Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Ecuador (Ratification: 1962)

Indigenous rural workers. The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government on the Rural Social Security Scheme (SSC). It notes that in 2008 the SSC covers 40 per cent of the population entitled to coverage and that there are extension and promotional programmes to broaden the coverage of the Rural Social Security Scheme. The Committee notes with interest that the SSC is integrating ancestral, traditional and alternative practices in the type of care that it provides to communities, which can contribute to more effective and non‑discriminatory coverage. It notes that the SSC is reviewing the model for the provision of services based on the needs of those covered and that it is preparing the staff of community dispensaries to receive community contributions. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on the integration of these practices and on the percentage of indigenous rural workers covered by the SSC, and the projections of coverage for this sector of the population.

Exploitative conditions of work for women. In its previous comments, the Committee requested information on the progress achieved and the attainment of one of the objectives of the Equal Opportunities Plan (PIO), 2005–09, namely supporting inter-institutional plans and local and national public policy proposals for the prevention and elimination of work by women under exploitative conditions. The Committee notes that the National Council for Women (CONAMU) indicates that it has been affected by a significant cutback in resources from the general state budget and that it is negotiating for international cooperation so that it can meet its objectives in full. It reports that even with these limitations, it has been possible to carry out the work of the Inter-institutional Commission for the Prevention and Elimination of the Trafficking of Persons, in which it participates, with a view to formulating the National Plan on this subject, and that two subcommittees have been established, one for communication and the other for investigation. Furthermore, in coordination with the Gender Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior, CONAMU prepared the Manual of Procedures for the implementation of the Act respecting violence against women and in the family. CONAMU indicates that this Manual is fundamental in achieving gender equity as violence within the family has been the mechanism used by aggressors to prevent the full integration of women into society. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the activities carried out by the Inter-institutional Commission for the Prevention and Elimination of the Trafficking of Persons and on the activities related to the PIO objective of preventing and eliminating work by women under exploitative conditions.