Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Bahamas (Ratification: 2001)

Articles 3(a), 5 and 7(1) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour, monitoring mechanisms and penalties. Sale and trafficking of children. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that it remains committed to preventing and addressing child trafficking and that it continues its efforts to strengthen monitoring and enforcement mechanisms. It observes that the following measures have been implemented: (1) targeted training and awareness initiatives covering topics such as the definition of trafficking in persons, types, root causes, and victim identification were extended to various sectors, including government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and foreign associations, reaching 2,913 individuals. Also, specific outreach efforts targeted vulnerable communities, including the Creole population and persons with disabilities; (2) awareness campaigns were implemented by the Inter-Ministry Committee on Trafficking in Persons (TIP Inter-Ministry Committee) to educate youth, including the recent public awareness campaign titled “Leave No Child Behind in the Fight Against Human Trafficking”; (3) training programmes were conducted in key sectors, including law enforcement, aviation, hospitality, and faith-based organizations, to enhance the capacity to detect and prevent trafficking in persons. This included the training of 306 law enforcement officers, 34 aviation professionals, and 146 hospitality workers to identify and respond effectively to trafficking cases; and (4) four prevention seminars were conducted, reaching 392 boys and girls aged 12 to 17, to raise awareness about trafficking risks and protective measures. However, the Government adds that no new cases of child trafficking for sexual or labour exploitation have been registered. The Committee notes that, according to the concluding observations of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) of 14 November 2018, there is a low number of trafficking cases brought before the court and a lack of research on trends in and the extent of trafficking in women and girls (CEDAW/C/BHS/CO/6, para. 25). The Committee requests the Government to ensure that thorough investigations and prosecutions are carried against for persons who engage in the trafficking of children, and that sufficiently effective and dissuasive sanctions are imposed. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide any relevant information regarding cases of child sale and trafficking for labour or sexual exploitation, including details on investigations, prosecutions, convictions, and penalties applied for these offences.

Article 4(1). Determination of hazardous work. With regard to the adoption of the list of hazardous types of work prohibited to children under the age of 18 years, the Committee requests the Government to refer to its comments under the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138).

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clauses (a) and (b). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, and direct assistance for their removal from the worst forms of child labour and for their rehabilitation and social integration.Commercial sexual exploitation of children in the tourism industry. Following its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s statement that no cases of child victims of sexual exploitation in the tourism sector were identified during this reporting period. The Committee further notes that the CEDAW, in its concluding observations of 14 November 2018, raised its concern regarding the number of children involved in prostitution and child pornography, including in the context of tourism (CEDAW/C/BHS/CO/6, para. 27). The Committee therefore requests the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure that child victims of sexual exploitation in the tourism sector are identified and provided with the necessary direct assistance for their rehabilitation and social integration. In this regard, the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on: (i) the time-bound measures adopted to prevent the commercial sexual exploitation of children; (ii) the number of child victims of sexual exploitation, including those in the tourism sector, who have been identified, removed, and provided with assistance.

The Committee is also raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.