Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Zimbabwe (Ratification: 2000)

Article 7(2) of the Convention. Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. Access to free basic education. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in its report, that: (1) in 2022 and 2023, a pilot project was launched, providing Grants-in-Aid of Tuition to 20 rural districts with the least annual per capita revenue per year (2 districts per province), covering fees, tuition, textbooks and uniforms; (2) efforts have been made towards expanding the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM: which provides assistance to vulnerable children to enable them to go to school and to ensure their attendance and retention in schools) through the utilization of a non-limiting budget, which allows for the expansion of children benefiting from the programme; (3) BEAM is assisting a growing number of children (1.3 million children in 2021 and 1.8 million in 2022); and (4) regular monitoring of BEAM is undertaken, at all levels including national and community levels, to ensure that policy guidelines are followed as well as to identify any gaps that should be rectified to enhance programming efforts for the children benefiting from the programme.

The Committee further notes, from the 2023 UNICEF Country Office Annual Report, that: (1) as the education sector recovers from the impact of COVID-19, the net enrolment for primary education increased from 83.51 per cent to 88.33 per cent; (2) the transition rate from grade 7 (last year of primary school) to Form 1 (first year of secondary) increased from 81.46 to 85 per cent between 2021 and 2022, and the gender parity index was 1.01; (3) the survival rate in lower and upper secondary was at 84 per cent, above the 53 per cent target; and (4) the proportion of children out-of-school in primary and lower secondary schools, at 10 and 17 per cent, respectively, remains a concern. The Committee also notes the 2023 UNICEF Zimbabwe Annual Report, which highlights that UNICEF’s provision of learning materials contributed to grade 7 pass rate of 39.83 per cent in 2022, with girls (43.42 per cent) performing better than boys (35.92 per cent).

The Committee takes due note of the measures taken by the Government to increase school attendance and completion rates, with the result that the number of out-of-school children decreased at the lower secondary level (23.6 per cent in 2019 to 17 per cent in 2022). However, it notes with concern: (1) an increase in the rate of out-of-school children at the primary level: 4.7 per cent in 2019 to 10 per cent in 2022; and (2) the low pass rate from primary to secondary school (39.83 per cent). The Committee recalls that education is key in preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. It therefore urges the Government to take all necessary measures to strengthen its efforts to ensure effective access to free basic education to all children, particularly children from poor and disadvantaged families, including through the BEAM project, the School Feeding Programme or otherwise. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on: (i) the concrete measures taken in this regard, particularly with respect to addressing the financial barriers to education, with a view to increasing school attendance rates and reducing drop-out rates; and (ii) the results achieved, including by providing updated statistical data on the attendance, survival and drop-out rates and the number of out-of-school children.

Clauses (a) and (b). Preventing children from engaging in and removing them from the worst forms of child labour and ensuring their rehabilitation and social integration.Children engaged in hazardous work on tobacco farms. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) it is in the process of developing the fourth National Action Plan for Orphans and Vulnerable Children (NAP-OVC IV), with a pillar on child labour, which intends to provide for time-bound measures to remove children from hazardous work and provide for their rehabilitation and reintegration, through the case management system; (2) a Technical Working Group in the Tobacco Sector has been established, to share information, challenges and offer solutions to issues related to child labour in the tobacco sector; and (3) an Agricultural Labour Practices Code for the Tobacco Sector 2023–2024 was developed and disseminated to all stakeholders. Its intention is to promote zero tolerance of all forms of child labour on tobacco farms, in auction floors and factories.

The Committee further takes note of the 2019 Report on the Survey on Child Labour in the Tobacco Sector, provided by the Government. From this Report, the Committee notes that: (1) 26.3 per cent of the surveyed children aged 5–15 years were involved in tobacco operations in the last seven days; (2) the largest proportion of these children (65.7 per cent) are not paid; (3) most of these children (46.5 per cent) were involved in tobacco operations following instructions from their parents or guardian, while 20.3 per cent were doing so to support or supplement household income; (4) only 8.4 per cent of all children working on tobacco operations were provided with protective clothing; and (5) most children below 15 years participated in the spraying of tobacco. In light of this information, the Committee notes with concern that children continue to be engaged in child labour in tobacco operations, including hazardous work. Moreover, it notes that the Government does not provide information on the measures taken, and results achieved, to remove children from hazardous work on tobacco farms and provide them with the necessary direct assistance. The Committee therefore once again urges the Government to: (i) take the necessary measures to ensure that children under 18 years of age are not engaged in hazardous work on tobacco farms; and (ii) take effective and time-bound measures to remove them from such work and to provide for their rehabilitation and reintegration, including within the framework of the NAP-OVC IV. In this regard, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on: (i) the measures taken in this regard; and (ii) the results achieved, including the number of children removed from this worst form of child labour and the type of direct assistance provided to them. It further requests the Government to provide information on the activities of the Technical Working Group in the Tobacco Sector to prevent children from engaging in hazardous work on tobacco farms.

Children engaged in hazardous work in the mining sector. The Committee takes note of the Government’s information that: (1) an awareness-raising workshop was conducted in December 2021 in Kadoma with Small scale miners associations, to raise awareness of child labour in the mines; and (2) the Government is in the process of establishing a National Steering Committee (NSC) on Child Labour, which will be a multi-stakeholder committee in which the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development and associations responsible for the mining sector and activities will be members. One of the key objectives of the NSC will be to set out clear time bound measures to prevent the engagement of children in hazardous tasks within key economic sectors. The Committee recalls the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions’ (ZCTU) previous observations that hazardous child labour was high in the mining sector and that 67 per cent of children working in this sector use chemicals (including mercury, cyanide and explosives) while approximately 24 per cent of these children work for more than nine hours a day. It therefore notes with regret the absence of information provided on any concrete measures taken to remove children from these worst forms of child labour. The Committee therefore once again urges the Government to take effective and time bound measures to prevent the engagement of children in hazardous work in the mining sector, and to provide for their removal and subsequent rehabilitation and social integration. In this regard, it once again requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken and the results achieved, including in terms of the number of children removed from illegal mining activities by the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development and provided assistance for rehabilitation and reintegration. The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide information on: (i) any awareness-raising activities undertaken in this regard; and (ii) the establishment of the National Steering Committee on Child Labour as well as on its activities to prevent and remove children from hazardous work in the mining sector.

Clause (d). Identify and reach out to children at special risk. Orphans of HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable children (OVC). The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) it is providing specialized services through HIV-sensitive Case Management and Disability-sensitive Case Management within the National Case Management System, which addresses the needs of orphans and vulnerable children. These specialized services ensure that all children in vulnerable situations receive specialized care and services whilst ensuring that no child or family is left behind; and (2) the new NAP-OVC IV will provide for measures to strengthen BEAM and the National Case Management System to better assist orphans and vulnerable children, including to strengthen the reciprocal referral mechanism existing between the Labour Administration and Social Services to identify and assist children at special risk.

The Committee further notes, that according to the 2022 UNAIDS estimates, the average number of children aged 0 to 17 that are orphaned due to HIV/AIDS is 490,000, indicating a negligeable reduction from the 2019 estimates (500,000). The Committee recalls that child orphans of HIV/AIDS and other vulnerable children are at an increased risk of becoming victim to the worst forms of child labour. It therefore requests the Government to pursue its efforts to prevent the engagement of orphans and other vulnerable children in the worst forms of child labour, including through the NAP-OVC IV, the BEAM project and the National Case Management System. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken and the results achieved in this regard.

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