Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2025, publiée 114ème session CIT (2026)

Convention (n° 182) sur les pires formes de travail des enfants, 1999 - Arménie (Ratification: 2006)

The Committee notes the observations of the Confederation of Trade Unions of Armenia (CTUA), communicated with the Government’s report

Articles 3(a) and 7(1) of the Convention. Sale and trafficking of children and penalties. The Committee observes from the official website of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia that the new Criminal Code entered into force on 1 July 2022. It notes that section 188 of the Criminal Code defines human trafficking as the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or reception of a person for the purpose of exploitation and refers to exploitation as forced labour, sexual exploitation, and slavery-like practices, punishable with imprisonment of 5 to 8 years. It further notes that section 189(1) specifically addresses the trafficking of children, increasing the penalty from 7 to ten years, and providing penalties of up to 15 years in aggravated cases.

The Committee takes note of the Government’s information, in its report, concerning complaints, investigations, and convictions related to trafficking in persons for sexual and labour exploitation between 2021 and 2023. It notes that, in 2023, 27 criminal proceedings were initiated for human trafficking, including four for sexual exploitation and 23 for labour exploitation. Of the four sexual exploitation cases, three prosecutions were initiated against five individuals (two men and three women), involving six victims, including two women and four minors (three girls and one boy). The preliminary investigation into these cases is ongoing. The Committee also notes that 36 victims were identified in the proceedings on trafficking for labour exploitation, including 21 men, 10 women and five children (four boys and one girl). Two of these cases were submitted to court, involving two individuals and five victims (four women and one boy). One case resulted in the conviction of one man, sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment for the forced labour of two boys in the agricultural sector between 2017 and 2018.

The Committee further observes that the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), in its concluding observations of 1 November 2022, expressed concern that Armenia remains a country of origin for trafficking in women and girls for the purposes of sexual and labour exploitation (CEDAW/C/ARM/CO/7, para. 27). It also observes, from the 2022 report of the Group of Experts on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) on the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings by the Republic of Armenia, Armenia continues to be a country of origin for trafficked persons but is also a country of destination, whether for Armenian nationals trafficked internally or for foreign nationals. The Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to combat the trafficking of children under 18 years of age and to provide further information on the measures that have been taken in this respect. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the specific number of cases of trafficking of children identified, investigated, prosecuted and convicted, as well as the penalties imposed in this regard.

Article 7(2). 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 information on measures taken to prevent school exclusion and reintegrate children into the education system. These include: (1) the amendment of Decision No. 1534-N to establish a digital platform to identify, monitor, and manage cases of out-of-school children aged six to 19 by cross-checking population and education data and enabling follow-up by the relevant authorities; (2) the amendment of Decision No. 388/2012 to allow students with extended absences to complete assignments or repeat the academic year to avoid exclusion; (3) outreach guidance to regional offices to reintegrate drop-outs, especially in rural areas; and (4) a circular to regional authorities ordering the school enrolment of forcibly displaced children from Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh). However, the Committee observes that the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), in its concluding observations of 14 October 2024, remains seriously concerned about the deteriorating levels of school enrolment and attendance, particularly of children from Nagorno Karabakh (CRC/C/ARM/CO/5-6, para. 37). The Committee further notes that the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), in its concluding observations of 24 December 2024, is concerned that minorities, particularly Yezidis and Kurds, have the lowest levels of education (CERD/C/ARM/CO/12-14, para.17). While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee requests the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure access to education for all children, particularly those in disadvantaged or remote areas and part of minorities groups. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the measures taken in this regard and on the results achieved, in particular as regards the increase in enrolment and completion rates and the reduction in the school drop-out rates in primary and secondary education.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Children from poor families. The Committee notes from the observations of the CTUA that child labour is closely linked to widespread poverty and social vulnerability, particularly among working-poor families. It notes that, according to statistical data referenced by the CTUA from the Statistical Committee of Armenia, the national poverty rate stood at 24.8 per cent in 2022. It further notes the CTUA’s observation that a significant proportion of working poor are unable to meet minimum subsistence needs despite being employed, leading to children engaging in informal work, often during school hours, at the expense of their right to education. Observing that children from these groups are at greater risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to take effective and time-bound measures to protect these children from such worst forms and to provide information on the measures taken in this regard.

Children in street situations. The Committee notes the Government’s information that, to prevent cases of begging and vagrancy among minors, the Juvenile Crime and Family Violence Prevention Department of the Police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, in coordination with Yerevan city and regional departments, conduct inspection visits during the summer in areas where children may be involved in such activities.

However, the Committee notes the CTUA’s observations that, due to difficult social conditions, children are forced to engage in begging during school hours, despite the inspection body’s authority to carry out oversight. The Committee further observes the concern expressed by the CRC, in its concluding observations of 2024, regarding the increasing number of children engaged in begging (CRC/C/ARM/CO/5-6, para. 42). Recalling that street children are particularly vulnerable to the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to remove children from the streets and to ensure their rehabilitation and social integration. It also requests the Government to provide information on the number of children who have been removed from the streets, rehabilitated and socially integrated.

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