The National clap for South Africa

4.15Monitoring and evaluation of actions taken

The implementation of existing policy and further proposed policy steps must be monitored and evaluated on an ongoing basis to assess whether they are effective, and to measure the impact in relation to key indicators. Possible changes in the incidence of child labour in general should also be measured.

The Survey of Activities of Young People (SAYP) conducted by Statistics South Africa (StatsSA), was the first survey of this kind in South Africa. When the survey was conducted in 1999, the plan was to continue collecting data periodically every three or four years on the level, character, patterns, determinants and consequences of children's work as part of a monitoring strategy. A draft module to be used in a follow-up survey was developed to assist in this regard. Four years have now passed without a follow-up survey.

Proposals around monitoring and evaluation are:

33. 
    Design and implement minor amendments to existing information management systems to record all steps taken in key areas of a child labour policy (e.g. details regarding child labour inspections, steps taken by departments responsible for social development of children, etc). This system would allow the DL to monitor progress in identifying areas of concern and evaluating targeted programmes or actions AND to track children removed from child labour to ensure that their welfare is attended to adequately. Where such systems do not exist, the first step is the design of such a system. Lead institution: DL (labour steps and overall coordination); DrSD* (welfare steps); DrE (education-related steps); SAPS and NProsAuth* (investigation and prosecution of CL-related crimes; use of children to commit illegal activities); DHA (refugee children and illegal immigrant children). New policy? Yes. Once-off cost of adjustments of current information management systems: moderate. Recurrent cost: minimal. Time line: to be introduced as soon as possible after adoption of policy. ILO funding: to cover once-off cost.
    
34. 
    Indicators of success of the Child Labour Action Programme should be developed. Lead institution: DL; Secondary institution: NPA. New policy: Yes. One off cost: moderate. Recurrent costs: minimal. Time line: To be introduced within one year of adoption of policy. ILO funding: to cover one-off development costs.
    
35. 
    A follow-up to the SAYP should be done as soon as possible, to assess the changed situation, especially in the context of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and to assist with monitoring and evaluation. The SAYP should subsequently be conducted on a two or three-yearly basis as an add-on module to the existing labour force survey. Lead institution: StatsSA; Secondary institution: DL. New policy: Yes. Recurrent cost: Moderate-significant cost on three year basis. Time line: First one in early 2004. Second in early 2007. ILO funding to cover costs of first exercise.
    

4.16Overseeing the CLAP process

A Steering Committee (SC) oversaw the final stages of drafting of the CLAP. It included representatives of the national government departments responsible for labour, social development (welfare), education, finance, justice, policing and infrastructure delivery. Organised business and labour, and civil society (through the Community Constituency of the National Economic, Development and Labour Council, NEDLAC) were also represented.

It is recommended that this SC continue to oversee the process of implementation of the CLAP, at least during the early phases. The following is also recommended in this regard:

1. 
   The composition of the SC should be confirmed early on in the implementation of the CLAP. Representivity needs to be broadened to include NGOs working on children's issues, while keeping the SC as streamlined as possible.
   
2. 
   The relationship between the SC and the Child Labour Intersectoral Group (CLIG), as well as between the SC and the NPA, should be clarified. The DL should lead this process of clarifying this aspect, and should make proposals in this regard to the SC, CLIG and the NPA. Until this aspect is clarified the DL as lead department should keep the NPA informed of progress regarding the CLAP, and obtain appropriate input from NPA structures.
   

In addition to overseeing the CLAP, the SC should advise on the prioritisation of interventions funded through separate ILO funding (see para 5.2 in Annexure D).

4.17Regular reporting on the CLAP process

It is recommended that each institution allocated actions steps, whether as primary or as secondary implementing institution, should be requested to draft an implementation plan on how it will implement such action steps. Within government appropriate levels of management, in some cases DGs or DG clusters, need to approve the plan. Such implementation plans should be submitted to the SC within a fair period of time to be set by the SC, possibly linked to the budget process.

In addition, it is recommended that the SC:

1. 
   set regular time periods within which implementing institutions should report on progress regarding the implementation of the action steps they are responsible for; and
   
2. 
   decide how a regular national CLAP report should be compiled, possibly by way of an annual report drafted by the Department of Labour;
   
3. 
   consider whether it is appropriate for such a report to be submitted formally to Parliament, for noting.
   

Chapter 5. Proposed action – by type of work

5.1Bonded labour and servitude

Bonded labour and servitude, practices similar to slavery, are defined as some of the worst forms of child labour. Forced labour, sometimes referred to as bonded labour, is where people do not work voluntarily, but where their services are exacted under threat of a penalty. The penalty could be eviction from the dwelling they stay in or calling in a loan.

There are no figures available for children subjected to bonded labour in South Africa. However, there is anecdotal evidence that children of tenants are sometimes forced to work for the landowner for little or no wages in return for the family occupying land or accommodation. The penalty when the child does not provide services is eviction of the whole household. This is most often raised in the context of farm workers’ children in the commercial farming sector.

There is some concern regarding possible forms of forced child labour practiced around labour tenancy. A labour tenant is a person living on a farm who has, or has had the right to use cropping or grazing land on the farm in return for providing labour to the owner. In terms of the Land Reform (Labour Tenants) Act a labour tenant may nominate another person to work (for example where the labour tenant is not able to work him- or herself) to secure the family’s right to use and live on the land. If he or she nominates a minor child of the household, the work falls under this threat of a penalty, namely the termination of the labour tenancy if the child does not work.

Forced labour includes the forced recruitment of children for use in armed conflict. No armed conflict of a significant scale occurs in South Africa at present and there currently is no conscription into the South African National Defence Force. There are, however, gang-related armed activities such as those related to taxi violence and occurring in anti-gang vigilante groupings. There is anecdotal evidence of children being involved in some of these. These activities are illegal and are therefore covered by the discussion of children involved in illegal activities below.

The BCEA already provides the following:

• 
  Forced labour is prohibited, subject to the Constitution (section 48(1)).
  
• 
  No person may for their own benefit or for the benefit of someone else, cause, demand or impose forced labour (section 48(2)).
  
• 
  No person may discriminate against a person who refuses to permit a child to be employed in contravention of the BCEA (section 46(b)). Therefore, if a parent refuses to allow a child to work for someone else and is discriminated against for that reason, the person who discriminates commits a criminal offence.
  

The following are proposals for dealing with cases of bonded labour found to exist in South Africa:

Amend legislation to ensure that labour tenants cannot nominate minor children to work in their place for a landowner, and to prohibit landowners from demanding that labour tenants nominate their minor children. Lead institution: DLA. New policy? Elaboration of existing policy. Once off cost: nil. Recurrent cost: minimal. Time line: within two years of adoption of policy. Prioritise providing independent tenure security to labour tenants and other farm dwellers so that these vulnerable groups are not forced to make their children available for work to the land owner / farmer in return for their homes and production. Lead institution: DLA. New policy? Elaborate on existing policy. Once off cost: moderate. Recurrent cost: moderate. Time line: start within three years of adoption of policy. Related action steps, discussed elsewhere: Highlight the provisions of the BCEA in the public awareness campaign discussed at (18)(19). The campaign should clarify the broader meaning of the term 'forced labour'. Provision of free or subsidised boarding facilities should reduce potentially bonded labour where a child from a poor family is bound to work as domestic worker to pay his or her boarding in exploitative circumstances, or loose access to education – see (71).