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Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Morocco (RATIFICATION: 2001)

Other comments on C182

Observation

Direct Request

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Article 3 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. Clause (c). Use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that the national legislation prohibits any person, regardless of age, from being used in illicit activities. The Committee noted that, although section 3 of the Dahir issuing Act No. 1.73.282 of 21 May 1974, concerning the suppression of drug addiction and the protection of drug addicts, prohibits any person from facilitating the use of drugs by persons under 21 years of age, it does not prohibit the use, procuring or offering of a child for the production and trafficking of drugs, as required by Article 3(c) of the Convention. The Committee observed with regret that the Government had maintained for a number of years that the national legislation prohibits the use of any person, regardless of age, for illicit activities, and the procurement and offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs, but had still not indicated the specific legislative provisions setting out such prohibitions.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it has incorporated section 440-12 in its draft amendments to the Penal Code prohibiting the use, recruitment or offering of a child under 18 years of age for illicit activities. However, the Committee notes that the abovementioned section covers issues relating to conditional release but does not contain the abovementioned prohibition. While taking due note of the proposed amendments to the Penal Code, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary steps to incorporate a provision prohibiting the use, recruitment or offering of a child under 18 years of age for illicit activities and to send a copy of the legislation once it has been adopted.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms and application of the Convention in practice. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that in the context of the ILO–IPEC project entitled “Combating child labour in Morocco by creating an enabling national environment and developing direct action against the worst forms of child labour in rural areas”, a number of training sessions were organized to strengthen the capacity of the various actors involved in combating child labour, including 330 labour inspectors and 43 controllers recently designated as focal points. One of the tasks of the focal points is to monitor establishments employing children. The Committee noted that, according to the 2011 national child labour report sent by the Government with its report, the labour inspections showed that children are involved in work that is likely to be harmful to their health.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a total of 1,026 working children between 15 and 18 years of age were removed from hazardous work in 2013–14 (538 by focal points, 325 through the ILO–IPEC programme and 163 by associations in collaboration with the Ministry of Employment and Social Affairs). The sectors employing children between 15 and 18 years of age are commerce (38.6 per cent), metallurgy (19.6 per cent), mechanical engineering (18.1 per cent), the wood industry (6.5 per cent), the food industry (6.5 per cent) and various other sectors (10.7 per cent). The Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts to prevent the engagement of all children under 18 years of age in the worst forms of child labour, particularly hazardous work. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the application of the Convention in practice, including statistics and information on the nature, extent and trends of the worst forms of child labour. All information should, as far as possible, be disaggregated by age and by sex.

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. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the Tayssir programme had been established in 2009, aimed at reducing the school drop-out rate and encouraging disadvantaged families, particularly in rural areas, to send their children to school. The Committee also noted that an emergency plan had been adopted for the 2009–12 period, including ten projects intended to give effect to compulsory schooling until the age of 15. The Committee noted the Government’s indication that the objectives of the emergency plan included constructing the necessary primary and middle schools to develop the capacity and improve the supply of education in rural areas. However, the Government indicated that although there is almost universal coverage in primary education, progress in secondary education was unsatisfactory.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that an analysis of the emergency plan is under way, the results of which will be the subject of a sectoral strategic plan for education for 2015–18. The Government also indicates that 246 new schools have opened, increasing the total number of schools to 10,667, including 54 per cent in rural areas. The Committee also notes the Government’s actions in the context of strengthening the Dar taleba and Dar talleb networks, which aim to encourage school enrolment in rural areas and have 764 structures supervised by the National Assistance Agency. The Government further indicates that it is supporting 68 projects in the area of schooling for children with disabilities and 16 projects in the field of protection for children in difficult situations. However, the Committee notes the absence of information on the number of children that have benefited from the Tayssir programme and also of statistics on the school drop-out rate and the secondary school enrolment rate. While noting the considerable efforts made by the Government, the Committee once again encourages the Government to continue its efforts to improve the functioning of the education system by increasing the school attendance rate, particularly in secondary education, and reducing the school drop-out rate in order to prevent the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, giving particular attention to girls and to children living in rural areas. It requests the Government to provide updated statistics on primary school enrolment and drop-out rates and on the number of children who have benefited from the Tayssir programme and the emergency plan.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. 1. Street children. The Committee previously noted that the recorded number of street children was 600,000, the vast majority of whom did not attend school. The Government also indicated that NGOs had taken action in recent years to identify, provide shelter for and reintegrate street children. In parallel, the National Assistance Agency had implemented a specific programme for street children in the provinces of Tangier, Béni Mellal, Nador and Khouribga. Lastly, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that a survey on street children in Casablanca had been conducted in April 2011.

The Committee notes the Government’s information to the effect that the National Assistance Agency runs 18 social protection establishments for street children, with the number of beneficiary children standing at 2,031. As regards the survey of the situation of street children, the Government indicates that initial results have shown that there were 294 street children in the city of Casablanca (262 boys and 32 girls, with 84 per cent between 15 and 18 years of age, 14 per cent between ten and 15 years of age, and two per cent under ten years of age), accounting for 38 per cent of those affected by this phenomenon. The Committee notes that the report is silent about the number of street children taken care of by associations and NGOs. Lastly, the Committee notes that the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), in its concluding observations of 14 October 2014, noted that, despite the absence of precise data, the number of street children is reportedly on the rise (paragraph 66). In view of the growing number of street children in Morocco and their particular vulnerability to the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to intensify its efforts to identify, remove and reintegrate street children. It also requests the Government to continue providing information on the results achieved through the activities of the National Assistance Agency, associations and NGOs, particularly in terms of the number of street children who have benefited from these measures.

2. Child domestic labour. The Committee previously noted the adoption of the National Programme to combat the use of young girls in domestic work (INQAD) as part of the National Action Plan for Children (PANE).

The Committee notes the results achieved in the context of the ILO–IPEC–PAMODEC project, particularly the training of 50 labour inspectors in the area of child labour with a particular component on child domestic labour, three regional information and consultation meetings with the relevant stakeholders aimed at establishing a process for the preparation of regional plans to combat domestic labour, six training sessions on child domestic labour for educators and social facilitators in NGOs, participation and consultation on the Bill concerning domestic workers, the implementation of two action programmes to combat child domestic labour involving young girls in the regions of Rabat/Salé and Marrakech/Safi as support for the Moroccan Association Supporting Children in Precarious Situations (AMESIP) and Al Karam associations. However, the Committee notes the absence of information on the results achieved further to these activities, especially the number of girls removed from domestic labour. The Committee encourages the Government to intensify its efforts to identify, remove and reintegrate girls under 18 years of age who are employed in domestic work and are victims of economic or sexual exploitation, and requests it to continue providing information on the results achieved relating to domestic work involving young girls.

Article 8. Poverty reduction. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the paper on the results achieved by the Moroccan Government in combating child labour, the National Human Development Initiative (INDH) chiefly comprises three major programmes combating, respectively, rural poverty, urban social exclusion and precarious conditions, and targets the poor, including street children exposed to work at an early age. The Committee took note of the detailed information provided by the Government concerning the projects implemented in the context of the INDH.

The Committee notes the Government’s indications that the INDH supported 1,178 human development projects in the 2005–13 period. The Government indicates that these projects have made it possible to improve care provision and promote family and social reintegration, enhance the quality of the services provided by associations and public institutions, expand coverage, support stakeholders and associations active in the area of services to vulnerable persons, and ensure effective prevention.