Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2002, published 91st ILC session (2003)

Guarding of Machinery Convention, 1963 (No. 119) - Madagascar (Ratification: 1964)

1.  The Committee notes that, according to the report provided by the Government, the change that has occurred at the level of the Constitution adopted on 15 March 1998 (Constitutional Act No. 98-001 of 8 April 1998) does not modify the general principles of the Constitution of 1992. It also notes that no other changes have occurred in the provisions of the law and regulations that are in force and that the former texts remain in force in so far as the implementing texts of the Labour Code (Act No. 94-029 of 25 August 1995) and the Occupational Safety, Health and the Working Environment Code (Act No. 94-027 of 17 November 1994) have not yet been published.

The Committee also notes the adoption of Decree No. 99-130 of 17 February 1999 respecting the organization and operation of the Advisory Technical Committee on Occupational Safety, Health and the Working Environment, section 10 of which provides that the measures for the application of the Decree are to be, as necessary, determined by order issued by the Minister responsible for labour and social protection. The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of the measures adopted with a view to the application of the above text.

2.  The Committee therefore notes with regret that the Government’s report does not reply to its previous comments. It recalls that for many years it has been urging the Government to adopt texts implementing the Occupational Safety, Health and the Working Environment Code in order to give effect to Articles 2 and 4 of the Convention, which provide that the sale, hire, transfer in any other manner and exhibition of machinery of which the dangerous parts specified in Article 2, paragraphs (2) and (3),are without appropriate guards must be prohibited, and that the obligation to ensure compliance with these provisions must rest on the vendor, the person letting out on hire or transferring the machinery in any other manner, or the exhibitor, as well on the manufacturer when he sells machinery, lets it out on hire, transfers it in any other manner or exhibits it.

The Committee once again hopes that the Government will not fail to adopt the above implementing texts and will provide a copy of the adopted texts.