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

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Indonesia (Ratification: 2000)

Article 6 of the Convention. Programmes of action to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. In reply to the Committee’s previous comments, the Government indicates that an Extended Roadmap towards a Child Labour Free Indonesia in 2024 has been developed. Its implementation is being carried out in stages, with a transition phase (2023–2024), Phase I (2025–2029), Phase II (2030–2034) and Phase III (2035–2045). The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged towards the elimination of the worst forms of child labour within the framework of the above-mentioned road map, and on the results achieved in this regard.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. Access to free basic education. The Committee takes note of the Government’s indication that it continues to implement measures to ensure that all children have access to free basic education, including through the Indonesia Smart Programme (PIP), which provides cash assistance to underprivileged and priority students, and which reached a total of 8,664,343 student beneficiaries in 2025. The Government also indicates that a new Education Volunteer Programme, which aims to identify school dropouts and out-of-school children and provide them with incentivization to remain in school, is scheduled for nationwide implementation in 2025, including in the frontier, outermost and disadvantaged regions and areas (3T areas) with high drop-out rates. The Committee further takes due note of the Government’s information that: (1) school participation rate reached 99.19 per cent for children aged 7–12 years and 96.17 per cent for those aged 13–15 years in 2024; and (2) the total number of out-of-school children nationwide stood at 2,439,249 in August 2024 and decreased to 2,199,794 children in August 2025. While taking note of the high participation rates for children aged 7 to 15 years, the Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to ensure that all children have access to free basic education, particularly children from 3T areas. It requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken in this regard, and to provide statistical information on the results obtained, particularly with regard to the reduction in the number of out-of-school children at primary and lower secondary level.

Clauses (a) and (b). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour and assisting the removal of children from these worst forms. Trafficking. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a total of 31 Centres (UPT) and two Temporary Shelters for Children (RPTC) provide social rehabilitation facilities for victims of trafficking (adults and children). The Committee further notes the detailed information contained in the Government’s report under the Forced Labour Convention (No. 29), 1930, on the services available to trafficking victims, namely that: (1) the SAPA 129 helpline was established to record and report cases of violence against women and children, including trafficking in persons; (2) user manuals were developed for local implementation and technical guidance for both national and regional SAPA 129 officers; and (3) the Government launched the Information System for Women and Children’s Protection (Simfoni PPA) system, which recorded 3,360 victims of trafficking between 2017 and 2024 and indicates that, in the period 2023–25, social rehabilitation services were provided to 4,320 victims of trafficking; and (4) the Government conducted technical guidance and capacity-building sessions for officials of ministries, agencies at the national and local government levels and for civil society organizations in relation to the Minister of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Regulation No. 8 of 2021 on the Standard Operating Procedures for Integrated Services for Witnesses and/or Victims of Trafficking in Persons. The Committee requests the Government to provide more detailed information on: (i) the impact of the trainings under the Standard Operating Procedures to better identify and rescue child victims of trafficking and provide for their rehabilitation and social integration; (ii) the number of child victims of trafficking that have been identified, including through the SAPA 129 helpline; and (iii) the types of services provided for their rehabilitation and social integration.

Clause (d). Identifying and reaching out to children at special risk. Migrant children. The Committee notes, from the Government’s report under Convention No. 29, the measures undertaken to protect migrant workers and migrant children from exploitation, including that: (1) the Government has been implementing an Immigration-Assisted Village Programme administered under the supervision of Village Immigration Officers (PIMPASA) and which serves as an early warning and educational system aimed at preventing trafficking in persons and migrant smuggling; (2) advocacy activities were conducted on the prevention of trafficking in persons and the engagement of civil society organizations in prevention efforts in major migrant-sending provinces; and (3) that a new Directorate for Indonesian Migrant Workers and Their Families was established.

The Committee notes, from the concluding observations of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the concerns about the considerable variation in the implementation of asylum seekers’ and refugees’ access to education across the State party (E/C.12/IDN/CO/2, 14 March 2024, para. 26). Recalling that migrant children are at an increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to: (i) continue to provide information on the effective and time-bound measures adopted, and results achieved, to protect these children from the worst forms of child labour, including through guaranteeing their access to free basic education; and (ii) provide information on the responsibilities of the Directorate for Indonesian Migrant Workers and Their Families and any specific measure taken to prevent migrant children from becoming victim to the worst forms of child labour.

Children in the fisheries sector. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) in the fisheries sector, follow-up action has been taken to reintegrate children into education through the “Package A” programme, carried out in collaboration with civil society partners; (2) joint inspections on labour standards and occupational safety and health (OSH) have been conducted in port areas, including to prevent children from engaging in hazardous work; and (3) in 2022, a total of 734 companies/institutions were inspected, increasing to 808 in 2023, and further rising to 1,395 in 2024. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on (i) the findings of the above-mentioned inspections undertaken between 2022 and 2024; (ii) the impact of the previously mentioned guidelines on labour inspection in the fisheries sector in eliminating hazardous work of children in this sector; and (iii) the number of children identified and removed from hazardous work in the fisheries sector and rehabilitated.