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1. Declaration of an active employment policy. The Committee notes the Government’s first report on the application of the Convention, received in September 2003, referring to certain provisions of the Labour Code and indicating that the State implements economic growth and development policies intended to promote productive employment. The Committee notes the assistance provided by the Office with regard to the formulation of employment policies, and particularly the holding in December 2002 of a tripartite workshop on employment policy options in the Dominican Republic. In this regard, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would indicate in its next report the manner in which an active policy to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment has been formulated. Please also indicate whether action has been taken as a result of the technical assistance provided by the ILO in this field (Article 1, paragraph 1, of the Convention).

2. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would include in its report a summary of the development plans and programmes which contain specific provisions envisaging an active employment policy, within the meaning of Article 1 of the Convention. Please state whether special difficulties have been encountered in attaining the employment objectives set out in the plans and programmes and indicate how far these difficulties have been overcome.

3. Coordination of the employment policy with economic and social policy. The Government states that the General Directorate of Employment is a titular member of the National Planning Committee for the Vocational Education System (COMPLAN), the objective of which is to examine the progress made by the Secretariat of State for Labour in combating unemployment. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would indicate in its next report the coordination established between the Secretariat of State for Labour, the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance and the National Planning Bureau for the declaration and perusal of an active employment policy. In this respect, the Committee would be grateful to be informed of the manner in which employment policy objectives have been taken into account when establishing the other economic and social objectives of Government policies (Article 1, paragraph 3, and Article 2).

4. Participation of the social partners in the formulation and application of policies. The Government states that it is its prerogative to hold consultations on any matter related to employment policy with the representatives of employers and workers. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the outcome of the consultations held, and particularly on the manner in which the full cooperation of the representatives of employers and workers is sought for the formulation and implementation of employment policy. Please also provide information on the consultations held with representatives "of the persons affected by the measures to be taken" of other sectors of the economically active population, such as those working in the rural sector and the informal economy (Article 3).

5. Please indicate whether formal consultative procedures have been established for the matters covered by the Convention.

6. The Committee notes that a large part of the population is under the poverty line, particularly in rural areas. The Committee trusts that in its next report the Government will also be able to indicate the manner in which employment policy measures contribute, in consultation with the representatives of the persons affected, to combating poverty.

7. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information in its next report on overall and sectoral development policies, the development of infrastructure and industrial development, including quantitative evaluations of the productive employment created as a result of the measures taken by the Government. Please also include statistical data on the situation, level and trends of employment, underemployment and unemployment and the extent to which they affect specific categories of workers who often encounter difficulties in finding lasting employment, such as woman, young persons, foreign workers seeking work in the Dominican Republic and those emigrating from the country in search of employment opportunities abroad.

8. In this respect, the Committee requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the following points:

-  education and vocational training policies - indicating the measures adopted to coordinate vocational education and training policies with prospective employment opportunities: in this regard, the Committee would be grateful to be provided with information on the results achieved in relation to the vocational integration of beneficiaries of the activities of the National Institute of Technical - Vocational Training (INFOTEP) and the programmes referred to by the Government in its report ("Youth and Employment" Vocational Training and Modernization Programme, Dominican Vocational Training Plan);

-  the manner in which employment creation is promoted through small and medium-sized enterprises;

-  the measures adopted for the creation of employment in the rural sector; and

-  the manner in which free trade zones contribute to the creation of productive and lasting employment.

9. The Committee requests the Government, when preparing its next report on the application of the Convention, to also take into account the matters raised in the 1995 observation on the application of the Employment Service Convention, 1948 (No. 88), and the evaluation of policies for the labour market integration with persons with disabilities (Convention No. 159). The preparation of a detailed report containing replies to the matters raised in this direct request will undoubtedly provide an opportunity for the Government and the social partners to evaluate the manner in which the objective of full and productive employment set out in the Convention is being achieved. The Government may consider it useful to refer to the General Survey of 2004 on promoting employment and the provisions of the Human Resources Development Recommendation, 2004 (No. 195).