Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2001, publiée 90ème session CIT (2002)

Convention (n° 118) sur l'égalité de traitement (sécurité sociale), 1962 - Suriname (Ratification: 1976)

In its previous comments concerning branch (g)- employment injury benefit, for which Suriname has accepted the obligations of this Convention, the Committee noted that the benefits granted to nationals and non-nationals were subjected to the condition of residence, contrary to Article 4 of the Convention, there was no payment of benefits abroad, contrary to Article 5, and none of the social security benefits was applicable to refugees and stateless persons, contrary to Article 10. The Government states in its report that it is conscious of the fact that no progress has been made in the application of these provisions of the Convention and that the national social security scheme does not exist at present. It explains that questions concerning the establishment of the national social security scheme enter into the competence of the Ministry of Social Affairs, while the Ministry of Labour is required to cooperate to achieve progress. The report further states that the Ministry of Labour will take the necessary steps within its competence to bring the legislation into conformity with the Convention. The introduction of the national social security scheme has been temporarily suspended due to other problems in the social sector, which are considered more urgent by the Government.

While noting this information, the Committee hopes that the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Social Affairs will be able to cooperate closely in order to achieve rapid progress on these issues. It recalls that they were the subject of technical assistance in the social security field provided to Suriname during the 1990s by the ILO and UNDP with a view to instituting a national social security scheme and revising the labour legislation. The Committee expresses the hope that, as promised by the Government in its report, appropriate changes in the legislation will be adopted in the near future, so as to give full effect to the abovementioned provisions of the Convention. As regards the institution of the national social security scheme, the Committee wishes to draw the Government’s attention to the high priority given to the objective of the extension of social security coverage to unprotected people in the conclusions concerning social security adopted by the 89th Session of the International Labour Conference in June 2001, and reminds the Government of the possibility to have further recourse to the technical assistance of the ILO in this area, if need be.