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1. Tripartite consultations required by the Convention. The Committee notes the Government’s brief report received in August 2004. It notes in particular the Government’s statement concerning the consultations held regularly since 2001 in the National Labour Advisory Council, which resulted in the ratification of Conventions Nos. 111, 137, 138, 178, 179, 182 and 185. It requests the Government to provide detailed information on the consultations held on each of the matters set out in Article 5, paragraph 1, of the Convention during the period covered by the next report.

2. Consultations with representative organizations. The Committee notes the Government’s undertaking to provide a copy of the new statutes of the National Labour Advisory Council following their adoption. It reminds the Government that it is important for employers’ and workers’ organizations to enjoy the right to freedom of association, without which there could be no effective system of tripartite consultation (paragraphs 39 and 40 of the General Survey of 2000 on tripartite consultation). It trusts that the Government will provide information in its next report on the procedures established to ensure the holding of the consultations envisaged by this priority Convention with "representative organizations" which enjoy freedom of association (Article 1 of the Convention).

3. Operation of the consultative procedures. Finally, the Committee recalls its previous direct request and once again requests the Government to indicate whether, in accordance with Article 6, the representative organizations have been consulted on the issue of the preparation of an annual report on the working of the consultation procedures provided for in the Convention and, if so, to indicate the outcome of these consultations.