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

Convention (n° 29) sur le travail forcé, 1930 - Côte d'Ivoire (Ratification: 1960)
Protocole de 2014 relatif à la convention sur le travail forcé, 1930 - Côte d'Ivoire (Ratification: 2019)

The Committee notes that the Government’s first report on the application of the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930, has not been received. The Committee hopes that the Government will submit its first detailed report on the application of the Protocol of 2014 at the same time as its next report on the application of the Convention, due by 2027.

Articles 1(2), 2(2) and 25 of the Convention. Trafficking in persons. National strategy. The Committee notes the adoption of the new national strategy on combating trafficking in persons covering the 2022–25 period, which has four priority components: (i) prevention through better understanding of the practice of trafficking; (ii) protection and care for victims; (iii) fair access to the justice system for victims; and (iv) the establishment of multisectoral and multidisciplinary cooperation and coordination mechanisms. The Committee notes that the strategy includes a detailed analysis of the results achieved and the challenges encountered in the implementation of the previous strategy for 2016–20. During this period, 2,377 trafficking victims were cared for by the social structures of the State and by shelters run by national NGOs. The main challenges encountered included: inadequate public funding for action against trafficking, in the absence of a dedicated national fund; the lack of advocacy for anti-trafficking action on the part of decision-makers and the private sector; and the absence of an integrated system for the management of information on trafficking.

The Committee welcomes the process which led to the adoption of the new national strategy on combating trafficking in persons covering the 2022–25 period and requests the Government to provide information on: (i) activities undertaken to implement the four priority components of the strategy; (ii) the results achieved, the difficulties encountered and the measures taken to overcome them; and (iii) progress made on establishing a dedicated national fund for action against trafficking and an integrated national data collection and management system.

(i) Preventive measures. The Committee notes that the 2022–25 strategy provides for the implementation of an institutional communication strategy and the development of research and studies on trafficking with support from the National Committee against Trafficking In Persons (CNLTP); the organization of activities to raise awareness and publicize legal instruments within the communities exposed to trafficking; and the holding of ongoing training sessions for judges and judicial police officers and employees. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the awareness-raising and education activities carried out on the subject of trafficking for sexual and labour exploitation, particularly in at-risk communities and sectors.

(ii) Protection of victims. The Committee duly notes the Government’s indication that a number of activities relating to the protection of victims have been carried out by the CNLTP, including: the establishment of five regional anti-trafficking units; and the development, on the one hand, of the national referral mechanism (MNR) for trafficking victims and, on the other hand, of standard operating procedures.

According to information on the government website, a total of 1,431 trafficking victims and migrant smuggling victims received assistance in 2024 through CNLTP operations; 91 trafficking victims returned voluntarily to their countries of origin with support from the International Organization for Migration (IOM); and 82 income-generating activities were established for a number of victims.

The Committee also notes that the 2022–25 strategy provides for the development of a trafficking early warning and reporting system, the establishment of a dedicated telephone helpline, and a pool of 100 community relay points to facilitate the identification of trafficking cases. The strategy also provides for the establishment of 10 state-run centres for the reception and transit of trafficking victims and the rehabilitation and equipping of four private centres for victim care.

The Committee encourages the Government to continue its efforts to ensure the identification and protection of trafficking victims on its territory and requests its to provide information on the number of victims identified and the protection and assistance measures from which they benefited, including assistance with voluntary return to their countries.

iii. Prosecution and imposition of penal sanctions. The Committee notes the Government’s indications regarding the three types of conviction for trafficking in persons that are concerned with the trafficking of children. The Committee notes the information on the government website according to which 30 persons were convicted of human trafficking offences in 2024.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on: (i) capacity-building measures adopted for law enforcement bodies aimed at the improved identification of cases of trafficking in persons for both sexual and labour exploitation; (ii) activities undertaken by the CNLTP and regional units and the implementation of the referral mechanism and standard operating procedures; and (iii) the number of investigations conducted, prosecutions initiated and penalties imposed pursuant to section 4 of Act No. 2016-1111 on action against trafficking in persons.

Article 2(2)(c). Sentence of community work. The Committee notes Decree No. 2021-241 of 26 May 2021 determining the arrangements for enforcing the penalty of community work, which, like the Penal Code, provides that this sentence shall be served for the benefit of public entities, particularly the State, regional authorities and public establishments, and also associations authorized to carry out community works or private entities with a public service mandate. The office coordinating the national policy on community work is tasked with establishing the list of national structures where such work can be performed and drawing up documents for monitoring and evaluating the work of convicted persons (sections 1, 2 and 10). The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on private associations with a public service mandate which accommodate persons serving community work sentences and to indicate the nature of the work carried out.

Article 2(2)(d). Powers of requisitioning. For many years, the Committee has drawn the Government’s attention to the need to formally repeal Act No. 63-4 of 17 January 1963 on the use of persons for promoting national economic and social development and its implementing Decree No. 63-48 of 9 February 1963. These legal texts, which allow the requisitioning of persons over 18 years of age to perform certain types of work of national interest with a view to national economic and social promotion, define powers of requisitioning too broadly and go beyond the exceptional situations provided for in Article 2(2)(d) of the Convention, concerning any work or service exacted in cases of emergency.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that these texts, which are no longer applied in practice, have not yet been formally repealed. The Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary steps to formally repeal Act No. 63-4 of 17 January 1963 and its implementing decree, in order to bring the national legislation into conformity with the Convention and avoid any legal ambiguity.