Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Zambia (Ratification: 1979)

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Active employment policy and poverty reduction strategy. In reply to the 2006 observation, the Government indicates in the reports received in September 2007 and March 2008 that the comprehensive National Employment and Labour Market Policy was officially launched in 2006. The Government also adopted the Fifth National Development Plan in which it incorporated the Decent Work Agenda to address issues related to employment promotion, and which takes into account the concerns raised under the Convention regarding the need to ensure work for those seeking it. It further asserts that the integration of the employment strategy into the National Development Plan is essential. Nevertheless, according to the Government, the issues linked to poverty reduction and economic growth in the National Development Plan, such as employment creation and maintaining labour standards at places of work, have not yet been adequately addressed. The average population growth between 1990 and 2000 was 2.3 per cent. The country’s unemployment rate has worsened due to the disparity between the rate at which the economy can absorb the increasing labour force, and the faster rate at which the population continues to grow. As a result of this mismatch, and according to Zambia’s Central Statistics Office (CSO), only 10 per cent of workers are employed in the formal sector, while 68 per cent are employed in the informal sector. The Government also indicates that the HIV/AIDS pandemic, which still remains a major challenge in the labour market, has continued to have a negative impact on labour productivity and national economic development. The Government proposes to reduce the spread and impact of HIV/AIDS on workers and employers through interventions and through facilitating the formulation of policies at the workplace, through educating workers on the relevant legal provisions and the dangers and effects of HIV and AIDS, as well as through the formulation of legislative measures to protect infected workers, and by awareness-raising and sensitization programmes. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the implementation of its HIV/AIDS policy and how it takes into consideration the effects of HIV and AIDS on employment generation. The Committee hopes that the Government will supply a report containing detailed information on the principal policies pursued and measures taken with a view to ensuring that there is work for all who are available for and seeking work, including particular reference to policies and measures implemented under the National Development Plan. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on how Zambia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy contributes to the creation of productive employment in the context of a coordinated economic and social policy.

2. Article 3. Participation of the social partners. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that the social partners are consulted through the Tripartite Consultative Council and were involved in the drafting of the National Employment and Labour Market Policy. The Committee notes this approach with interest and asks the Government to continue to provide information on the participation of the social partners in the ongoing decision-making, review and implementation processes in relation to its national employment policy and poverty reduction strategy. It further asks the Government to provide information on consultations with representatives of other sectors of the economically active population, such as those working in the rural sector and the informal economy.

3. Youth employment. The Committee notes that young people constitute 70 per cent of the 4.7 million workforce in Zambia. In its report, the Government indicates that a National Youth Policy (2005) and various youth development programmes have been introduced within the national employment policy to promote skills development and work opportunities for the young. Combating youth unemployment serves various economic and non-economic goals; it helps avoid delinquency, prepares youth for future leadership, allows the youth to feel useful and supports retirees. The Ministry of Sports, Youth and Child Development has created a fund for the development and sustainability of the youth small-scale enterprises. The Government is asked to provide further information on the implementation of these measures and programmes aimed at the employment needs of young workers along with an assessment of their success in increasing their employment opportunities.

4. Education and vocational training. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that it is developing a strategic plan aimed at addressing issues of equity, access, quality and relevance of basic education and training in the country. The strategic plan also focuses on building infrastructure for training purposes. The Committee further notes that this strategic plan will support skills training in the informal sector in response to the current labour market demands given that informal sector work is the source of livelihood for some 80 per cent of the working population. The Government further indicates that the Ministry of Science, Technology and Vocational Training has developed a Disability Policy, which was drafted in 2006 and adopted and launched in 2007, to address the training needs of people with disabilities, in an effort to comply with the provisions of Convention No. 159, which was also ratified by Zambia. The Government is asked to provide further information on the implementation of the strategic plan aimed at addressing issues of equity, access, quality and relevance of education and training in the country, as well as specific information on the measures taken under the strategic plan to meet the training needs of other particular categories of workers, such as women, older workers and workers with disabilities.

5. Article 2. Collection and use of employment data. In its reply to the Committee’s earlier request for information, and within the framework of the Employment and Labour section of Zambia’s Second PRSP, the Government indicated its intention to adopt a Labour Market Management Information System (LMMIS) with the objective of creating public awareness on labour and employment matters and enhancing decision-making, which would include strategies for achieving the aforementioned objectives. The Government indicated that it had identified more than 30 indicators, including all ILO key labour market indicators, and that it was installing the LMIS database which was expected to be operational in September 2007. The Committee requests the Government to provide additional information, in the next report, on the development and implementation of the Labour Market Management Information System and its impact on the national employment policy.

6. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and the Central Statistics Office have concluded a Memorandum of Understanding to manage the LMIS together by sharing resources and conducting national labour force surveys. The Government highlights that it has put in place an Employment and Labour Sector Advisory Group (ELSAG) to advise on the implementation of employment programmes identified under the National Development Plan. Further to its previous request for specific information on how data are used in the creation of employment policies, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the main ELSAG Committee is split into various subcommittees, including a subcommittee on Labour Market Information (LMI). The LMI subcommittee meets to discuss survey results and presents its findings to the main ELSAG Committee which then makes the appropriate policy recommendations to the Government. The Committee recalls that good data can be used to assess the impact of policy measures and to make adjustments as necessary. They are an essential element for the decision and review of measures to be adopted for attainment of the objectives of the Convention, in accordance with Article 2 (paragraph 104 of the General Survey of 2004 on promoting employment). The Committee therefore notes with interest the approach pursued by the Government and requests further information on the implementation, and successes, of the employment measures adopted resulting from the collaboration of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and the Central Statistics Office.