Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Maternity Protection Convention, 1919 (No. 3) - Gabon (Ratification: 1961)

Article 3(a) of the Convention. Establishment of compulsory postnatal leave. The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that a new Labour Code has been adopted by Act No. 022/2021 of 19 November 2021. The Committee notes that, under section 208: (1) pregnant women have the right to suspend their employment contract for 14 consecutive weeks, of which six weeks shall be before the presumed date and eight weeks after the actual date of confinement; and (2) during postnatal leave, it is prohibited for employers to make use of the services of a women employee, unless there is a written agreement explicitly concluded between the parties at the initiative of the woman employee. The Committee recalls that Article 3(a) of the Convention sets out the compulsory nature of postnatal leave of at least six weeks and does not provide for any exceptions in this regard. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures adopted or envisaged to amend section 208 of the Labour Code to ensure that postnatal leave is made compulsory for at least six weeks, without any possible exceptions.

Application of the Convention in practice. Medical care. The Committee takes due note of the statistical data provided by the Government on the medical care provided to women, including: (1) according to the Third Demographic Health Survey of Gabon (EDSG-III) 2019–21, 96 per cent of women received prenatal care provided by a qualified care provider during their most recent pregnancy; and (2) there is a gap between women living in urban areas (97 per cent of them have frequently consulted a qualified care provider) and those in rural areas (87 per cent).

Moreover, the Committee notes that, according to the 2022 Annual Report of the United Nations Fund for Children (UNICEF), the child mortality rate fell by 15 points between 2012 and 2021 to 41.7 deaths per 1,000 births. The Committee further notes that, in its concluding observations of 1 March 2022, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) noted with concern that, despite the efforts made to enhance the access of women to healthcare, maternal mortality rates are persistently high and basic emergency obstetric and neonatal care is inadequate (CEDAW/C/GAB/CO/7, para. 30(b)). Noting this information, the Committee requests the Government to continue providing updated statistical data on the care provided to pregnant women, as well as to women who have given birth and newborns. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the measures envisaged or adopted to reduce maternal and infant mortality.

The Committee recalls that, upon the recommendation of the Tripartite Working Group of the Standards Review Mechanism (SRM), the Governing Body of the ILO, at its 349th Session (October–November 2023), classified Convention No. 3 as an outdated instrument and included an item on the agenda of the 121st Session (2033) of the International Labour Conference to examine its abrogation.

The Governing Body requested the Office to take follow-up action to actively encourage the ratification of the Maternity Protection Convention, 2000 (No. 183), which is the most up-to-date instrument concerning maternity protection, by Member States for which Convention No. 3 is still in force. The Committee therefore encourages the Government to follow the decision adopted by the Governing Body at its 349th Session (October–November 2023) approving the recommendations of the Tripartite Working Group of the SRM and to envisage the ratification of Convention No. 183 as the most up-to-date instrument in this area.