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

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Turkmenistan (Ratification: 2010)

Article 3 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. Clause (d). Hazardous work in the cotton sector. The Committee previously urged the Government to pursue and strengthen its efforts to ensure the complete elimination of the use of forced and hazardous child labour in cotton picking. In its reply, the Government indicates its firm intention to cooperate openly and constructively with the ILO to prevent child labour, including hazardous child labour, which is confirmed by the measures implemented in cooperation with the ILO over the recent period (2021-2024), including the adoption of road maps for 2023 and 2024-2025. In particular, the Government highlights various activities undertaken to effectively implement the priority actions of the road map for 2024-2025, including: (1) the ILO technical mission that took place in May 2024 to discuss the development of Government instructions for the selection of personnel and working conditions during the 2024 cotton harvest, the revision of the List of hazardous work prohibited for children under 18 years of age, as well as mechanisms for resolving complaints and recourse to effective remedies; (2) the ILO visit that took place in June 2024 together with the social partners to discuss the awareness-raising campaign to promote the employment of workers and ensure decent working conditions during the cotton harvest; (3) the ILO visit to meet the Office of the Ombudsman, law enforcement and judicial authorities at central and regional levels with the aim of enhancing access to effective remedies; (4) the undertaking of the seminar on labour inspection and occupational safety and health with the participation of the ILO and relevant ministries and agencies of Turkmenistan in June 2024; and (5) the undertaking of awareness-raising activities on the prevention of child labour in July-August 2024 in the regions of Turkmenistan targeting local public authorities, social partners and public organizations.

The Committee notes with interest the inclusion of activities related to the cotton harvest in the List of jobs, professions, and positions with hazardous and harmful working conditions, in which the employment of children under 18 is prohibited as of 22 July 2024. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that a new department for the protection of women’s and children’s rights was established within the Office of the Ombudsman, in accordance with the Presidential decree adopted in June 2024. As indicated by the Government, according to statistical data, the number of employed children under 16 years of age has been reduced to zero, while the number of employed children under 18 years of age decreased to 0.01 per cent (2021–23).

The Committee takes due note that, with the Government’s acceptance, an ILO observance of recruitment and working conditions of cotton pickers took place during the 2024 and 2025 cotton harvests. The Committee notes that the ILO observance findings indicate the presence of children picking cotton during both harvests, with a higher incidence in 2025. According to the ILO report “2024 observance of recruitment and working conditions in the cotton harvest in Turkmenistan”, child labour in cotton picking requires targeted interventions and deeper research to understand its root causes and develop effective policies for its prevention and elimination. The Committee also notes that, in its 2024 concluding observations, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended conducting effective investigations into cases of child labour, in particular in cotton harvesting, and identifying and prosecuting cases of coercive and exploitative child labour in cotton harvesting (CRC/C/TKM/CO/5-6, para. 42). While taking due note of the measures taken by the Government within the framework of the road map for 2024-25 in collaboration with the ILO, the Committee strongly urges the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the complete elimination of the use of forced and hazardous child labour in cotton picking. In this regard, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure the effective implementation of the List of hazardous work prohibited for children under 18 years of age, particularly in respect of activities related to the cotton harvest. It further urges the Government to continue to engage in cooperation with the ILO and the social partners to ensure the full application of the Convention in practice. Lastly, it requests the Government to continue to provide information on the concrete measures taken in this respect, including in relation to cotton harvest monitoring, conducting research on the root causes of child labour, and increasing public awareness on this issue.

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