Observación (CEACR) - Adopción: 2025, Publicación: 114ª reunión CIT (2026)

Convenio sobre las peores formas de trabajo infantil, 1999 (núm. 182) - Kiribati (Ratificación : 2009)

Article 3 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. Clause (b). Use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in its report, that no confirmed cases of child prostitution have been reported to date.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that strengthening institutional capacity and inter-agency cooperation remains a key national priority, and that coordinated efforts are implemented across several institutions, including the Ministry of Fisheries and Ocean Resources (MFOR), the Kiribati Police Service (KPS), and the Ministry of Employment and Human Resources (MEHR). The Committee strongly encourages the Government to strengthen the capacity of law enforcement bodies to ensure the effective identification, investigation and prosecution of perpetrators of offences involving the use, procuring or offering of children under 18 years of age for prostitution, and to ensure that sufficiently effective and dissuasive penalties are imposed in practice. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress achieved in this regard, including the number of investigations, prosecutions, and penalties imposed.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that MEHR continues to take active measures to strengthen the capacity of its Work Relations Unit, which is responsible for labour inspection and the enforcement of employment laws across both the formal and informal sectors. The Committee notes from the Government’s information that two labour officers, one based in Tarawa and one in Kiribati, completed labour inspection e-training courses provided by the International Training Centre of the ILO (ITC-ILO) in 2024, and that one labour officer has undertaken advanced labour inspection training through the same institution.

The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that MFOR enforcement officers have received extensive training from various partners on boarding and dockside inspection protocols, incident reporting and evidence collection, prosecution and case presentation procedures, and regional port monitoring and enforcement strategies.

The Committee also notes the Government’s information that labour inspections are carried out in high-risk sectors, including restaurants, hotels, motels, and other service industries. It notes the Government’s indication that inspections will continue and be progressively expanded as newly trained staff apply their skills in the field.

The Committee notes from the Government’s information that the KPS, through its Community Policing Unit, has continued to conduct monitoring and awareness activities in communities where children may be at risk of exploitation. It notes that, in 2024-2025, awareness visits were made to 16 schools, 16 community groups and 30 households, and monitoring was conducted in vulnerable areas such as urban centres and locations frequented by foreign fishing vessel crews. The Committee further notes that, in 2025, MEHR and KPS plan to jointly organize awareness-raising and monitoring campaigns targeting church organizations, schools and communities to strengthen reporting channels and outreach to vulnerable groups.

The Committee notes the Government’s commitment to continued capacity-building and its request for ILO support in delivering targeted training for labour inspectors and enforcement officers on child labour detection, investigation, and referral procedures. While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee requests the Government to continue to take the necessary steps to ensure that the enforcement bodies are provided with the appropriate training, sufficient resources and capacities, to effectively monitor the worst forms of child labour, including in the informal economy and areas where there is a high risk of the worst forms of child labour. It also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken in this regard and on the results achieved.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (b). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, removing them from these worst forms and ensuring their rehabilitation and social integration. Commercial sexual exploitation. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, although no cases of children who are victims of commercial sexual exploitation have been formally identified to date, steps are under way to build institutional capacity to respond if such cases arise. The Government adds that the Ministry of Women, Youth, Sports, and Social Affairs (MWYSSA) and the MEHR are coordinating efforts to integrate victim support into the national child protection framework.

The Committee also notes the Government’s information regarding the establishment of a joint inter-agency programme between the MEHR and the KPS, scheduled for launch in 2025, which aims to: (1) strengthen community-based monitoring and referral systems; (2) conduct targeted outreach to faith-based organizations, schools, and community leaders; and (3) align support services with existing child welfare mechanisms to ensure a coordinated and trauma-informed response.

The Committee further notes the Government’s indication of the need to develop formal referral pathways for child victims, encompassing psychological support, legal assistance, temporary shelter and family reintegration services. The Government adds that it remains committed to allocating resources where feasible, and requests ILO support to provide targeted training and technical assistance in victim identification and referral, trauma-informed child protection and case management, and rehabilitation and reintegration programming. The Committee strongly encourages the Government to continue its efforts, including through the implementation of the inter-agency programme between the MEHR and the KPS, to prevent children under 18 years of age from becoming victims of commercial sexual exploitation, to remove them from this worst form of child labour and to ensure their rehabilitation and social integration. It requests the Government to provide information on the number of children who have been removed from commercial sexual exploitation and provided with appropriate care and assistance. The Committee also requests the Government to take effective and time-bound measures to strengthen the capacities of the officials and other institutions responsible for providing support to child victims of commercial sexual exploitation, and to provide information on the results achieved.

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