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

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

Article 3(a) of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. Slavery or practices similar to slavery. Sale and trafficking of children. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government in its report, namely that: (1) within the framework of the Friends of Children Justice Project, a series of webinars on the protection of child victims of crimes was provided for prosecutors of the Public Ministry and training was provided to legal practitioners; (2) in 2022–23, there were 10 open investigations involving the crime of trafficking in persons; (3) in 2019, 2 cases involving trafficking in persons were referred for prosecution, 0 in 2020, 1 in 2021, 2 in 2022 and 0 in 2023; and (4) the first criminal conviction for trafficking in persons was handed down by the lower court in 2024. The Committee notes the low number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions of perpetrators of trafficking offences under section 271A of the Penal Code, which criminalizes the sale and trafficking of persons. It also notes with regret that the data provided by the Government is not disaggregated according to the age of the victim and it is therefore not known how many of these cases involved child victims of trafficking, if any. The Committee therefore once again requests the Government to strengthen its efforts to ensure the effective enforcement of section 271A of the Penal Code and to provide information on its application in practice, including the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions, as well as sanctions imposed, specifically with regard to the sale and trafficking of children under 18 years.

Article 3(b) and 7(2)(a) and (b). Worst forms of child labour and effective and time-bound measures. 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. The Committee previously noted cases of parents encouraging their daughters to be exploited in prostitution to obtain immigration visas or to support the family financially, and cases of girls as young as 12 years of age who have been sexually exploited in exchange for drugs.

The Committee notes that the Government indicates that, between 2017 and 2023, there have been 3 criminal cases involving “pimping” that were referred for prosecution (all of them in 2022) and that it does not have data on the number of prosecutions and convictions or on the sanctions imposed. The Committee notes that it is not clear from the information provided if these cases involved child victims. The Committee requests the Government to take all the necessary measures to: (i) prevent the commercial sexual exploitation of children and to provide detailed information on the measures adopted and on their impact; (ii) gather and provide information on the application in practice of sections 145A, 148, 149 and 150 of the Penal Code, including the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions, as well as sanctions imposed with regard to the use, procuring or offering of a child under 18 years of age for prostitution or for the production of pornography or pornographic performances; and (iii) ensure that child victims of commercial sexual exploitation are removed from this worst form of child labour and provided with the appropriate and necessary direct assistance, and to provide information on any measures taken in this respect.

Articles 3(d) and 4(1). Hazardous work. With regard to the list of hazardous types of work prohibited to children under 18 years of age, the Committee refers to its comments under the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138).

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