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Application of the Convention and legislative reform. The Committee notes that the planned legislative changes to replace the instruments of the former USSR presently in force in Azerbaijan have not yet been instituted. The Committee has therefore examined available information regarding the effect given to the Convention in the country. The Committee notes that the Occupational Safety Regulations for Sea Ports approved by the Order of the USSR Ministry of Shipping of 10 July 1987 (RD 31.82.03-87) (1987 Safety Regulations) have only been available to the Committee in the form adopted in 1974. The Committee requests the Government to submit a copy of this text together with other relevant pieces of legislation, for examination by the Committee.

Taking into account that the legal and regulatory instruments in the former USSR that still remain in force in the country had previously been considered to give effect to most of the provisions of the Convention, but subject to a further more detailed examination of the application of the Convention once relevant legislation has been made available, the Committee requests the Government to provide further information as regards the application of the following articles of the Convention.

Article 3 of the Convention. Scope of application of national legislation. The Committee notes the information that the 1987 Safety Regulations do not apply to work related to reloading of liquid and gaseous loads transported in bulk without a container. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information regarding this exemption and, to the extent that this is a generally applicable exemption from the scope of application of national legislation, it requests the Government to consider an amendment of this provision in the context of the planned legislative reform.

Article 11. Provisions regarding loading operations in paragraphs 1–7 and 9. The Committee notes the absence of detailed information on effect given to Article 11(1)–(7) and (9) of the Convention. The Government is requested to provide further information on measures taken to give effect to these provisions of Article 11 of the Convention.

Article 18. Mutual recognition of arrangements made in their respective countries for testing, examining and annealing and of certificates and records relating thereto. The Committee notes the references made in the report submitted in 2007 to certain agreements on subject matters which appear to be unrelated to the provisions of Article 18. The Government is requested to provide further information on measures taken to give effect to Article 18 of the Convention.

Part V of report form. Application in practice. The Committee notes the absence of any information on the application of the Convention in practice and that such information appears particularly important in the context of the relative uncertainty regarding applicable laws and regulations. The Committee requests the Government to supply information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice by providing, for instance, extracts from inspectors’ reports and statistics on the number and nature of the recorded contraventions and of accidents reported.

The Committee welcomes the information that the Government is examining the possibilities to ratify the Occupational Safety and Health (Dock Work) Convention, 1979 (No. 152). The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on progress achieved in this respect.