Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Egypt (Ratification: 1999)

Article 1 of the Convention and Part V of the report form. National policy on the effective abolition of child labour and the application of the Convention in practice. The Committee previously noted that, according to the 2005 report of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), 6 per cent of children aged 5–14 are involved in labour activities, mostly in the agricultural sector (in both commercial and subsistence agriculture). The ITUC report also indicated that children often work in repair and craft shops, in the brick making and textile sectors and in leather and carpet-making factories. The ITUC report stated that there was evidence of employers who abuse, overwork and endanger child workers. However, the Committee also noted the numerous measures taken by the Ministry of Manpower and Migration (MoMM) within the framework of the National Child Labour Strategy (adopted in 2006). These measures included the creation of a central database on child labour, the provision of services to working children and their families, and the development of poverty-alleviation programmes to help prevent children from entering the labour force or to return to school.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, while the central database on child labour is still being developed, the Central Body for Public Mobilization and Statistics is undertaking a comprehensive survey on child labour, in collaboration with the ILO. The Committee also notes the Government’s statement that child labour is not as widespread as indicated in the ITUC report and that the statistics in the ITUC report do not reflect the present reality of the situation in Egypt, particularly in light of the efforts of the Government over the last year. In this regard, the Committee notes the information in a report on the UNICEF Egypt website (www.unicef.org/egypt) on working children, that the issue of child labour is difficult to quantify in the country, and that different studies offer divergent figures on the number of working children. This UNICEF report indicates that the variation between different studies is due to the fact that much of the work performed by children is difficult to measure, as it is seasonal (UNICEF indicates that over a million children are hired each season to bring in the Egyptian cotton crop) and performed in the informal sector.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement that its efforts on the ground to eliminate child labour have been strengthened. The Government states that the implementation of the National Child Labour Strategy has resulted in the establishment of steering committees in all governorates, by virtue of Ministerial Order No. 227 of 2009. These steering committees will translate the National Child Labour Strategy into a national plan of action, with participation from governmental and non-governmental organizations. The Committee also notes that the work of the steering committees has resulted in the reintegration of 122 children into basic education, the enrolment of 109 children in literacy classes, the provision of social and health services to 789 children, the signing of 428 apprenticeship contracts, and the holding of awareness-raising sessions for 515 children. The Committee further notes that the World Food Programme is implementing the Combating Child Labour Project, in Beni Suef, Adyut and Sohag, which provides both in-school and take-home food to school children.

The Committee notes the information in the Survey of Young People in Egypt (Preliminary Report) of February 2010 (produced by the Egyptian Cabinet Information and Decision Support Centre and the Population Council) that 81 per cent of working children between the ages of 10 and 14 are in rural areas, with 53 per cent working in agriculture and 28 per cent working in construction. The Survey indicates that working children come from poorer households, with 65 per cent of working children between the ages of 10 and 14 coming from households in the two lowest income quintiles. While noting the efforts made by the Government to combat child labour, the Committee must express its concern at the number and situation of working children under the minimum age in Egypt and urges the Government to strengthen its efforts, within the framework of the National Child Labour Strategy, to ensure the progressive elimination of child labour. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of measures taken in this regard, particularly with respect to measures focusing on children in rural areas (including those engaged in seasonal work in the cotton sector) and children from low-income households. The Committee also requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the comprehensive survey on child labour of the Central Body for Public Mobilization and Statistics’ includes both children working on a seasonal basis and in the informal sectors, and to provide the results of this survey, once available.

Article 2(2). Raising the initially specified minimum age for admission to work. The Committee previously noted the Government’s statement that the Children’s Act No. 12 of 1996 (Children’s Act) was amended by Law No. 126 of 2008, to raise the minimum age of employment to 15 years. In this regard, the Committee notes with satisfaction that on 1 June 2010 the Government sent a declaration to the Director-General indicating that it was officially raising the minimum age for admission to employment or work from 14 to 15 years, thus bringing the minimum age fixed by national law into line with that prescribed at the international level.

Part III of the report form. Labour inspection. The Committee previously noted that, the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its concluding observations, noted that 80 per cent of child labour is reportedly concentrated in the agricultural sector (CRC/C/15/Add. 145, paragraph 49, of 21 February 2000). The Committee also noted that a separate unit within the MoMM is responsible for child labour investigations in the agricultural sector. It noted that inspections were carried out in small family enterprises in the agricultural sector to ensure that the working conditions conformed to those prescribed under Order No. 118 of 2003 (specifying that children under the age of 18 years may not be employed in several agricultural occupations) and Order No. 1454 of 2001 (on child labour in agriculture and cotton harvesting). The Committee further noted that, in the course of labour inspections, 3,677 children were found to be working by labour inspectors and that 436 violations of employers’ obligations were detected, involving 277 children. The Committee requested the Government to indicate if these statistics included the agricultural sector, and to provide information on the number of fines issued. The Committee also requested the Government to provide a copy of Order No. 1454 of 2001.

The Committee notes the copy of Order No. 1454 of 2001 submitted with the Government’s report. The Committee also notes the Government’s statement concerning the statistics submitted with its previous report, that the 436 violations resulted in the issuance of 124 citations, and that these inspections included the agricultural sector. The Committee further notes the information in the Government’s report that, in the first quarter of 2010, the following violations were registered: 106 violations for employing persons under the minimum age, 68 violations of Order No. 118 (involving 68 children) and six violations involving children in agriculture. The Government indicates that citations were issued for these violations. In addition, the Committee notes the detailed child labour inspection report submitted with the Government’s report under the Labour Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 (No. 129), on the number of child labour violations detected by the labour inspectorate in each region of the country. Lastly, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the child labour inspectorate coordinates with community-based organizations in each of the governorates, and that a child labour monitoring and tracking system has been set up for children working in agriculture.