Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Nepal (Ratification: 1997)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It is therefore bound to repeat its previous comments.

Repetition

Article 2(1) of the Convention. Scope of application. Children working in the informal economy. The Committee previously noted that the Child Labour Act of 2000, which prohibits the employment of children below 14 years as labourers (section 3(1)), does not define the terms “employment” and “labourer”. It also noted the Government’s indication that the Act does not adequately cover the informal sector. The Committee further noted the Government’s indication that although labour inspections showed a negligible incidence of child labour in the formal sector, this phenomenon was more likely to be prevalent in the informal sector.

The Committee once again notes the Government’s statement that it is very difficult to enforce the provisions of the Convention in the informal sector due to limited infrastructure and financial resources. The Committee also notes the information in the Report on the Nepal Labour Force Survey (of 2008), produced by the Central Bureau of Statistics, in conjunction with the ILO and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), that 82 per cent of working children who are under the minimum age are engaged in agricultural occupations, most of whom perform this work outside of a formal labour relationship and on an unpaid basis (page 139). Moreover, the Committee notes the statement in the report of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), for the World Trade Organization General Council on the Trade Policies of Nepal of 1 and 3 February 2012 entitled “Internationally recognized core labour standards in Nepal” that formal employment agreements account for only 10 per cent of all employment relations, so the Child Labour Act is not enforced for 90 per cent of employment relationships. This report further indicates that working children are mainly found performing informal economic activity in quarries and mines, domestic servitude, agriculture and portering. Recalling that the Convention applies to all branches of economic activity and covers all types of employment or work, the Committee encourages the Government to take measures to strengthen the capacity and expand the reach of the labour inspectorate to better monitor children working in the informal economy. It requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken in this regard and on the results achieved.

Article 3(1) and (2). Minimum age for admission to hazardous work and determination of types of hazardous work. The Committee previously noted that sections 2(a) and 3(2) of the Child Labour Act prohibit the employment of persons under 16 years of age in any risky job or enterprise listed in the schedule, and that section 43(2) of the Labour Rules, 1993, also prohibits the employment of persons under 16 years on dangerous machines and in operations which are hazardous to their health. The Committee also noted the Government’s statement that the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 2000, listed different jobs, occupations and work environments that are hazardous and therefore prohibited to children below 16 years. In this respect, the Committee recalled that Article 3(1) of the Convention provides that the minimum age for admission to any type of employment or work, which by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to jeopardize the health, safety or morals of young persons shall not be less than 18 years.

The Committee notes the Government’s reference to the interim Constitution of 2007, and observes that article 22(5) of the interim Constitution of 2007 prohibits employing a minor in factories, mines or in any other such hazardous work. However, the Committee observes that the term “minor” is not defined in this legislation. In addition, the Committee notes an absence of information in the Government’s report on measures taken to determine the types of hazardous work prohibited to children under the age of 18. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the definition of the term “minor” in article 22(5) of the interim Constitution of 2007. Moreover, recalling that pursuant to Article 3(2) of the Convention, the types of hazardous employment or work shall be determined by national laws or regulations or by the competent authority, after consultation with the organizations of employers and workers concerned, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures without delay to determine the types of hazardous work which are prohibited for persons under 18 years.

Article 3(3). Admission to types of hazardous work from the age of 16 years. In its previous comments, the Committee reminded the Government that Article 3(3) of the Convention only authorizes the employment or work of young persons between the ages of 16 and 18 years in hazardous work under specific conditions, namely that the health, safety and morals of the young persons concerned are fully protected and that the young persons have received adequate specific instruction or vocational training in the relevant branch of activity.

The Committee notes that section 32A(1) of the Labour Act (as amended in 2000), states that minors (defined as persons between 16 and 18 pursuant to section 2(i)) shall not be engaged in work without adequate directives about the concerned working areas or vocational training. Section 32A(2) states that provisions shall be as prescribed regarding adequate directives about the concerned working areas or vocational training to be given to minors pursuant to section 32A(1). The Committee requests the Government to indicate if provisions have been adopted concerning the required vocational training or instruction for persons between 16 and 18 as a precondition for work. Moreover, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to ensure that persons between 16 and 18 years are only permitted to perform hazardous types of work if their health, safety and morals are fully protected.

Application of the Convention in practice. Following its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s statement that the Department of Labour has been making efforts to enforce the provisions of the Convention. The Government indicates that the Ministry of Local Development has begun a child-friendly local governance programme, which has the elimination of child labour as one of its main components. The Committee also notes that an ILO–IPEC project was launched in the country in 2011 in order to support the implementation of Nepal’s National Master Plan on the Elimination of Child Labour of 2011–20. The Committee further notes the Government’s statement that due to the awareness programmes implemented by the Government through Radio Nepal, there has been a decrease in child labour, as indicated in the Nepal Labour Force Survey. In this regard, the Committee notes the information in the Report on the Nepal Labour Force Survey that the percentage of children between the ages of 5 and 14 who were economically active has declined from 40.9 per cent in 1998–99 to 33.9 per cent in 2008.

Nonetheless, the Committee notes the information in the Report on the Nepal Labour Force Survey that there remain approximately 2,111,000 children between 5 and 14 who are economically active. This Report further indicates that 13.4 per cent of children between the ages of 5 and 9, and 52.7 per cent of children between the ages of 10 and 14, are economically active. In addition, the Committee notes that the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, in its concluding observations of 11 August 2011, expressed concern about the high rate of child labour in the country, particularly among girls between the ages of 8 and 14 (CEDAW/C/NPL/CO/4-5, paragraph 29). The Committee therefore expresses its deep concern at the significant number of children under the minimum age who are engaged in child labour in Nepal, and urges the Government to pursue its efforts, including within the framework of the National Master Plan on the Elimination of Child Labour and in collaboration with the ILO–IPEC with child friendly, gender sensitive programming, towards the effective reduction and elimination of child labour. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken in this regard, and on the results achieved. It also requests the Government to provide a copy of the National Master Plan on the Elimination of Child Labour, with its next report.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.

The Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to take the necessary action in the near future.