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

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Djibouti (Ratification: 2005)

The Committee notes with deep concern that the Government’s report, due since 2017, has not been received. In the light of its urgent appeal to the Government in 2020, the Committee has proceeded with the examination of the application of the Convention on the basis of the information at its disposal.

Article 1 of the Convention. National policy for the effective abolition of child labour and application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously requested the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure the effective implementation of the National Strategic Plan for Children (PSNED) in Djibouti and to provide information on the results achieved in the progressive elimination of child labour and the progress made in formulating a national policy to combat child labour.

The Committee notes the various legislative changes introduced by the Government between 2017 and 2021 with respect to child labour, such as: (i) Decree No. 2017-354/PR/MFF of 2 November 2017 amending Decree No. 2012-067/PR/MPF, on the establishment and organization of the National Children’s Council (CNE). The CNE is the national supervisory body for the implementation of the PSNED which coordinates child protection actors by guiding and defining child rights policies; (ii) Law No. 66/AN/719/8ème L of 13 February 2020, on taking measures with a view to combating early school drop-outs, including among girls; (iii) Decree No. 2021-193/PR/MEFF of 3 August 2021 on the organization and operation of the National Council for the Rights of the Child (CNDE) in the Republic of Djibouti. The CNDE is the national supervisory body for the implementation of the National Policy for Children in Djibouti and is under the authority of the Prime Minister; and (iv) Decree No. 2021-194/PR/MEFF of 3 August 2021 on the establishment and organization of the National Child Protection Platform in the Republic of Djibouti.

The Committee notes that, in the context of the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour, the Ministry of Labour and Industrial Relations has undertaken to develop an action plan to eliminate child labour in Djibouti. The three actions to be implemented are: (i) the establishment of a national committee, (ii) the identification of a national and international consultant to develop the plan; and (iii) the organization of a workshop to approve the plan. The Committee requests that the Government take the necessary measures for the development and adoption of the new action plan for the elimination of child labour in Djibouti. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the policy of the CNE and the National Child Protection Platform.

Article 2(1). Scope of application and labour inspection. The Committee previously requested the Government to take steps to ensure that the protection afforded by the Convention is secured to children under 16 years of age working in the informal economy, particularly by adapting and strengthening the labour inspectorate in order to improve the capacity of labour inspectors to identify cases of child labour. It requested the Government to provide information in this regard and on the results achieved. Noting the absence of information on this subject, the Committee reiterates its request to the Government to take steps to ensure that the protection afforded by the Convention is secured to children under 16 years of age working in the informal economy, particularly by adapting and strengthening the labour inspectorate in order to improve the capacity of labour inspectors to identify cases of child labour. It once again requests the Government to provide information on this subject and on the results achieved.

Article 2(3). Age of completion of compulsory schooling. The Committee previously requested the Government to intensify its efforts to take measures that will ensure children’s participation in compulsory basic schooling, or in an informal school system. In this respect, it requested the Government to provide information on the recent measures taken to increase the school attendance rate, so as to prevent children under 16 years of age from working, and recent statistics on the primary and secondary school enrolment rates in Djibouti.

The Committee takes due note that, according to its 2021 report to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Government indicates the different measures taken with regard to education, including: (i) the Education Action Plan 2017–2020 of the Ministry of National Education and Vocational Training, which was revised in 2018; (ii) the continuation of the Blueprint 2010–2019 ; (iii) the development of pre-school education in collaboration with the private sector, the community and the Ministry of Women and the Family, with a focus on children from poor communities and rural areas.

The Committee also notes that, according to the Government’s indications in the Education Action Plan 2017–2020, the gross primary school attendance rate increased from 78.1 to 81.5 per cent between 2015 and 2016, while the gross enrolment rate for the first year of primary school rose from 71 to 80.5 per cent. However, the Government indicates that the gender parity index has not changed and that it is much lower in rural areas, thus highlighting strong disparities between girls and boys.

The Committee also notes in the same report that, according to the latest household survey carried out in 2017, around 16 per cent of children aged between 6 and 14 had never attended school or did not attend school that year, which represents one out of six children. This figure is higher than 30 per cent in the regions of Dikhil, Obock, Arta and Tadjourah. Furthermore, according to the Country Office Annual Report 2019 Djibouti of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the school drop-out rate remains high, with a gross rate of secondary school attendance of 66 per cent. While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts and take steps to enable all children under 16 years of age to attend compulsory basic education. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the results of the implementation of the Education Action Plan 2017–2020, as well as recent statistical data disaggregated by age, gender and region.

Article 3(1) and (2). Age of admission to hazardous work and determination of hazardous types of work. The Committee previously recalled that, pursuant to section 111 of the Labour Code, an order was adopted at the proposal of the Minister of Labour and the Minister of Health, after consultation with the National Council for Labour, Employment and Social Security, which determined the nature of the work and the categories of enterprises prohibited for women, pregnant women and young people, and the applicable minimum age. The Committee requested the Government to adopt such an order on the types of work and enterprises prohibited for young people.

The Committee also notes that, according to the report by the Ministry of Health in October 2020 concerning staff management procedures (page 54) in the context of two projects financed by a loan from the World Bank, a list of hazardous types of work was established, which considered as hazardous for children “work which by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out is likely to jeopardize the health, safety or morals of children”. Work activities prohibited for children include the following types of work: (a) work which exposes children to physical, psychological or sexual abuse; (b) work underground, underwater, 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 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.

However, the Committee once again notes the lack of information from the Government on the order determining the nature of the work and the categories of enterprises prohibited for women, pregnant women and young people, and the applicable minimum age. The Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that the order determining the nature of the work and the categories of enterprise prohibited for young people under 18 years of age is adopted in the near future under section 111 of the Labour Code.

The Committee reminds the Government that it may avail itself of ILO technical assistance in order to facilitate the application of the Convention.

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