CMNT_TITLE

The Committee notes the Government's report.

Articles 10 and 11 of the Convention. The Committee notes with interest the information to the effect that, in accordance with these provisions, a credit has been set aside in the budget for material and human resources and partially disbursed. The Committee requests the Government to provide a detailed financial statement on the means which are now available to labour inspectors and its impact on the development of the activities of the labour inspectorate.

Articles 19, 20 and 21. In accordance with these provisions of the Convention, labour inspectors or labour inspection officers, as the case may be, shall be required to submit to the central inspection authority periodical reports on the results of their inspection activities (Article 19); the central inspection authority shall publish an annual general report on the work of the inspection services under its control and transmit a copy to the ILO (Article 20). The annual reports should also include the points enumerated under Article 21(a) to (g). The Committee notes that the ILO has received no inspection reports during the last 12 years. It had already pointed out in paragraph 273 of its 1985 General Survey on the importance it attaches to the application of these provisions of the Convention. From a national viewpoint, annual inspection reports are essential to evaluate the practical results of labour inspectorate activities to ensure the necessary means are made available to improve their effectiveness. The annual reports of the labour inspectorate are also published to provide information to and to receive comments from employers and workers as well as their respective organizations. Finally, failure to provide the ILO with regular annual reports on the activities of the labour inspectorate deprives the ILO's supervisory bodies of an essential instrument enabling an evaluation of the manner in which the labour inspectorate functions in practice and a means of communication with the Government to ensure the correct application of the Convention. The Committee is therefore bound to reiterate to the Government the need to take appropriate measures to give effect to these provisions within the prescribed period and requests the Government to provide information in its next report on progress achieved to that end.

[The Government is asked to report in detail in 2000.]