In 2020, Morocco made moderate advancement in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labor. The Kingdom of Morocco claims the territory of Western Sahara and administers the area that it controls by the same constitution, laws, and structures as in internationally recognized Morocco, including laws that deal with child labor. In 2020, the government enacted programs to pilot a child protection network and assess the feasibility of 10 additional child welfare centers. In addition, the Ministry of Labor launched a new roadmap for fighting child labor that seeks to: improve Domestic Work Law 19.12 and make benefits available from the National Social Security Fund to child domestic workers; improve labor inspection at the 54 designated centers across the country by hiring specialists to enhance the oversight of inspections and the methodology behind interventions; strengthen partnerships with civil society organizations; and increase international cooperation on child labor. Morocco also became a Pathfinder country under Alliance 8.7 in 2020, which calls for the eradication of child labor by 2025, and forced labor, modern slavery, and human trafficking by 2030. However, children in Western Sahara are subjected to the worst forms of child labor, including in forced domestic work and in commercial sexual exploitation. Children also engage in child labor in producing artisanal handicrafts. Laws related to the minimum age for work and the use of children for illicit activities do not meet international standards. In addition, research could not determine whether penalties were imposed for violations related to the worst forms of child labor. Furthermore, the scope of government programs that target child labor is insufficient to fully address the extent of the problem.
Although research is limited, there is evidence that children in Western Sahara are subjected to the worst forms of child labor, including in forced domestic work and in commercial sexual exploitation. Commercial sexual exploitation of migrant girls occurs and is reportedly more prevalent in fishing villages and on fishing boats. (1,2) Children, particularly in rural areas, are vulnerable to child labor due to educational barriers similar to those faced in other locations in Morocco, such as insufficient facilities, lack of reliable and safe transportation, and unqualified teachers. (1,2) Research has not been conducted to determine the prevalence of child labor in Western Sahara, nor has research found the levels of education among children who are engaged in child labor in Western Sahara.
The Moroccan-controlled portion of the territory of Western Sahara is subject to the same laws as internationally recognized Morocco. (2,3) The Popular Front for the Liberation of the Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro (Polisario Front), an organization that seeks the territory's independence, controls the remaining territory; information on the laws applicable in the remaining portion of the territory is unavailable. (1,2,4-6) Morocco has ratified all key international conventions concerning child labor, which the Government of Morocco extends to the areas in Western Sahara that it controls (Table 1).
Convention |
Ratification |
---|---|
ILO C. 138, Minimum Age |
✓ |
ILO C. 182, Worst Forms of Child Labor |
✓ |
UN CRC |
✓ |
UN CRC Optional Protocol on Armed Conflict |
✓ |
UN CRC Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography |
✓ |
Palermo Protocol on Trafficking in Persons |
✓ |
The Government of Morocco has established laws and regulations related to child labor that extend to Western Sahara (Table 2). However, gaps exist in Morocco’s legal framework to adequately protect children from the worst forms of child labor, including the prohibition of using children in illicit activities.
Standard |
Meets International Standards |
Age |
Legislation |
---|---|---|---|
Minimum Age for Work |
No |
15 |
Article 143 of the Labor Code (7) |
Minimum Age for Hazardous Work |
Yes |
18 |
Articles 147 and 181 of the Labor Code (7) |
Identification of Hazardous Occupations or Activities Prohibited for Children |
Yes |
Hazardous Child Labor List, Decree No. 2-10-183; Article 181 of the Labor Code (7,8) |
|
Prohibition of Forced Labor |
No |
Article 10 and 12 of the Labor Code; Article 467-2 of the Penal Code (7,10) |
|
Prohibition of Child Trafficking |
Yes |
Articles 448.1, and 448.4-448.5 of the Law on Trafficking in Human Beings (9) |
|
Prohibition of Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children |
No |
Article 503-2 of the Penal Code (10) |
|
Prohibition of Using Children in Illicit Activities |
No |
||
Minimum Age for Voluntary State Military Recruitment |
Yes |
19 |
Article 4 of Royal Decree of 9 June 1966 (11) |
Prohibition of Compulsory Recruitment of Children by (State) Military |
Yes |
Article 4 of Law No. 44-18 (12) |
|
Prohibition of Military Recruitment by Non-state Armed Groups |
Yes |
Articles 448.1 and 448.4 of the Law on Trafficking in Human Beings (9) |
|
Compulsory Education Age |
Yes |
16 |
Article 1 of Law No. 04-00 (13) |
Free Public Education |
Yes |
Article 1 of Law No. 04-00 (13) |
The labor law does not apply to children who work in the traditional artisan or handicraft sectors for family businesses with fewer than five employees. (7)
The Penal Code only criminalizes the forced labor of children under 15 years old. (25) Moroccan law does not prohibit the use, procuring, or offering of children for the production or trafficking of drugs. (26,31,34)
The Government of Morocco has established institutional mechanisms for the enforcement of laws and regulations on child labor (Table 3). Information about labor law and criminal law enforcement in Western Sahara is unavailable. The government does not publicly release information on its labor law enforcement efforts in Western Sahara.
Organization/Agency |
Role |
---|---|
Ministry of Labor and Vocational Integration (MOLVI) |
Enforces child labor laws with its 54 inspection offices throughout the country. (21) During the reporting period, MOLVI launched a new roadmap for fighting child labor that seeks to: improve Domestic Work Law 19.12 and make benefits available from the National Social Security Fund to child domestic workers; improve labor inspections at the 54 designated centers across the country by hiring specialists to enhance the oversight of inspections and the methodology behind interventions; strengthen partnerships with civil society organizations; and increase international cooperation on child labor. (21) |
Ministry of the Interior |
Enforces prohibitions on trafficking in persons, prostitution, and other exploitative crimes involving minors, as established in the Penal Code, through the General Directorate of National Security. (2,14,21,22) |
General Prosecutor |
Prosecutes criminal offenses against children and processes cases involving women and children in the court system. (1,14,21,22) The General Prosecutor is a judiciary body that serves independently from the Ministry of Justice. (21) |
The Government of Morocco has established mechanisms to coordinate its efforts to address child labor (Table 4).
Coordinating Body |
Role & Description |
---|---|
Technical Committee Under the Special Ministerial Commission for Children for the Protection and Improvement of Childhood |
Ensures inter-sectoral coordination and monitoring for implementing international conventions on children’s issues through a committee of 25 government bodies, chaired by the Head of the Government of Morocco. Establishes strategies and mechanisms to implement national policies and plans for child protection and coordinates the management of efforts at the local and regional levels. (20,21) Met regularly in 2020. (21) |
The Inter-Ministerial Commission for Combating Trafficking in Persons |
Coordinates the government's approach to trafficking in persons on an inter-ministerial level. Conducts training sessions for members of the security services. (26) Chaired by the Head of the Government and lead by the Ministry of Justice, with representation from civil society. (21) Established in May 2019. (21,26,27) |
The government has established policies that are consistent with relevant international standards on child labor (Table 5).
Policy |
Description |
---|---|
Ministry of Solidarity, Social Development, Equality and the Family Integrated Public Policy on the Protection of Children in Morocco |
Promotes an interdisciplinary approach to respond to the exploitation of children and other issues. (14,28) In 2020, the government enacted programs to pilot a child protection network and assess the feasibility of 10 additional child welfare centers. (21) |
In 2020, Morocco became a Pathfinder country under Alliance 8.7, which calls for the eradication of child labor by 2025, and forced labor, modern slavery, and human trafficking by 2030. (21)
In 2020, the government funded and participated in programs that include the goal of eliminating or preventing child labor (Table 6). However, gaps exist in these social programs, including the adequacy of efforts to address the problem in all sectors.
Program |
Description |
---|---|
Tayssir Conditional Cash Transfer Program† |
Ministry of Solidary, Social Development, Equality and the Family program that provides direct cash transfers to qualifying families whose children meet school attendance criteria, aiming to increase school enrollment and reduce dropout rates, particularly in rural areas. (4,21) In 2020, over two million students from low-income families were participants in the Tayssir program. In addition, in 2020, 13,221 children with disabilities received education assistance. (21) |
† Program is funded by the Government of Morocco.
‡ The Government of Morocco had other social programs that may have included the goal of eliminating or preventing child labor. (21,23,29)
In 2020, the government continued a regularization campaign to provide legal status and documentation to foreign migrants who are vulnerable to exploitation for child labor. (22,32,33) Although the government has programs that target child labor, the scope of these programs is insufficient to fully address the extent of the problem, including for children subjected to forced domestic work. (1,3,34)
Based on the reporting above, suggested actions are identified that would advance the elimination of child labor in Western Sahara (Table 7).
Area |
Suggested Action |
Year(s) Suggested |
---|---|---|
Legal Framework |
Ensure that all children age 15 and under are protected by law, including children who work for artisan and handicraft businesses that regularly employ hired workers or produce goods for non-local consumption. |
2009 – 2020 |
Ensure that the law criminally prohibits the use, procuring, and offering of a child for prostitution. |
2019 – 2020 |
|
Criminalize the use, procuring, and offering of children for the production and trafficking of drugs. |
2015 – 2020 |
|
Ensure that forced labor of children over age 15 is criminalized. |
2019 – 2020 |
|
Social Programs |
Remove barriers to education, such as insufficient facilities, lack of reliable and safe transportation, and unqualified teachers, particularly in rural areas. |
2015 – 2020 |
Expand existing programs to address the scope of the child labor problem, including child victims of commercial sexual exploitation. |
2017 – 2019 |
|
Conduct a comprehensive study of children's work activities to inform policies and practices to determine whether children are engaged in or at risk of becoming involved in child labor, and determine the number of child laborers and their education levels. |
2013 – 2019 |
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. February 12, 2018.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. February 8, 2019.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. January 17, 2017.
- U.S. Department of State. Country Reports on Human Rights Practices- 2018: Western Sahara. Washington, DC, March 14, 2019.
https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/western-sahara/ - CIA. The World Factbook. Accessed March 9, 2018. Please see “Labor Law Enforcement: Sources and Definitions” in the Reference Materials section of this report.
https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/ - U.S. Consulate- Casablanca official. E-mail communication to USDOL official. July 15, 2019.
- Government of Morocco. Dahir n° 1-03-194 du 14 rejeb 1424 (11 septembre 2003) portant promulgation de la loi n° 65-99 relative au code du travail, No. 1-03-194. Enacted: 2003.
http://www.ilo.org/dyn/travail/docs/450/Maroc - Code travail.pdf - Government of Morocco. Décret n° 2-10-183 du 9 hija 1431 (16 novembre 2010) fixant la liste des travaux auxquels il est interdit d'occuper certaines catégories de personnes, No. 2-10-183. Enacted: November 16, 2010. http://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/natlex4.detail?p_lang=fr&p_isn=86187
- Government of Morocco. Loi n° 27-14 relative à la lutte contre la traite des êtres humains, No. 27-14. Enacted: 2016. http://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/docs/ELECTRONIC/103357/125489/F1582466313/MAR-103357.pdf
- Government of Morocco. Code Penal. Enacted: November 26, 1962.
http://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text.jsp?file_id=190447 - Government of Morocco. Décret royal n° 137-66 du 20 safar 1386 (9 juin 1966) portant loi relatif à l'institution et à l'organisation du service militaire. Enacted: June 9, 1966.
http://adala.justice.gov.ma/production/html/Fr/93248.htm - Government of Morocco. Law No. 44-18. Enacted: 2018. Source on file.
- Government of Morocco. Loi n° 04-00 modifiant et complétant le dahir n°1-63-071 du 25 joumada II 1383 (13 novembre 1963) relatif à l’obligation de l’enseignement fondamental, No. 04-00. Enacted: 2000. Source on file.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. January 28, 2016.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. May 20, 2019.
- ILO Committee of Experts. Individual Direct Request Concerning Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) Morocco (ratification: 2000) Published: 2016. Accessed: November 8, 2016.
http://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:13100:0::NO::P13100_COMMENT_ID:3245258 - Government of Morocco. Le nouveau code de travail. Enacted: May 6, 2004.
http://adapt.it/adapt-indice-a-z/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Code_du_travail_2004.pdf - Government of Morocco. Dahir n° 1-59-413 du 28 joumada II 1382 (26 novembre 1962) portant approbation du texte du code pénal, No. 1-59-413. Version consolidée en date du 15 septembre 2011. Enacted: 1963.
https://www.ilo.org/dyn/natlex/docs/SERIAL/69975/69182/F1186528577/MAR-69975.pdf - E-mail Correspondence with U.S. State Department official. May 6, 2021.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca official. E-mail communication to USDOL official. June 6, 2017.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. February 9, 2021.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. March 4, 2019.
- Government of Morocco. Données relatives au questionnaire du département d'Etat Américain sur la traite des êtres humains et le travail des enfants au titre de l'année 2014 et 2015. Submitted in response to U.S. Department of Labor Federal Register Notice (October 27, 2015) "Request for Information on Efforts by Certain Countries to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor." February 17, 2016. Source on file.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. February 18, 2020.
- Government of Morocco. Projet de loi-cadre N°51.17 relatif au système de l'éducation, de l'enseignement, de la formation et de la recherche scientifique. Enacted 2019.
https://www.chambredesrepresentants.ma/sites/default/files/loi/rapp_com_lec_1_51.17_3.pdf - U.S. Department of State. Trafficking in Persons Report. Washington, DC, June 16, 2020.
https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-trafficking-in-persons-report/morocco/ - Danish Immigration Service. Morocco: Protection and assistance to victims of human trafficking. 10.1.2019.
https://www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/2018054/COI_report_morocco_protection_assistance_victims_of_human_trafficking_oct_2019.pdf - Government of Morocco. Politique Publique Intégrée de Protection de l'Enfance 2015–2025. Rabat. 2016.
http://www.social.gov.ma/sites/default/files/PPIPEM_fr 280316_0.pdf - Government of Morocco. Les éléments de réponse au questionnaire émanant de l'Ambassade des Etats-Unis d'Amérique. Submitted in response to U.S. Department of Labor Federal Register Notice (September 6, 2016) "Request for Information on Efforts by Certain Countries to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor." February 24, 2017. Source on file.
- Government of Morocco. Flyers Related to Entraide Nationale Services. 2019.
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. January 26, 2016.
- Morocco. Freedom House. 2020. https://freedomhouse.org/country/morocco/freedom-world/2020
- Human Rights Watch. Morocco/Western Sahara. 2020. https://www.hrw.org/middle-east/n-africa/morocco/western-sahara
- U.S. Consulate- Casablanca. Reporting. February 18, 2020.