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The Committee takes due note of the various activities and measures taken in recent years to strengthen the performance of the labour inspectorate. It also notes with interest the adoption of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 1994, which supplements the provisions of the Factories and Machinery Act, 1967. In its previous comments, the Committee welcomed the many measures taken with a view to the rationalization of the use of human resources and the distribution of responsibilities in the field of labour inspection. It notes that the start-up of operations by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, which was established in 1992, has relieved the Labour Department of a number of functions and has contributed to minimizing the involvement of labour officers in the planning and implementation of training activities for industry. It also notes that, as a result of the restructuring of the inspection services into two sections with different responsibilities, some 80 per cent of field inspectors are assigned to pure inspection duties and that as a result the number of inspections rose from 69,107 in 1993 to 83,667 in 1994. In its report for 1999, the Government refers to the adoption of a new approach to inspection which places greater emphasis on preventive measures. The media are used for educational programmes on various aspects of labour law, and consultations are organized with employers and workers at the workplace and in labour offices. The Committee hopes that the Government will not fail to provide information in future reports on the effects of these measures in the areas of labour legislation covered by the Convention.

The Committee is addressing a request directly to the Government on other points.