VZCZCXYZ0014
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHNK #0094/01 0421029
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 111029Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY NOUAKCHOTT
TO RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9100

UNCLAS NOUAKCHOTT 000094 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DOL/ILAB FOR LEYLA STROTKAMP, RACHEL RIGBY AND TINA 
MCCARTER; DRL/ILCSR FOR SARAH MORGAN AND G/TIP FOR LUIS 
CDEBACA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB EIND ETRD KTIP PHUM MR
SUBJECT: MAURITANIA: CHILD LABOR AND FORCED LABOR 
 
REF: STATE 131997 
 
¶1.  (U)  In response to reftel tasking 1, Post found no 
evidence of the use of forced labor or exploitive child labor 
in the production of goods in Mauritania. 
 
¶2.  (U)  Post's response to reftel tasking 2 is as follows: 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----------------- 
Prevalence and Sectoral Distribution of Exploitive Child Labor 
--------------------------------------------- ----------------- 
 
¶3.  (U)  In rural areas, children frequently work with their 
families in activities such as farming (e.g. rice, beans, and 
vegetables), herding (e.g. goats) and fishing.  Children 
perform a wide range of informal activities in cities such as 
Nouakchott, Nouadhibou, Kiffa, and Rosso, including domestic 
labor, street vending, collecting passenger fares in buses, 
driving donkey carts to collect garbage, and deliver water 
and construction materials.  Young boys, particularly of the 
Afro-Mauritanian Pulaar tribe, are occassionally placed in 
the custody of unscrupulous religious teachers who force the 
children to beg.  There were reports from local human rights 
groups of Mauritanian girls from 5-13 years old being 
trafficked to the Persian Gulf through arranged marriages and 
subject to sexual exploitation.  Children from families in 
slave-like relationships to dominant families may work as 
house help or as herders for their masters in both rural and 
urban settings. 
 
¶4.  (U)  In 2009, the Ministry of Social Affairs, Childhood, 
and Women in collaboration with UNICEF worked on a study on 
"Child Trafficking and the Worst Forms of Labor in 
Mauritania," which was released to the public in January 
¶2010.  Data is also available through UNICEF's 2007 Multiple 
Indicator Cluster Study (MICS). 
 
-------------------- 
Laws and Regulations 
-------------------- 
 
¶5.  (U)  In 2009, there were no laws and regulations enacted 
in regard to exploitive child labor. 
 
¶6.  (U)  The legal framework was adequate for addressing 
exploitative child labor but laws are rarely enforced. 
 
------------------------------------------- 
Institutions and Mechanisms for Enforcement 
------------------------------------------- 
 
- 2C, Sections 1 and 2: HAZARDOUS AND FORCED CHILD LABOR 
 
¶7.  (U)  The Ministry of Social Affairs, Family and Children 
is the main responsible for enforcing all laws relating to 
children.  The Children's Department, created in 1995, 
promotes and protects children's rights, elaborates and 
executes child welfare programs, coordinates actions in favor 
of childhood and elaborates a national policy and executes 
it. The Ministry of Justice is involved through the Direction 
of the Judiciary Protection of Children as well as the 
Ministry of the Interior through the Special Brigade for 
Minors.  The Ministry of Labor also collaborates through its 
inspector program. 
 
¶8.  (U)  There are no mechanisms for exchanging information 
among agencies or to assess effectiveness. 
 
¶9.  (U)  There is no specific mechanism for making complaints 
other than Labor inspectors or the Special Brigade for 
Minors. 
 
¶10.  (U)  The 2010 budget allotted USD $848,140 to the Labor 
Department.  According to the Labor Department Director, 
these funds are slated for the reconstruction of offices and 
for acquiring resources.  No specific budget provisions were 
made for child labor programs. 
 
¶11.  (U)  There are currently twenty labor inspectors in 
Mauritania who receive and investigate complaints.  There are 
no inspectors specifically devoted to child labor. The new 
government has recruited 40 more inspectors who are presently 
in training at the National School of Administration. 
 
¶12.  (U)  The Children's Department told Mission staff it has 
never received any complaints from Labor Department 
inspectors.  Complaints are rare because the practice of 
child labor is condoned in Mauritania due to the extreme 
poverty people live in. 
 
¶13.  (U)  No children were removed. 
 
¶14.  (U)  There were no prosecutions. 
 
¶15.  (U)  No labor cases were closed or resolved. 
 
¶16.  (U)  There were no convictions. 
 
¶17.  (U)  No sentences were imposed or served. 
 
¶18.  (U)  The government's actions to combat exploitive child 
labor are insufficient. 
 
¶19.  (U)  The government did not offer any training for 
investigators or others. 
 
- 2D, Sections I, II and III:  Child Trafficking, Commercial 
Sexual Exploitation of Children and Use of Children in 
Illicit Activities 
 
¶20.  (U)  The Ministry of Social Affairs, Family and 
Childhood is the main responsible for enforcing all laws 
relating to children.  The Children's Department, created in 
1995, promotes and protects children's rights, elaborates and 
executes child welfare programs, coordinates actions in favor 
of children and develops and enacts national policy. The 
Childhood Department created in 2007 the National Center for 
the Protection of Children in Difficulty located in the El 
Mina and Dar Naim districts of Noaukchott.  In 2009, the 
center provided shelter to 270 children, 60 of whom were 
talibe. The Ministry of Justice is also involved through the 
Direction of the Judiciary Protection of Children as well as 
the Ministry of the Interior through the Special Brigade for 
Minors. 
 
¶21.  (U)  In 2010, USD $9,259 from the Ministry of Social 
Affairs budget is dedicated to the Children's Department. 
 
¶22.  (U)  The country did not maintain a hotline.  Child 
trafficking/CSE/ use of children in illicit activities 
violations could be reported to the Special Brigade for 
Minors or the police. 
 
¶23.  (U)  No investigations were opened.  In 2009, local NGO 
SOS Esclaves brought two alleged child slavery cases to the 
attention of the authorities but judges closed the cases 
without investigation. 
 
¶24.  (U)  Sixty talibe were placed at the National Center for 
the Protection of Children in Difficulty.  This center 
returns children to their families or to their imams asking 
for guarantees that the children will not be sent back to the 
streets to beg.  It also places children in surrogate 
families when necessary. 
 
¶25.  (U)  No arrests were made. 
 
¶26.  (U)  No cases were resolved. 
 
¶27.  (U)  There were no convictions. 
 
¶28.  (U)  The government did not offer any training for 
investigators responsible for enforcement of child 
trafficking/CSEC/children in illicit activities. 
 
---------------------------------- 
Government Policies on Child Labor 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶29.  (U)  The Ministry of Social Affairs, Childhood and 
Family drafted in collaboration with UNICEF a National 
Strategy for the Protection of Children in Mauritania, which 
comprises an action plan for 2009-2010. 
 
¶30.  (U)  The Strategic Framework to Fight Poverty was 
revised for the 2006-2010 period and integrated Millennium 
Development goals for children.  Nevertheless, the 
UNICEF/Ministry of Social Affairs report considers that 
insufficient. 
 
¶31.  (U)  Funding provided is limited. 
 
¶32.  (U)  Non-monetary support was provided through personnel 
for the drafting of the National Strategy for the Protection 
of Children and the study on "Child Trafficking and the Worst 
Forms of Labor." 
 
¶33.  (U)  The government's policies have not been effective. 
According to the study, child labor in Mauritania continues 
to increase in violation of international child labor laws. 
This increase is in contradiction with the law that makes 
attending school mandatory for children up to 14 years of 
age.  Work conditions are increasingly difficult, work days 
are long, and many of the children are away from their 
families for extended periods of time. 
 
¶34.  (U)  The government did not participate in any 
commissions or task forces regarding exploitive child labor. 
 
¶35.  (U)  The government did not sign bilateral, regional or 
international agreements related to child labor. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
Social Programs to Eliminate or Prevent Child Labor 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
¶36.  (U)  The Government of Mauritania participated in a USD 
$2.7 million program to return and reintegrate child camel 
jockeys to their home countries, funded by the United Arab 
Emirates and implemented by UNICEF.  The project ended in 
February 2009 with the repatriation and compensation of 412 
children.  In 2009, the second phase of the project with a 
budget of USD 1 million dollars focused on increasing 
capacity among the child jockey communities.  The government 
also participated, with civil society, in an awareness 
campaign about the rights of domestic servants; many of whom 
are underage. 
 
¶37.  (U)  The Strategic Framework to Fight Poverty was 
revised for the 2006-2010 period and integrated Millennium 
Development goals for children but this is considered 
insufficient by the most recent UNICEF/Ministry of Social 
Affairs study. 
 
¶38.  (U)  The government has no programs specifically related 
to child labor.  As poverty persists and population grows, it 
is understood that child labor in Mauritania continues to 
increase despite national codes. 
 
------------------ 
Continual Progress 
------------------ 
 
¶39.  (U)  During this reporting period, Mauritania underwent 
an eleven-month political crisis caused by the August 8, 2008 
coup d'etat against democratically elected President Sidi 
Ould Cheikh Abdallahi.  Progress in social issues was 
limited.  Newly Elected President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz's 
government has declared itself committed to improving 
Mauritania's human rights record.  The August 2009 drafting 
of a National Strategy for the Protection of Children in 
Mauritania, which comprises an action plan for 2009-2010 is a 
step forward.  Nevertheless, improving the child labor and 
trafficking situation in Mauritania would require 
considerable resources for awareness campaigns and assistance 
programs. 
BOULWARE