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New developments and agreements. The Committee notes with interest the ratification in 2003 by Burkina Faso of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and the Members of Their Families (1990). It also notes that a new Multilateral Convention on Social Security has been signed by the Inter-African Conference on Social Welfare (C.I.PRE.S) providing equality of treatment between workers belonging to countries that are signatories and which, according to the Government, will replace the bilateral agreements on social security with Mali, Côte d’Ivoire and Gabon. The Committee further notes from the statistics provided by the Government that out of the 9,235,018 Burkina Faso nationals having emigrated abroad, 3,427,856 are employed in Côte d’Ivoire, 3 million in Ghana and 1 million in Mali. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the application of the Multilateral Convention on Social Security to Burkina Faso and to indicate whether the new Convention has replaced the existing bilateral agreements with Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon and Mali. Considering the high number of Burkina Faso nationals migrating to Ghana, please also indicate whether any bilateral agreements have been concluded with Ghana on matters covered by the Convention. The Committee encourages the Government to continue to provide statistical data disaggregated by sex and origin, if possible, on migration flows to and from the country.

Articles 2, 4 and 7. Services and assistance. The Committee notes with interest the adoption of Presidential Decree No. 2007-308/PRES/PM/MAECR of 24 May 2007 establishing a High Council of Burkina Faso Nationals Abroad. It notes that the Council has advisory powers and is charged, among others things, with ensuring the full participation of nationals abroad in the development of Burkina Faso; to facilitate their reinsertion in national life, to improve knowledge and respect of conventions, laws and regulations of the host country, and to take measures to improve the living conditions of Burkina Faso nationals abroad. The Committee refers the Government to the non-binding guidelines of principles 4 and 12 of the ILO Multilateral Framework on Labour Migration, which provide further guidance on the effective management of labour migration and measures of assistance to migrant workers. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the activities undertaken by the Council to provide services to Burkina Faso migrants and facilitate their departure, journey and arrival in the host country.

Services and assistance to Burkina Faso returnees. The Committee notes the report of the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Migrants regarding her visit to Burkina Faso in February 2005 (E/CN.4/2006/73/Add.2), which highlights the difficulties encountered by Burkina Faso nationals who have returned on a large scale since 2003 due to the crisis in Côte d’Ivoire. According to the report, 49 per cent of the returnees lost their belongings and papers, which raises serious problems with regard to employment and social security. Many of the returnees, especially women and children, are deprived of certain benefits and entitlements in terms of employment, social security, health, housing, food and education. The Committee notes that while the Government recognizes the difficulties encountered by the returnees and has taken some steps to address their situation, their socio-economic resettlement and vulnerable situation in Côte d’Ivoire remains problematic. The bilateral agreement of 1961 on recruitment and employment between Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire is not being applied and the consular protection in Côte d’Ivoire is inadequate to deal with so many nationals, especially in the current situation. The Committee recalls Paragraphs 5(2) and 20 of the Migration for Employment Recommendation (Revised), 1949 (No. 86), underlining the importance of advising migrants and their families on matters relating to return, and providing further guarantees for returnees with respect to the granting of poor relief and unemployment relief, and for promoting re-employment of the unemployed. The Committee also refers the Government to the non-binding guidelines of the ILO Multilateral Framework on Labour Migration (2005) which call upon States to facilitate migrants’ return by providing information, training and assistance prior to their departure and on arrival in their home country concerning the return process, the journey and their reintegration (Guideline 2.2); to establish effective consular services in countries of destination (Guideline 12.8); and to consider establishing a welfare fund to assist migrant workers and their families, for example in the case of illness, injury, repatriation, abuse or death (Guideline 12.10). The Committee hopes that the Government, including through the newly established High Council on Burkina Faso Nationals Abroad, will make every effort to address the socio-economic reintegration of the returnees, especially women and children, and take effective action to ensure they enjoy adequate assistance relating to their repatriation, poor and unemployment relief, re-employment and social security. The Committee asks the Government to include information in this regard in its next report.

Article 6. Equality of treatment. The Committee notes with interest that the Labour Code of 2004 prohibits direct and indirect discrimination, including by placement services, in employment and occupation based on race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction and social origin (sections 3 and 17) and covers migrant workers (section 2). The Committee further notes with interest that Act No. 015-2006 of 11 May 2006 concerning the social security regime covers all workers covered by the provisions of the Labour Code, without distinction of race, nationality, sex and origin, who are primarily employed by one or more employers irrespective of the nature, type, or legality of the contract and amount of remuneration. Recalling the importance of establishing effective mechanisms to ensure the application of the principle of equal treatment given that migrant workers may not be in a position to take the initiative to secure respect for the relevant legislation due to lack of awareness or fear of reprisals, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on any practical measures taken to ensure the effective application of the abovementioned legislative provisions as well as on any violations detected by the bodies entrusted with monitoring the respect of the Convention.

Article 8. Maintenance of residency right in the event of incapacity to work. The Committee notes the Government’s affirmation that migrant workers shall not be returned for reason of illness or injury. The Government also states that as Burkina Faso does not presently require residence or work permits, a migrant worker who has lost his or her capacity to work benefits from the same residency rights as nationals. The Committee asks the Government to indicate the relevant legal provisions guaranteeing the right to residence of migrant workers admitted on a permanent basis in the event of incapacity for work, and to confirm whether migrant workers maintain their right to reside in the country when the migrant worker or his or her family is considered to represent a burden on public funds.