Addendum
CAMEROON* **
* The initial report submitted by the Government of Cameroon concerning rights covered by articles 10 to 12 (E/1986/3/Add.8) was considered by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights at its third session (see E/C.12/1989/SR.6-7).
** The annexes to this report may be consulted at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
1. In ratifying the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Cameroon translated into action its natural and legitimate aspiration to raise its population to a level of economic, social and cultural development consonant with human dignity.
2. An independent and stable country, Cameroon believes that, without discrimination of any kind, the human being possesses inalienable and sacred rights. The preamble to its Constitution affirms the country's commitment to the fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations Charter and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. Cameroon has ratified several international human rights conventions and those it has not ratified deal with matters which are governed by national laws.
3. This report, which was drafted in conformity with the revised general guidelines adopted by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights at its fifth session, held from 26 November to 14 December 1990, is intended to present to the Committee, under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant, the measures taken by the Government of the Republic of Cameroon to ensure that the rights recognized in the Covenant are respected in its territory. The report consists of two main parts: description of the general economic situation and an attempt to reply to the questions set forth in the above-mentioned guidelines.
4. This part of the report will focus on employment, as the right to work in Cameroon is recognized by the Constitution and serves as a vector for other economic, social and cultural rights.
5. The population of Cameroon was estimated in 1996 at 13.3 million, comprising 49.3 per cent males and 50.7 per cent females. The economically active population is estimated at 5 million, 58.4 per cent being men and 41.6 per cent women.
6. The labour market is characterized by the continuing predominance of the primary sector and agriculture, owing to the very low level of diversification of the economy. For more than 40 years, the economic structure does not appear to have changed and it remains dominated by crop farming and animal husbandry, which employ more than three quarters of the active population. The industrial sector is finding it difficult to take off, and employs less than 10 per cent of the labour force. The tertiary sector is for its part relatively developed thanks to trade and services (including public administration). The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimates that, during the period 1990-1992, 79 per cent of the active population worked in the primary sector, 7 per cent in the secondary sector, and 14 per cent in the tertiary sector.
7. Together with the continuing predominance of the primary sector and agriculture there is an abundant but poorly trained labour force; the 1987 national census shows that the schooling and skills of the active population are very inadequate; 41 per cent have never been to school, while 45 per cent have reached university level. It is certainly true that the figures have now improved, but this lack of skills is perceptible in all sectors of economic activity and contrasts with the apparent surplus of secondary school and higher education graduates.
8. The other characteristic of the active population is the predominance of independent workers and family helpers (more than 80 per cent of those persons employed in 1987) with no skills or schooling, (68 per cent). The great majority (86 per cent) of these workers are engaged in crop farming and animal husbandry. This situation is the consequence of a family-based economic structure and reflects serious deficiencies in national development. It well illustrates the lack of vocational training and this in turn helps to explain the continued low productivity and irregular quality of the goods and services produced in a large part of the so-called informal sector.
9. Between 1989 and 1995, the active population grew by 1,035,000, at an average annual rate of 3.0 per cent. This means that, in order to keep the crude unemployment rate at the 1987 level, i.e. 18.6 per cent, an average of 150,000 new jobs needed to be created each year over the period 1987-1995 to employ the additional manpower resulting from population growth. It may also be noted that this growth in the active population is higher than that of the total population, estimated at 2.83 per cent during the same period. Owing to the economic crisis facing Cameroon, this strong growth has had a number of negative effects on the labour market.
10. The overall trend regarding employment in recent years has been downwards in all sectors of activity. The economic crisis has resulted in restructuring programmes, of which the consequences on employment need no longer be demonstrated: a hiring freeze, systematic retirements and downsizing (voluntary or enforced separations) in the civil service, and drastic reductions in staff in some private and semi-public sector activities. Because of population growth, the labour force has increased much faster than the opportunities for paid employment. In parallel with this marked increase in the active population there has been a progressive decline in the number of jobs. The consequence is that unemployment, which was an epiphenomenon during the 1970s, has become much more pronounced in the past decade. It is now an economic, social and political challenge of the first order.
11. Generally speaking, between one fifth and a quarter of the active population aged 15 and over is jobless in the major cities. In 1987, the unemployment rate in Cameroon ranged from 8.6 to 10.3 per cent nationwide; by contrast, it reportedly rose from 16 to 20 per cent in urban areas during the same period. According to a recent survey (DIAL 123) conducted in Yaoundé in 1993, the unemployment rate is about 25 per cent. The same survey shows that unemployment has a direct correlation with the level of education; it is lower for those who have never been to school and greater among those with higher education.
12. One of the palliatives against rising unemployment and increasing poverty is the very rapid growth of the informal sector. This sector is quite developed in the urban centres of Cameroon and is helping partially to reabsorb urban unemployment, despite the problems of underemployment it masks. It employed 57 per cent of workers in Yaoundé in 1993, and is dominated by handicrafts and small-scale retail trade. The informal sector is the place to acquire vocational skills and a transitional step towards the modernization of the Cameroonian economy.
13. In terms of job creation, given the low cost of providing new jobs, the informal sector currently seems to be the ultimate recourse against rising unemployment. It is a sector dominated by industrial undertakings (82 per cent) and family businesses (13 per cent). The sectoral breakdown is as follows: production, 40 per cent; trade, 28 per cent; services, 24 per cent; and transport, 9 per cent. Industrial enterprises are concentrated in the following areas: dressmaking, 33 per cent; automobile mechanics, 29 per cent; and street vending, 28 per cent. More than 53 per cent of start-up capital comes from savings made in previous jobs. The family contribution (relatives and friends) to start-up capital is still considerable (23 per cent), as is that of tontines (11 per cent). As to the workforce, most employers are men of about 33 years of age. They have attended school for an average of eight years. Generally, 34 per cent of employers have completed primary school, 51 per cent have secondary education and 6 per cent have studied at university.
14. Initiation into principal and secondary activity occurs outside the formal training circuit through the apprenticeship system (39 per cent) and on-the-job training (36 per cent). Barely 18 per cent of all entrepreneurs have had any technical education. Most secondary schools graduates are concentrated in trade and urban transport. Female entrepreneurs are concentrated in dressmaking, clothes-cleaning and food preparation. As to men, their predominant sectors are woodworking, metalworking, trade in beverages and transport (illegal taxis). The importance of the informal sector in the national economy no longer has to be demonstrated, as in 1995 it accounted for 24.5 per cent of the active population, with 1,300,000 jobs. It far outstrips the formal sector, whose employees represent only 12 per cent of all jobs. After the farming sector, this sector constitutes the second most important provider of jobs. Its contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated at about CFAF 176 billion.
15. The sector also plays a very large role in training young people excluded from the conventional system of education and training, and each enterprise has two apprentices on average. The informal sector mitigates the shortcomings of the conventional system of education and training. The importance of the sector in terms of the job market has grown considerably, accounting for 8 per cent of the active population in 1979 and 23 per cent in 1991. During the same period, the contribution of this sector to GDP rose from 4 per cent to 30 per cent, and the wage bill increased from CFAF 11 billion to CFAF 176 billion.
16. In the prevailing economic crisis, reductions in public spending on investment and consumption linked to the policy of austerity, along with the drop in private expenditures due to the decline in domestic demand, have been accompanied by a contraction of GDP. Moreover, since 1988 the Government has been pursuing a policy of restructuring whose short- and medium-term effects on employment are not negligible. In the financial sector, this restructuring led to the loss of 26,000 jobs in 1990. In the parastate sector, owing to bad personnel policies, an estimated 12,000 staff were made redundant in 1990. In the public sector, the consequences of the restructuring have been a freeze on recruitment and promotions, the closing down of some vocational training centres, the systematic retirement of staff reaching the age limit, the lowering of salaries and voluntary or enforced separations. The net result of all these factors is the employment crisis now facing the country. The unemployment rate was estimated at 11 per cent in 1994 for the country as a whole, i.e. 540,000 people were out of work.
17. As mentioned above, the economic crisis does not seem to have affected the informal sector, whose importance both in terms of the output of goods and services and as regards the labour market has been strengthened. The economic crisis has once again highlighted the limited ability of the modern sector to create enough jobs for the labour market.
18. During the period 1975-1984, when investment growth was 24 per cent annually in the modern sector, the job growth rate was less than 7 per cent annually. This means that investments were made in capital-intensive and not labour-intensive sectors.
19. There were an estimated 668,818 salaried jobs in the modern sector in 1994, 81 per cent of which were in the modern private sector and 18.2 per cent in the public service. The primary sector continues to predominate, with 35.4 per cent of wage earners in the modern sector. The tertiary sector follows, with 30.1 per cent of wage earners, 21.3 per cent of them working in services. The secondary sector comes last, with 16.4 per cent of the wage earners in the modern sector of the economy. The importance of the public sector in remunerated employment should also not be neglected. It accounts for 18.2 per cent of wage earners in the modern sector.
20. Women are on the whole poorly represented among employees of businesses, constituting only 11.8 per cent of all workers, for various reasons including their limited access to training facilities, the reluctance of some employers to hire them (despite the provisions of article 1, paragraph 2, of the Labour Code), the confining of women to certain administrative roles and other sociological and family-related considerations. Women, children and the disabled are therefore the most disadvantaged.
21. There is an increasingly marked participation of women (more than 20 per cent of all workers) in tertiary services, banks, insurance companies, publishing houses, the textiles industry and clothing manufacture. However, women represent only 5.2 per cent of the skilled workforce (categories 4 to 12) of businesses, and the most highly skilled women are to be found in banks, insurance companies, tertiary services, electricity, gas and water, and publishing.
22. In the present situation of crisis, the wage bill has risen very little in most branches of activity and has even fallen in others on account of staff cutbacks, technical unemployment and even reductions in wages.
23. Social security in 1994 covered 668,818 wage earners, of whom 547,298 were insured by the National Social Insurance Fund (CNPS) and 121,520 in the civil service. The large majority of those insured work in the primary sector (43 per cent) and in the tertiary sector (37 per cent). The secondary sector employs barely 20 per cent of CNPS participants. The Fund has not been spared by the economic and financial crisis affecting Cameroon since 1986 and is today experiencing many difficulties due to a decline in the number of persons insured and a very rapid increase in the number of people to be cared for (pensioners).
24. In 1994, the number of persons insured represented only 92 per cent of that in 1988. During the same period, the number of pensioners to be provided for grew by 142 per cent. The difficulties of the CNPS are illustrated by a negative trend in benefits due or paid. There has been a gradual decline in contributions received by the CNPS. In 1994, for example, contributions amounted to only 74 per cent of their 1988 values. This negative trend in contributions has seriously affected the quality of the services expected from the CNPS by those insured, particularly family allowances and various other benefits. Since 1988, the amount of family allowances and other benefits provided by the CNPS has continued to decrease. Benefits paid in 1994 represented only 40 per cent of their 1988 values; the same applies to service-related benefits, which represented only 38 per cent of their 1988 values. All these difficulties are having repercussions on the labour market, negatively influencing the contribution that the family has to make to the creation of small businesses, in view of the inefficiency of the banking system.
2.1
25. All the rights recognized in the Covenant are guaranteed in Cameroon to all persons residing in the national territory, without distinction as to nationality, except as laid down in the constitutional, legislative and regulatory provisions for safeguarding national sovereignty.
2.2
26. Article 1, paragraph 2, of Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code, states that "an employee, in the terms of this Act, means anyone, whatever his or her sex or nationality, who undertakes to place his or her occupational activity, subject to remuneration, under the direction and authority of a physical or legal person, whether public or private, the latter being considered as the employer".
2.3
27. Within the limits of available resources and with bilateral and multilateral assistance from friendly countries and international organizations, Cameroon is ensuring its development with due regard to the rights recognized in the Covenant.
6.1
28. Cameroon has acceded to a number of International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions, including the Employment Policy Convention (No. 122) and the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention (No. 111). Reports have been submitted quarterly, biannually and annually to ILO, the most recent of which covers the period from June to September 1996 and of which the most pertinent passages are mentioned below.
6.2 (a)
29. The active population is growing much faster than opportunities for paid employment, which are tending rather to decline. The consequence is that unemployment, which had been an epiphenomenon during the 1970s, has become more pronounced in the past decade. It is today an economic, social and political challenge of the first order. Generally speaking, between one fifth and a quarter of the active population aged 15 years and over is jobless in the major cities.
30. For an active population estimated at 5,100,000, there were about 690,000 permanent salaried jobs in 1996, distributed as follows:
Overall average unemployment in Cameroon is between 15 and 17 per cent, with very high rates of unemployment in Yaoundé (30 per cent) and Douala (27 per cent). Considering its human resources potential, Cameroon has always witnessed underutilization of its productive capacities, hence the situation of permanent underemployment it has known since independence. Women, children and the disabled are the most disadvantaged.
6.2 (b)
31. Cameroon has adopted and implemented the Investment Code and the ordinance on industrial free zones, both of which are pivotal for promoting employment, as well as the Labour Code, which provides for flexibility and promotion of employment and facilities for negotiations between employers and employees.
32. With regard to the Investment Code and free zone system, the advantages are as follows:
(i) Tax advantages:
During the installation phase:
During the production phase:
- 50 per cent reduction in the corporation tax, the tax on business profits and the proportional tax on income from movable capital;
- Exemption from export duties and insurance fees on manufactured goods;
- Reduction of taxable income by a non-continuable amount equal to 0.5 per cent of the f.o.b. value of manufactured goods.
(ii) Economic advantages:
In terms of customs duties:
33. The free zone system, which is intended to promote new investments, facilitate export development and create new jobs, was established by the Cameroonian Government through Ordinance No. 90/001 of 29 January 1990. Enterprises registered under this system enjoy the following trade, tax and customs advantages:
(i) Trade advantages:
Imports and exports of enterprises registered under the free zone system are not subject to licensing, permits or quotas. They are, however, subject to the formality of prior declaration for statistical purposes.
(ii) Tax advantages:
During the first 10 years, enterprises established in the industrial free zones are completely exempt from direct and/or indirect taxes and duties and from registration fees, stamp duty and property transfer duties, as well as taxes on foreign currency transfers.
From the eleventh year of operations, registered enterprises continue to enjoy the above advantages, except with regard to taxes on business profits, which are taxed at the rate of 15 per cent.
Furthermore, deficits sustained during the period of exemption are charged against the following years and deducted from earnings.
(iii) Customs advantages
Enterprises in the industrial free zone are exempt from all customs duties and taxes. Through these measures, the Government can promote productive investments and thereby create the largest possible number of jobs in order to make work available to job-seekers.
6.2 (c)
34. The purpose of the National Employment Fund (FNE), which was created on 27 April 1990 in the framework of the Social Dimension of Adjustment (SDA) project, is to increase employment opportunities, encourage the occupational integration of first-time job-seekers and the return to work of people who have been laid off for economic reasons, and to encourage, finance and pursue programmes for on-the-job training, apprenticeships, formal and vocational training, self-employment and the creation of small businesses (the promoter must make a contribution in cash or in kind). The FNE offers small loans for unemployed persons with viable projects and an entrepreneurial spirit to establish small businesses.
35. An International Labour Office (ILO) project for young graduates and young craftsmen, was due to be implemented with a CFAF 230 million government grant and a US$ 544,000 grant from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). This project was intended to promote entrepreneurship through assistance in the creation and management of viable enterprises by a group of young promoters (the promoter being required to make a contribution in cash or in kind). During the set-up stage, the promoter was to be helped by the project to complete the administrative formalities, gather the necessary funds, put in place the necessary management tools and develop cooperation and assistance with other promoters. Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, this project has been suspended.
36. The Enterprise Creation Centre, established in 1981, is an initiative of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Its services include defining the enterprise and its products, conducting market research, production and human resource planning, making budget estimates, looking for partners and promoting the project.
37. A tripartite cooperation project involving financial institutions, private research offices and SMEs is being executed jointly by ILO and the Ecole supérieure des sciences économiques et commerciales at Douala in association with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). With many studies also being conducted by private consultants, the project is expected to help in developing a programme of advanced training for bank executives responsible for extending loans to SMEs, organizing further training courses abroad for national managers of consultancy firms, evaluating the results achieved by enterprises and recipient consultants' offices and studying one or more systems for financing consultancy activities.
6.2 (d)
38. The preamble to the Constitution and article 2 of the Labour Code, like ILO Conventions Nos. 111 and 122, guarantee free choice of employment and the exercise of political and fundamental freedoms.
6.2 (e)
39. Cameroon has taken the following steps in the area of vocational training:
40. Cameroon instituted a large-scale job creation programme which has encountered difficulties in attaining the objectives of full, productive and freely chosen employment due to a number of economic constraints connected with the structural adjustment programme and the devaluation of the CFA franc, at a time when the country is confronted with a population explosion and an upsurge in the number of "skilled unemployed".
41. Small enterprise support projects have not been pursued. However, in the wage-earning sector of the public service the State is encouraging the emergence of own account workers and the creation of SMEs for the so-called downsizing exercise in the civil service through the payment of fees as an incentive to self-employment.
6.3 (a)
42. Cameroon has ratified the ILO Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) and has always promoted equal opportunity and equal treatment in employment and occupation. Inspired by article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, according to which "all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights", Cameroon has, both in its Constitution and in its Labour Code, afforded every opportunity in employment or occupation to its nationals and to foreigners working in its territory, without distinction as to race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, nationality or social origin. However, in connection with the protection of the national labour force, prior authorization is required for workers of foreign nationality to obtain an employment contract and this is issued by the Minister in charge of labour and employment. Similarly, as part of the Cameroonization of employment, some jobs previously reserved for foreign workers are gradually returning to Cameroonian workers, who are the first beneficiaries therefrom, in conformity with Decree No. 77/67 of 14 March 1977 relating to the Cameroonization of jobs.
6.3 (b)
43. Policy on vocational guidance and training is being established: a draft master plan has been prepared and submitted to the Government with a view to its adoption by the National Assembly. A draft statement of national employment policy is also being finalized.
6.4
44. The Cameroonian population was estimated at 13.3 million in 1996. The economically active population, i.e. people holding or capable of holding jobs, is estimated at 5.1 million, 58.4 per cent of whom are men and 41.6 per cent women. The active population is largely rural.
45. The active population is growing at an annual average rate of 3 per cent. To keep unemployment relatively low (less than 10 per cent), some 150,000 jobs would have to be created on average each year to cope with the additional manpower resulting from population growth.
46. The active population is also characterized by the continuing predominance of abundant but untrained manpower. According to estimates, the workforce is not sufficiently educated or skilled:
45 per cent have primary education;
6.5
47. Cameroon is divided into three zones: the first (Yaoundé, Douala, Edéa, Buéa); the second (comprising all urban centres except the aforementioned); and the third, which is the rural zone. Under the new Labour Code there is only one wage zone.
7.2 (b)
48. The system of minimum wages is supervised to a greater or lesser extent.
7.2 (c)
49. In conformity with international labour standards, including ILO Convention No. 100, there is no inequality or discrimination in remuneration and still less any departure from the principle of equal pay for equal work.
7.2 (c) (i)
50. No such discrimination exists in Cameroon.
7.2. (c) (ii)
51. In Cameroon there is a national standard classification based on the international classification of trades and occupations. This classification places workers in categories ranging from 1 to 12. The category to be attributed can be determined from the job description. The job may be performed as task work or as piecework, according to daily, weekly or monthly rates.
7.2. (d)
52. The income distribution of employees in the public sector has two aspects. First, it is index-related for civil servants in categories A, B, C and D. In each category there are two classes, which appear in decreasing order, i.e. the second and the first. Within each class there are steps -eight steps for the second class and three steps for the first. Then there is the special class. Secondly, the income distribution for public sector employees relates to State officials and local authority contract workers who are subject to the Labour Code. Their classification is based on categories 1 to 12. Within each category there are 12 steps. The remuneration of civil servants and State officials is index- and category-related, and the salary may be high or low according to the value of the index point, which was 429.69 in 1992 but dropped to 146.654 in 1993.
53. In the private sector, employees are remunerated according to categories ranging from 1 to 12. Within each category there are steps going from A, B and C up to special step G. Despite the economic crisis, wages in the private sector are significantly higher than those in the public sector, as the wage scales dating from 1985 are clearly advantageous. Public sector wages have fallen dramatically, by 6 per cent for the lowest paid and 66 per cent for the highest paid.
54. For purposes of comparison, it may be stated without risk of error that in the private and semi-public sectors, wages have grown steadily. They are even continuing to increase in certain businesses despite the elimination of some benefits, which entails a decline in purchasing power.
55. In the public sector, by contrast, wages in nominal terms witnessed an upward trend, a period of stagnation and one of decline, while in real terms they increased during the growth phase and began to fall at the start of the period of stagnation, continuing to fall until the end of the period under consideration. This wage reduction in the public sector, coupled with the devaluation of the CFA franc, has led to a slowdown in economic activity, a decline in the purchasing power of households (particularly urban households) and a marked deterioration in standards of living.
7.3
56. Articles 95, 96 and 97 of Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code of Cameroon, and Decree No. 039/MTPS/IMT of 26 November 1984, which establishes health and safety measures for the workplace.
7.3 (a)
57. The analysis of the formal sector does not exclude any category of employees working therein; thus, no one is excluded from the scope of these provisions.
7.3 (b)
58. For the period 1988-1994, centralized statistics indicate a total of 28,747 cases of occupational accidents.
7.4
59. Discrimination of this kind does not really exist in Cameroon because the country scrupulously observes article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 2 of Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code. However, it should be mentioned that, despite their numbers, women are underrepresented in all sectors of activity in the national economy; this situation must be remedied by applying the policy of quotas advocated by the Fourth World Conference on Women, held recently in Beijing.
7.4 (a)
60. The category of women excluded is composed of women in the rural sector, who are very marginalized.
7.5
61. Daily rest is regulated by article 88 of the Labour Code. Article 80 of that Code regulates working hours, as does Decree No. 95/665/PM of 18 December 1995, concerning dispensations from the legal working hours. Article 89 of the Labour Code regulates the conditions of paid leave. Remuneration for public holidays is regulated by Decree No. 95/665/PM of 18 December 1995, concerning dispensations from the legal working hours.
7.5 (a)
62. There is no major difficulty in the application of these instruments, and any cases of non-compliance result more from ignorance than from a wish to violate them.
7.5 (b)
63. See the reply concerning 7.3 (a) above.
7.6
64. With regard to deregulation of the labour market, reference may be made to Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code, which is very flexible compared to the previous code inasmuch as it liberalizes hiring, endorses contract labour policy, legalizes temporary employment, etc.
7.7
65. In this specific context, international assistance from ILO remains limited, although the country has extended the provisions of the Convention to all sectors of activity.
8.1
66. Cameroon is a party to three of these instruments, but has not ratified the ILO Convention concerning the public service.
8.2
67. With regard to workers governed by the Labour Code and employers, articles 4 and 8 of the Labour Code specify the conditions in which trade unions may be established. These provisions are supplemented by Decree No. 93/574 of 15 July 1993, which establishes the form of trade unions to which the registration procedure applies.
68. Concerning public officials, Decree No. 69/DF/7 of 6 January 1968, which determines the organization and conditions for approval of professional associations or unions not governed by the Labour Code, permits them to engage in trade union activities.
8.2 (a)
69. There is no category of workers regulated by special provisions regarding the establishment of trade unions, as the above-mentioned instruments apply without distinction to all sectors of activity.
8.2 (b)
70. There are no specific restrictions, but prior authorization for the establishment of any trade union is necessary to prevent a situation of anarchy in this regard from eventually becoming uncontrollable.
71. Within the framework of the amendment of the Labour Code, the National Labour Advisory Commission will explore the possibility of withdrawing article 6.2 of Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992 containing the Labour Code.
8.2 (c)
72. In conformity with ILO Convention No. 87, trade unions are allowed to form federations or confederations and join international trade union organizations. There are no restrictions which could impede such affiliation.
8.2 (d)
73. Articles 13 and 14 of Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code, include provisions which may restrict the activities of a trade union in the event that it violates the regulations in force. Collective bargaining may be initiated jointly by the social partners (employers and workers); the State, for its part, acts only as arbiter.
8.2 (e)
74. Established trade unions may be categorized as follows:
(i) Workers' unions
Independent national trade unions : 11
Departmental trade unions: CSTC: 255
USLC: 14
Independent departmental trade unions : 11
Federations:
Departmental unions: CSTC: 31
USLC: 1
Independent departmental union : 1
Trade union federations: CSTC: 8
USLC: 0
Independent trade union federations : 3
(ii) Employers' unions
Union of Industrialists of Cameroon (SYNDUSTRICAM)
Union of Agricultural Professionals Associations of Cameroon (USPAC)
Union of Professional Associations of Cameroon (USPC)
Figures on membership are not currently available and will be communicated to the Committee at a later date.
8.3
75. The right to strike is recognized for workers in Cameroon. This right is regulated by articles 157-165 of the Labour Code. Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code, thus guarantees the right to strike.
8.3 (a)
76. The procedure to be followed in case of a strike is described in an annex to this report.
8.3 (b)
77. There are no special provisions regarding strikes by a particular category of worker.
8.4
78. Categories of staff such as public officials and uniformed personnel are excluded from the scope of Act No. 92/007 of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code, particularly under article 1, paragraph 3.
9.1
79. Cameroon has not yet acceded to all the conventions cited. However, there is an institution, namely the Caisse Nationale de Prévoyance Sociale (CNPS) (National Social Insurance Fund), which covers some of the branches enumerated in Convention No. 102.
9.2
80. Three branches of social security exist in our country: family benefits; old-age, disability and death insurance pensions; and occupational accidents and diseases. The following benefits are provided to insured persons:
Maternity benefits
Disability benefits
Survivors' benefits
Occupational accident benefits
Family allowances.
The agency in charge of social security in Cameroon between 1991 and 1995 provided benefits to insured persons in the following branches:
(a) Family benefits:
(b) Occupational hazards:
9.3
81. The social insurance scheme administered by the CNPS includes the three above-mentioned branches. It is concerned with wage-earners covered by article 1 of the Labour Code, namely, individuals who, whatever their sex or nationality, have committed themselves to placing their occupational activities, subject to remuneration, under the direction and authority of a physical or legal person, whether public or private, the latter being considered as the employer. Social coverage extends to other categories which enjoy protection limited to the occupational hazard branch (sailors, managers of limited liability companies, apprentices, technical college students and persons placed in training or functional re-education centres, persons subject to the Civic Service for Participation in Development). Excluded from the scheme are State employees covered by the Labour Code as well as staff governed by the following:
The general statute concerning the civil service;
The statute concerning the magistrature;
The general statute concerning military personnel;
The special statute concerning national security;
The special statute concerning prison administration;
The specific provisions applicable to administrative support staff.
82. At present (1997) the scheme covers 543,635 insured persons together with 748,988 children (excluding State officials and contractual administrative employees reverted to the Ministry of Finance). The benefits provided under this scheme are as follows by branch:
(i) Occupation accidents and diseases
83. A daily allowance is paid to the victim until he or she can return to work, whatever the length of this interruption of employment, or temporary disability. The allowance is equal to two thirds of the person's average monthly remuneration, this being obtained by calculating the average wage received during the three months preceding the occupational accident.
84. A permanent partial disability pension is payable when such disability is greater than 20 per cent. This is proportional, according to the degree of disability, to the pension to which the victim would have been entitled in the case of permanent total disability, i.e. 85 per cent of the victim's average monthly remuneration.
85. A disability allowance is paid to the victim when the permanent partial disability rate is less than 20 per cent. The amount of this allowance is equal to 10 times the annual pension.
86. A survivor's pension is paid to the beneficiaries (father, mother, legitimate, recognized or adopted children) of a person who has died as a result of an occupational accident, the total amount of the survivors' pensions being equal to 85 per cent of the victim's average monthly remuneration.
87. With regard to benefits in kind, the CNPS covers the costs of the victim's treatment, re-education and rehabilitation (hospitalization, pharmaceuticals, prostheses and orthopaedics, radiological examinations), as well as funeral expenses.
88. Benefits for occupational hazards are financed entirely through contributions calculated on the basis of the wages, with no ceiling, paid to workers, the contributions being the exclusive responsibility of the employer.
(ii) Old age, disability and death insurance pensions
89. The regular old age pension is allocated to an insured person registered for at least 20 years who is 60 years of age and has 180 months of insurance. The minimum pension rate is equal to 30 per cent of the average monthly remuneration, obtained by calculating the average wage for the 36 to 60 months prior to the date on which the insured ceased working. The pension rate is increased 100 per cent for each 12-month period of insurance beyond 180 months.
90. The granting of an anticipatory old age pension is subject to the same conditions as in the previous case, except that the minimum age is reduced to 50 years.
91. An old age allowance is granted to insured persons registered for at least 12 months who are at least 60 years of age and have 12 months' insurance. The amount of the old age allowance is equal to the insured's average monthly remuneration multiplied by the number of 12-month periods of insurance accumulated.
92. The anticipatory old age allowance for premature incapacity is granted under the same conditions as in the previous case, except that the age is reduced to 50 years and the insured needs to produce a medical certificate duly attesting to the premature physical or mental incapacity preventing him from being gainfully employed.
93. A disability pension is granted to an insured person who, as a result of a non-occupational disease or accident, has suffered a permanent diminution in his physical or mental capacity of at least two thirds, and who has been registered for at least five years and has at least six months' insurance during the last 12 calendar months preceding the commencement of the incapacity leading to disability. The latter requirement does not apply, however, when the disability is due to an accident. In that case, it is enough for the insured, at the time of the accident, to have been employed in a position covered by insurance. The methods for calculating the disability pension are the same as those laid down by law for old age pensions. Furthermore, a disabled person benefits from a special bonus of one month's insurance. The age requirement for entitlement to the regular or anticipatory old age pension (60 or 50 years) does not apply to the disabled person.
94. A supplement is granted to the recipient of an anticipatory old age pension or disability pension who has constant need for the aid and care of a third person to perform ordinary daily tasks. This supplement is equal to 40 per cent of the amount of the pension.
95. A survivor's pension is granted to the beneficiaries of a deceased pensioner or insured person who dies while in employment. The old age pension, disability pension or anticipatory pension to which the insured was or would have been entitled upon his death is broken down in percentage terms as follows: 50 per cent for the spouse or spouses; 25 per cent for orphans with no father and no mother; 15 per cent for orphans with no father or no mother; and 10 per cent for ascendants.
96. A survivor's allowance is payable to the beneficiaries of an insured person who dies at a time when he could claim only an old age allowance. The insured must have had at least six months' insurance. The survivor's allowance is equal to the amount of the old age pension which the insured could have claimed had he accumulated 180 months' of insurance, multiplied by the number of six month periods of insurance accumulated at the time of his death.
97. Funeral expenses are covered by the CNPS if the insured dies without leaving any beneficiary, within the limits of the regulations in force.
98. The pension scheme is financed from the contributions paid by employers, calculated on the basis of remuneration capped at 300,000 francs per month. The contribution rate is 7 per cent, distributed between the employer and the worker in the following manner: 4.2 per cent payable by the employer and 2.8 per cent payable by the worker.
(iii) Family allowances
99. Family allowances are paid for children in the recipient's care. The monthly family allowance is currently set at 1,800 francs per child.
100. A pre-natal allowance is paid to an employed woman or the spouse of an employed man for each pregnancy formally declared to the CNPS. The amount of the pre-natal allowance is equal to 9 times the monthly family allowance rate.
101. A maternity allowance is paid to an employed woman or the spouse of an employed man who gives birth to a child in a viable condition. The allowance is equal to 12 times the monthly family allowance rate.
102. A daily allowance is paid to an employed woman on maternity leave who has been working for at least six consecutive months as of the date on which the work contract is suspended. The length of maternity leave is 14 weeks, which may be extended by six weeks upon presentation of a medical certificate. The daily allowance is equal to the net wage actually received by the employed woman at the time the work contract is suspended.
103. Medical expenses related to pregnancy and maternity are reimbursed, in respect of pre-natal examinations and delivery, at the rate of 200 francs for each pre-natal examination and 1,400 francs for each delivery.
104. The family allowances branch is financed entirely from the contributions which are paid by employers and which are their exclusive responsibility.
9.5
105. There are informal private arrangements which supplement the formal social security scheme.
These arrangements have no relationship with the formal social security system.
9.6
106. The formal social security system is open to all members of the population without discrimination, since besides workers governed by the Labour Code, private persons are afforded the possibility of insuring themselves on an individual basis.
107. The problem of information and incomes probably remain the factors limiting access to the formal social security system. More and more people are showing a preference for the informal social security system, which is furthermore growing in size because of the less complicated procedures for gaining access to services.
9.6 (a)
108. A draft enactment relating to mutual benefit societies is being prepared by the Government and takes into account all the concerns of groups marginalized by the present social security system.
9.6 (b)
109. Rationalization of the financing of the various branches covered hitherto and a clear transition towards a real social security system characterize the draft social security code now in preparation.
9.6 (c)
110. At present, given that the measures contemplated are still at the drafting stage, it is not yet possible to evaluate the efforts on marginalized groups. The next report will probably be able to provide more specific information in this regard.
9.8
111. With a view to the observance of Convention No. 102, donors and lenders such as ILO and the World Bank have assisted the agency responsible for social security in promoting the social right set forth in article 9.
112. Cameroon has acceded to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It has ratified the ILO Maternity Protection Convention (No. 3) but has not yet ratified the Maternity Protection Convention (Revised) (No. 103).
113. Cameroon has ratified the following ILO Conventions:
Minimum Age (Industry) Convention (No. 5)
Minimum Age (Agriculture) Convention (No. 10)
Minimum Age (Trimmers and Stokers) Convention (No. 15)
Medical Examination of Young Persons (Sea) Convention (No. 16)
Minimum Age (Non-Industrial Emoyment) Convention (No. 33)
Medical Examination of Young Persons (Industry) Convention (No. 77)
Medical Examination of Young Persons (Non-Industrial Occupations) Convention (No. 78)
Night Work of Young Persons (Industry) Convention (No. 90)
Minimum Age (Underground Work) Convention (No. 123)
Minimum Age Convention (No. 138).
10.5 (a) (ii)
114. Cf. articles 84 and 85 of Act No. 92/007, of 14 August 1992, containing the Labour Code.
10.5 (a) (iii)
115. Please refer to 9.2.
116. In accordance with the Constitution, the State guarantees children the right to education. Public primary education is secular and open to all without distinction as to sex, religion or tribe. The organization and supervision of education at all levels is a paramount duty of the State. In order to ensure the full exercise of the right of everyone to education, the Cameroonian Government provides the people with institutions of primary, secondary and higher education throughout the country; it also authorizes the establishment and opening of private educational institutions for legal entities and individuals.
117. The table below shows changes in the numbers of pupils for each level of education by sector between 1985 and 1995 and highlights the effort made to bring education to the people.
(a) Primary education (arts. 13 and 14)
118. Until recently, basic education was theoretically free but not compulsory. However, at the States General of Education held in May 1995, the nationwide consensus called for free and compulsory basic education for all. This provision was confirmed by the fundamental law promulgated by the President of the Republic on 18 January 1996. As it is not yet in force, transitional regulations have just established self-financing and self-management structures (management committees) supported by State subsidies for the operation of schools. This situation may be said to be one of semi-autonomy, in which parents participate by making a modest contribution fixed by law without primary education being compulsory.
119. However, while there is as yet no formal plan for instituting free and compulsory education, it can be seen from the resolutions of the States General of Education and in the light of the new Constitution that local and regional communities will be able, in the context of decentralization, to take responsibility for drawing up such a plan having regard to the local realities.
The difficulties in establishing such a plan are of various kinds:
(1) Structural: Lack of infrastructure to cope with the large numbers of pupils.
(2) Human: Insufficient quality and quantity of teaching staff; freeze on recruitment in the civil service in general and particularly in the teachers' training colleges, with structural adjustment posing the threat that areas traditionally backward in the educational field may fall even further behind.
(3) Financial: Drastic reduction in State revenue due to the economic crisis;
Devaluation of the CFA franc;
Decrease in the GDP;
Impoverishment of the population;
Crushing burden of the public debt, etc.
(4) Sociocultural:
Nomadic way of life;
Involvement of children, particularly girls, in crop farming and animal husbandry and/or household activities;
Lack of a favourable perception of modern schooling among parents;
Early marriages and pregnancies.
(5) Inequity:
Great selectivity of the system, which puts children from low-income groups at a disadvantage;
Lack of a differentiated approach to teaching that would take account of the many different levels in a class;
Influence of certain traditions, which engender a lack of equal opportunity in access to schooling as between girls and boys;
Expenses borne by parents at all levels of education (textbooks, assistants, teaching aids, various contributions, etc.);
Blatant inequality in the granting of loans for training courses; in our country, the trend is reversed in favour of secondary and higher education.
(b) Secondary education
120. All capitals of departments and districts have at least one public secondary school. At present, for general education there are 193 lycées and 185 secondary-school colleges while for technical and vocational education there are 34 lycées, 68 technical colleges and 210 rural crafts and domestic work sections. However, it must be noted that entry into secondary school is selective as it is based on a competitive examination and the structures of secondary education cannot always absorb all pupils from primary school. Furthermore, the State's financial problems have led the authorities to revise families' contributions upwards as regards enrolment fees in public institutions; these range from CFAF 7,500 to CFAF 10,000 in general secondary education and from CFAF 10,000 to CFAF 15,000 at the technical secondary level. As to private institutions, parents continue to have to pay boarding fees far in excess of those contributions. All without exception must provide for the purchase of books, uniforms and other supplies necessary for their children.
121. It may thus be concluded that secondary education is neither entirely free nor truly accessible to all.
(c) System of basic education for those persons who have not received or completed primary education
122. This system involves several other ministries, including the following:
123. The Ministry of Youth and Sports, which is in charge of youth and recreation centres, literacy centres, mobile recreation units and youth movements and associations.
124. The Ministry for Social Affairs and the Status of Women, which is concerned with women, disabled persons and the elderly, delinquents and socially maladjusted young people. The latter are cared for by the Cameroonian Children's Institution at Betamba, the welcome and guidance centres of Douala and Maroua, the Borstal Institute of Buéa, the residential workshops of New-Bell (Douala) and the open-setting education centres.
(a) Percentage of the national budget spent on education
(1) Public expenditures on education: total and percentage of GNP
MINESUP
14 498 000 000
The budget for education is revised upwards on a yearly basis; this demonstrates the State's concern to ensure that all citizens fully exercise their right to education.
(2) Distribution of public expenditures by level of education
125. The overall appropriation for basic education is larger. This is in keeping with the recommendations of the World Conference on Education for All, held at Jomtien in March 1990, which makes basic education the highest priority worldwide.
School calendar
126. Each year a ministerial decree fixes the dates of school holidays in the Republic of Cameroon. Each new school year consists of three terms, which together comprise six periods of teaching and evaluation lasting five to six weeks each. There are also two breaks, at the end of the first and second terms. The 1996/97 school year was divided as follows:
First term: Thursday, 12 September to Friday, 20 December 1996;
Second term: Monday, 6 January to Friday, 21 March 1997;
Third term: Wednesday, 2 April to Friday, 13 June 1997.
The period designated for official examinations was Monday, 16 June to Friday, 18 July 1997.
(b) Equal access to the various levels of education
127. Access to the various levels of education is related to the standard of living of each citizen. About 70 per cent of pupils in Cameroon terminate their studies at the primary level because of poverty. Only 30 per cent go on to secondary education and 3 per cent to higher education.
(i) Proportion of males and females at all levels of education, 1994/95
Nursery school:
Boys: 46,036
Girls: 45,206
Primary education:
Boys: 1,003,105
Girls: 893,617
General secondary education:
Boys: 273,820
Girls: 185,248
Technical secondary education:
Boys: 54,405
Girls: 37,674
(ii) Practical enjoyment of the right to education
128. The right to education is recognized by law but, as stated above, poverty is a handicap for more than 70 per cent of the population and affects mainly the disadvantaged segments of society (rural populations and minority groups, such as the Pygmies), girls and border populations.
(iii) Measures taken by the Government to guarantee access to all levels of education
129. There has always been a clear willingness on the part of the Government to promote education for all (establishment of primary schools and nursery schools, lycées and colleges at the secondary level and several universities). However, modest financial resources and rapid population growth have considerably tempered this willingness. It should be noted that the conditions for financing laid down by the donors and lenders have also contributed to compromising the Government's efforts in this respect.
(iv) Language facilities
130. With regard to the teaching of national languages, an alphabet has already been developed for each of the national languages of Cameroon. At the methodological level, experimental research has been conducted in religious educational institutions on the basis of the principal lingua franca of each region. The results are convincing. In terms of scientific decision-making, three trends have emerged: some favour the study of one main language per region; others think that more than one language per region would be advisable; and a third group suggests that each ethnic group should be able to teach its own language. The discussion is ongoing in this regard.
(c) Conditions of teaching staff
131. The material situation of teaching staff in Cameroon is quite hard and is characterized by poor working conditions (great shortage of essential supplies, including desks, files, tables, chairs and teaching materials). The state of affairs is striking both in private secular and religious schools and in public schools.
132. The salaries of teachers have always been aligned with those of civil servants and workers covered by collective bargaining agreements. As the salary is everything for teachers, the successive reductions in recent years following a decrease in State revenue have led to a real impoverishment of the teaching profession, thus jeopardizing any improvement in educational performance.
(d) Proportion of private institutions
133. The most recent data are for the 1995/96 school year:
Nursery schools: 633 institutions
Primary education: 1,736 institutions
Secondary education: 509 institutions
While these private secular and religious institutions are neither established nor administered by the State, the granting of permission for their establishment and the supervision of their teaching are the State's responsibility.
(e) National policy, laws and practices
134. There are no laws which negatively affect the right to education; on the contrary, the laws are aimed at improving the existing system.
(f) Role of international assistance
135. This is two-fold: cooperation involving the supply of personnel and financial support.
136. Cooperation involving the supply of personnel has decreased and international assistance is mainly provided in the form of financing. Within that framework, there are a number of projects that have been set up; some have started and others are now being identified or prepared. The following may be cited in this regard:
primary schools
15.3
137. In order to ensure the protection of intellectual property, Cameroon became one of the signatories of the Bangui Agreement of 2 March 1977 establishing the African Intellectual Property Organization. The aim of this organization is to protect intellectual property rights in the 14 member States.
138. It should be pointed out that the all signatories of the Bangui Agreement are also parties to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property of 20 March 1883 and its amendments; this is concerned with the management of all intellectual property instruments worldwide.
139. More recently, Cameroon has signed the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), an agreement reached following the Marrakesh agreements establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO).
140. The Cameroonian Government, through these bodies for multilateral cooperation, is thus ensuring the protection of intellectual property rights in its territory.
141. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognizes the right to work, the right to enjoy just and favourable conditions of work, the right to form and join trade unions, the right of the family to the widest possible protection and assistance, the right to social security, the right to an adequate standard of living, the right to education and the right to take part in cultural life. All these rights are affirmed in the legal environment of Cameroon, where they are exercised having due regard for the laws and international conventions.
142. However, many factors intervene in the exercise of these rights, as their enjoyment depends not only on the will of developing countries, which, bending under the yoke of external debt in a context of economic crisis marked by deteriorating terms of trade, find themselves confronted with realities that can be overcome only through sacrifices incompatible with the will of the State to attain a standard of living enabling human dignity to be respected. This is where international solidarity should intervene to provide for the equality of peoples in the global village.
143. In any event, Cameroon for its part reaffirms its commitment to human and peoples' rights and its willingness to cooperate with the United Nations and its specialized agencies to facilitate the free exercise by all of the rights recognized in the Covenant.