisms. (i) Division for the prevention, abolition and monitoring of child labour (PACTE). The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the PACTE was created at the beginning of 2004 by the Ministry of the Public Service, Labour and Social Law. This Division has a mandate to combat child labour in an effective manner and to ensure that all aspects of Conventions Nos. 138 and 182 on child labour are applied. Furthermore, it oversees the development of the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar. The Committee requests the Government to supply information concerning the workings of the PACTE, in particular with reference to the elimination of the worst forms of child labour.

(ii) National police. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the vice squad, the relevant department of the national police, is responsible for enquiries concerning prostitution in particular.

Article 6. Programmes of action to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. The Committee notes with interest that the Government has elaborated a National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar, with the participation of several groups working on child labour, including employers’ and workers’ organizations and NGOs. The National Action Plan will be implemented over a period of 15 years. Phase I (to last five years) will cover the strengthening and establishment of a legal and regulatory framework at all levels, the elaboration of a national training and education programme concerning the worst forms of child labour and the launch of the first wave of action programmes in the target regions. Phase II (to last five years) will cover the extension of the actions undertaken, both in terms of the target population and zones of intervention. Phase III (to last five years) will involve the consolidation of the progress made during the preceding two phases and will guarantee the effective withdrawal of children from the worst forms of child labour, in accordance with the objectives set. The aim of the National Action Plan is to significantly reduce the rate of prevalence from 30 per cent at the end of the first phase, to 5 per cent at the end of the second phase, and to less than 1 per cent at the end of the programme. The Committee requests the Government to regularly supply information on the impact of the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour and the results obtained regarding the elimination of the worst forms of child labour.

Article 7, paragraph 1. Sanctions. The Committee notes that section 190 of the Labour Code, sections 334, 335 and 354 to 357 of the Penal Code and articles 95 and 108 of Law No. 97-039 envisage effective and dissuasive sanctions prohibiting: the sale and trafficking of children; forced or compulsory labour; and the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution or illicit activities, such as the trafficking of drugs. It also notes that section 194 of the Labour Code envisages sanctions in the case of violations of the provisions governing hazardous work prohibited to children under the age of 18 and included in Decree No. 62-152. The Committee requests the Government to supply information on the application of these sanctions in practice.

Paragraph 2. Effective and time-bound measures. The Committee notes with interest that Madagascar is currently in the first stage of implementing an ILO/IPEC time-bound programme (TBP) for the worst forms of child labour. It also notes that the TBP will support the implementation of the strategies and objectives of the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour. It will have a duration of 51 months and will directly target around 14,000 children. Furthermore, the Committee notes that, according to the document entitled "Combating the worst forms of child labour in Madagascar - IPEC assistance to the National Action Plan to Combat Child Labour", the discussions and workshops held since 2000 to identify the worst forms of child labour made it possible to identify four large priority groups for intervention within the TBP, namely commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities; child domestic labour; child labour in mining and quarrying; and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors.

Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee notes that the TBP envisages that around 9,000 girls and boys will be prevented from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the number of children who will be effectively prevented from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour for each of the four priority groups for intervention following the implementation of the TBP.

Clause (b). Direct assistance for the removal of children from the worst forms of child labour and for their rehabilitation and social integration. The Committee notes that one aim of the TBP is to remove around 5,000 girls and boys from the worst forms of child labour. It also notes that measures for the re-adaptation and social integration of children removed from the four large priority groups for intervention are envisaged. Furthermore, the Committee notes that a Division for the prevention, abolition and monitoring of child labour (PACTE) is currently carrying out a study throughout the six provinces of Madagascar to identify locations suitable for welcoming children removed from the worst forms of child labour. The Committee requests the Government to supply information on the number of children who will be effectively removed from child labour, as well as the measures taken for their re-adaptation and social integration.

Clause (c). Access to free basic education. The Committee notes that educational measures are envisaged for 10,000 of the 14,000 children targeted by the TBP. It consequently requests the Government to supply information on the number of children who, having been removed from child labour, have effectively been reintegrated into basic education courses or who are receiving pre-vocational or vocational training.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. 1. HIV/AIDS. The Committee notes that, according to the information contained in the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and World Health Organization (WHO) 2004 factual note on the epidemic, over 30,000 children will be orphaned by HIV/AIDS in Madagascar. The Committee notes that, in its final observations on the second periodic report of the Government in October 2003 (CRC/C/15/Add.218, paragraphs 51 and 52), the Committee on the Rights of the Child, whilst noting that the prevalence of HIV/AIDS is not very high in Madagascar and that the Government appears to be concerned by the disease, states that it is concerned by the significant increase in the prevalence of the disease in the country. The Committee notes that HIV/AIDS has consequences for orphans for whom the risk of becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour is increased. It consequently requests the Government to make every effort to reduce the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, forestalling its spread amongst the population and transmitting information on the specific measures taken within a determined period to protect children orphaned by HIV/AIDS from becoming engaged in the worst forms of child labour.

2. Street children. The Committee notes that, in its final observations on the second periodic report of the Government in October 2003 (CRC/C/15/Add.218, paragraphs 63 and 64), the Committee on the Rights of the Child expresses its concern at the high number of children living and working in the street and at the absence of a strategy to tackle the problem. In particular, the Committee recommended that the Government develop a strategy to tackle the issue, especially by taking the necessary measures in order to implement measures for prevention, re-adaptation and social integration. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of the Public Service, Labour and Social Law is responsible for the schooling and training of street children within the framework of the Public Investment Programme for Social Action (PIP). According to the Government, 40 child workers take part in this programme every year. Of these 40, 20 are put through the first year of schooling before being reinserted into the public education system and 20 others receive training in dressmaking, before going on to take up placements with enterprises, or perhaps to set up their own businesses. The Committee considers that street children are particularly exposed to the worst forms of child labour. In particular, it requests the Government to continue to supply information on the measures taken or envisaged, in particular on the protection of street children from the worst forms of child labour as well as their re-adaptation and social integration.

Clause (e). Special situation of girls. The Committee notes that, according to the so-called rapid assessment on the extent of the phenomenon of the sexual exploitation of children in Madagascar carried out in 2002 by the ILO/IPEC, the sexual exploitation of girls is more visible (meaning that their friends, acquaintances and even their parents, know about it) and more widespread than that of boys. Whilst noting that the commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities makes up one of the four priority groups for intervention within the TBP, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the manner in which it intends, within the framework of the TBP, to focus on the situation of girls and to remove them from the worst forms of child labour.

Paragraph 3. Designation of the competent authority responsible for the implementation of the provisions giving effect to the Convention. The Committee notes that the National Committee for Combating Child Labour (CNLTE) is the body responsible for decision-making, guidance, conception and the follow-up to all policies and strategies on the combat against child labour. It is made up of around 30 people representing the key ministries concerned, employers’ and workers’ organizations, NGOs and civil society. The ILO/IPEC and UNICEF have observer status. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the methods employed by the CNLTE to ensure the monitoring and implementation of the Convention.

Article 8. Enhanced international cooperation and assistance. The Committee notes that Madagascar is a member of Interpol, an organization that facilitates cooperation between countries in different regions, especially with regard to combating the trafficking of children. It notes that the Government is conscious of the link that exists between child labour and poverty. In this regard, the Committee notes that the Government has implemented a poverty reduction strategy document (PRSD) in collaboration with the World Bank. Noting that PRSDs contribute to breaking the circle of poverty, an essential element in the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to supply information on any significant impact that the PRSD might have had on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour, particularly in the case of the four priority groups for intervention within the TBP, namely commercial sexual exploitation of children and related activities; child domestic labour; child labour in mining and quarrying and child labour in hazardous and unhealthy environments in the rural and urban sectors.

Parts IV and V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes the statistics supplied by the Government concerning certain violations related to minors, in particular, enticement, paedophilia, procurement and prostitution. It notes, however, that according to the TBP working document, there are currently no statistics available on the total number of children engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take the necessary measures to resolve this situation and to supply statistics and information on the nature, extent and development of the worst forms of child labour, the number of children protected by the measures giving effect to the Convention, the number and nature of violations, the inquiries carried out, the court cases and the convictions and sanctions applied. The information provided shall, as far as is possible, be broken down according to gender.