Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Madagascar (Ratification: 2000)

The Committee notes the communication of the General Confederation of Workers’ Unions of Madagascar (CGSTM) of 27 August 2012, and the Government’s report.

Article 1 of the Convention and Part V of the report form. National policy and application of the Convention in practice. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the National Survey on Child Labour (ENTE) of 2007, conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics in conjunction with ILO/IPEC/SIMPOC, more than one child out of four in Madagascar between 5 and 17 years of age (28 per cent) is economically active, that is 1,870,000 children. The participation rate in economic activity increases with age: while 12 to 15 per cent of children between 5 and 9 years of age are economically active, the rate rises to over 30 per cent in the 10–14 year age group, and to 55 per cent in the case of children between 15 and 17 years. The problem is more acute in rural areas, where 31 per cent of children are engaged in an economic activity, compared with 19 per cent in urban areas. Most economically active children are in the agricultural and fishing sector, where most of them (two out of three) help families. In the case of children between 5 and 14 years of age, 22 per cent are engaged regularly in an economic activity and 70 per cent attend school. The Committee notes the allegations of the CGSTM that many underage children from rural areas are sent to large towns by their parents to work in the domestic sector. These children are exposed to household work, which can be exhausting and they sometimes do not have leave or fixed hours of work. Moreover, these children have not necessarily completed their compulsory schooling.

The Committee noted previously the adoption of the National Plan of Action to Combat Child Labour in Madagascar (PNA), and the six plans of action covering the rural sector, mining and quarrying, manufacturing, domestic work, catering and trade, and miscellaneous activities. It noted the Government’s indication that the first phase of the PNA lasted five years and ended in 2009. The PNA was in an extension phase, and a policy plan for the second phase of the PNA had been drawn up. The Government also indicated that before the end of 2011 certain activities would be undertaken to support the implementation and extension of the PNA strategies.

The Committee notes the CGSTM’s indication that it reiterates the observations made in its previous communication.

The Committee notes the Government’s indications concerning the activities to combat child labour. The Government indicates in particular that the workplan of the National Committee to Combat Child Labour (CNLTE) for 2012–13 has been adopted. The Government also reports several projects that are currently being implemented: the AMAV project against child domestic labour; the workplan against child labour in vanilla plantations in the Sava region; the workplan to combat the commercial sexual exploitation of children; and the plan of action concerning child labour in mines and stone quarries in the Atsimo Andrefana region, implemented in the context of the ILO/IPEC TACKLE project. While taking due note of the measures taken by the Government to combat child labour, the Committee observes that the Government has not provided any information on the impact of the measures adopted on the progressive elimination of child labour. The Committee notes that the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its concluding observations of 8 March 2012 (CRC/C/MDG/CO/3–4, paragraph 59), while noting that Madagascar has adopted programmes and policies to combat child labour, also notes with concern the lack of information on any investigations and prosecution of persons responsible for child labour. The Committee of Experts is therefore bound once again to express its deep concern at the considerable number of children under the minimum age obliged to work, as well as the conditions under which these children are exploited. The Committee firmly requests the Government to redouble its efforts to combat child labour and urges it to provide information on the results achieved for the implementation of the PNA and other programmes of action in terms of the progressive abolition of child labour.

Article 2(3). Age of completion of compulsory schooling. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to a document published by the UNESCO International Bureau of Education, the age of completion of compulsory schooling is lower than the minimum age for admission to employment or work. The Committee observed that, according to this document, the official age of access to primary education is 6 years and the duration of compulsory schooling is five years, meaning that the age of completion of compulsory schooling is 11. The Committee noted the Government’s indications that it is fully aware of the importance of compulsory schooling as a means of combating child labour. The Government indicated that several meetings had been held on this subject with a view to giving the issue of national education the importance that it deserves, but that much remains to be done, particularly in light of the political crisis affecting the country. The Committee noted the CGSTM’s allegation that no changes had yet been made by the Government to resolve the problem of the difference between the age of completion of compulsory schooling (11 years) and the minimum age for admission to employment or work (15 years).

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ministry of Education is currently pursuing its efforts so as to be able to take measures to resolve the gap between the minimum age for admission to employment or work and the age of completion of compulsory schooling. The Committee reminds the Government that compulsory schooling is one of the most effective means of combating child labour and emphasizes how necessary it is to link the age for admission to employment or work with the age at which compulsory education ends, as envisaged in Paragraph 4 of the Minimum Age Recommendation, 1973 (No. 146). The Committee observes that if compulsory schooling ends before young persons are legally authorized to work, there may arise a vacuum which regrettably opens the door for the economic exploitation of children (see the General Survey 0f 2012 on the fundamental Conventions concerning rights at work, paragraph 371). The Committee therefore once again expresses the firm hope that the Government will take measures to raise the age of completion of compulsory schooling so that it coincides with the age of admission to employment or work in Madagascar. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress achieved in this respect.

Article 6. Vocational training and apprenticeship. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that a decree determining the conditions of work with respect to vocational training and apprenticeships would be examined by the National Labour Council (CNT), which is a tripartite body. It also noted the Government’s indication that the Ministry of Employment and Vocational Training was preparing various regulations on vocational training which were to be examined in 2006. The Committee also noted that the Ministry of Employment and Vocational Training was planning to submit to Parliament a Bill on the national employment policy, in which further vocational training and apprenticeships were a priority objective. The Committee noted the Government’s indications that the draft legislative texts on vocational training and apprenticeship had been examined by the CNT, but that, in view of the political crisis and the closure of many enterprises, the CNT was not yet in a position to take final decisions and that several of its members want to re-examine the issue once the crisis is over.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it recognizes the current blockage in Madagascar since the crisis and that full information on progress relating to the legislation on vocational training and apprenticeship will be provided in due time. The Committee once again firmly encourages the Government to intensify its efforts and to take the necessary measures to ensure that the draft texts on apprenticeship and vocational training are adopted in the very near future. It once again requests the Government to provide copies of these texts once they have been adopted.