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

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Mauritania (Ratification: 1971)

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Coordination of employment policy with poverty reduction. In reply to its 2005 direct request, the Government indicates in its report received in October 2006 that the National Agency for the Promotion of Youth Employment (ANAPEJ) is tasked with improving the employability of young persons by enhancing their vocational integration in the labour market, by developing their entrepreneurial spirit and by promoting self-employment (Decree No. 2005-002 of 18 January 2005). The Committee notes that, according to the ANAPEJ’s assessment forwarded by the Government as an annex to its report, over 2,500 persons, particularly young persons and women, have benefited from labour market integration programmes, and 372 projects for self-employment have been financed, thereby generating the creation of 852 jobs. The Government adds that the support programme for income-generating activities (AGR) and the promotion of micro and small enterprises is an important tool in combating poverty. According to information from the Strategic Framework to Combat Poverty (CSLP) for 2006–10, the unemployment rate increased from 29 to 32.5 per cent between 2000 and 2004, the participation rate was 54.9 per cent in 2004, with a major disparity between men (61.9 per cent) and women (39.1 per cent). The principal obstacles to the promotion of employment are the absence of an overall medium-term employment policy and the mismatch between the education and vocational training system with labour market needs, the inadequacy of labour market information, the low level of resources for employment services and a lack of coordination between the various authorities concerned (paragraphs 194 and 196 of the CSLP 2006-10, October 2006). The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the measures adopted, particularly in the context of the CSLP 2006-10, to ensure that employment, as a key element in poverty reduction, is at the heart of macroeconomic and social policies. It also requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved by the measures adopted in the context of the Poverty Reduction Strategy, particularly for young persons and women, and by any other measure adopted with a view to promoting full, productive and freely chosen employment. In this respect, the Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of any report evaluating the activities of the ANAPEJ which is to be established at the end of each operational year.

2. Employment promotion and labour-intensive works. The Committee notes the various programmes that are under way with a view to promoting the production of cut stone in three centres, road construction and integrated urban development with a view to facilitating access to housing and economic opportunities for poor areas. The Government indicates that the evaluation of these various programmes in terms of employment remains to be carried out. The Committee requests the Government to provide in its next report an impact assessment of these programmes in terms of the creation of productive employment.

3. Compilation and utilization of employment data. The Government indicates that a workshop, gathering together all the social partners and the representatives of administrations, was held on 9 August 2006 and that it recommended the launching of an ambitious programme for the collection and compilation of data through surveys of the informal sector, enterprises in the modern sector and employment in agricultural undertakings. The Committee also notes that the Employment Observatory is responsible for collecting statistical data on employment and updating the employment database regularly. The Committee once again emphasizes the importance of establishing a system for the collection of labour market data so that policies can be based on an accurate assessment of labour market conditions. The Committee requests the Government to indicate in its next report the progress achieved in the compilation of employment data, with an indication of the employment policy measures adopted on the basis of these new labour market information systems.

4. Article 3. Participation of the social partners in policy design and formulation. The Government indicates that, in the context of the process of formulating the CSLP, a technical sectoral employment committee, which includes representatives of the social partners, has been established and has provided an opportunity for identifying prospects for the CSLP 2006-10. The Committee also notes section 2 of Decree No. 2005-002 of 18 January 2005, which entrusts the ANAPEJ with responsibility for contributing, in the context of concerted dialogue between the administration, the occupational organizations of workers and employers and civil society organizations, to the implementation of the national employment policy. The Committee requests the Government to provide examples in its next report of consultations held with the social partners, particularly in the context of the ANAPEJ, on the subjects covered by the Convention, with an indication of the opinions issued and the manner in which they have been taken into account. The Committee recalls that the consultations covered by the Convention require the consultation of representatives of all the persons affected, particularly in the rural sector and the informal economy, and it requests the Government to indicate the measures envisaged with a view to ensuring that the latter collaborate fully in the formulation and implementation of employment policies.

5. Part V of the report form. ILO technical assistance. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the action taken as a result of the technical assistance received from the ILO with a view to ensuring the implementation of an active employment policy within the meaning of the Convention.