Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2018, published 108th ILC session (2019)

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) - Honduras (Ratification: 1980)

The Committee notes the observations of the Honduran National Business Council (COHEP), received on 31 August 2018, with the support of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), and the Government’s reply to these observations.

Article 2(3) of the Convention. Age of completion of compulsory schooling. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that several measures had been taken with a view to improving the operation of the education system, although the Committee noted that the Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed concern at the low enrolment rate in secondary education. The Committee once again requested the Government to intensify its efforts to improve the functioning of the education system so as to improve the enrolment rate of children under 14 years of age in secondary education.

The Committee notes the COHEP’s observations, according to which the action taken by the Secretariat of Education (SEDUC) only consist of awareness-raising campaigns to encourage school enrolment and the provision of educational assistance to children. The COHEP has not noted other action by the SEDUC, and emphasizes that this may be due to the lack of funding for education. The COHEP adds that it has not noted any planned reform in the programme of studies, but is calling for the future reform to include the issue of the worst forms of child labour.

The Committee notes that Government’s reply to these observations, according to which the awareness-raising activities supplement other activities and measures, such as the Government’s new strategy in the context of the National Plan of Action for the Elimination of Child Labour, which is based on access to free and flexible schooling with a view to monitoring school attendance. The Government indicates that the Secretariat for Technical and Pedagogical Affairs has increased the supply of education in the western area of the country, which has made it possible to integrate 12,000 children into the basic school cycle, with the construction of 140 new schools. In total, according to the statistics of the school administration system, 11,152 children enrolled in the third cycle of basic studies in 2018.

The Committee takes due note of the new Act on school food, approved by Decree No. 125-2016, published in the Official Journal, La Gaceta, of 3 February 2017 under the terms of which the National School Food Programme (PNAE) has the objective of the provision to all children at school of a supplementary nutritional ration. The PNAE depends on 92 per cent government financing through a special allocation fund resulting from a cooperation agreement with the World Food Programme (WFP), which provides 8 per cent of the funding. In 2018, the PNAE benefitted 1,306,863 girls and boys at the pre-school and primary levels in 18,834 schools. Since 2016, school food has been introduced in the third cycle in basic education centres in rural areas.

The Committee also notes the deworming programme in public and private schools in 18 departments of the country at the pre-basic, 3 to 5 years and basic 6 to 15 years cycles (from the first to the ninth year). In 2017, a total of 2,260,183 girls and boys in 31,738 schools were dewormed. The Committee notes the other activities referred to by the Government, including the training of 245 pedagogical directors on the issue of child labour in the departments of Cortes, La Paz, Intibucá, Valle, Choluteca and Atlántida.

The Committee notes the annexes to the Government’s report, including the signature in 2016 of a letter of agreement between the Honduras National Commission for Human Rights (CONADEH) and the SEDUC to promote and deepen knowledge, compliance, protection and respect for human rights as a foundation of the formal education system. In this context, the Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science and Culture in Honduras has designed the project “National plan of human rights education”. This project serves as a basis for the inclusion of human rights content in pre-school, primary and secondary education in the national education system. The strategic partners participating in the project are SEDUC, CONADEH and the Human Rights Secretariat. The Committee notes that, according to the Government, there has been a reduction in cases of school drop-outs following this strategy (a fall of 3 per cent in the drop-out rate, for a national average of 8 per cent).

However, the Committee notes from the Government’s report the difficulties encountered in enrolling children at school. Although, between 2014 and 2017, the gross school enrolment rate increased (from 50 to 68 per cent), the net school enrolment rate in 2017 was 48 per cent. Similarly, the Committee observes, according to the database of the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, that in 2017 the net school attendance rate for primary education was 83.32 per cent, with the rate falling to 45.44 per cent for secondary education, and a total of 192,262 children of school age who are not attending school. While noting the measures taken by the Government, the Committee requests it to continue its efforts to improve the functioning of the education system with a view to achieving an increase in the school attendance rate of children under 14 years at the secondary level. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the measures adopted in this regard.