Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

List of issues in relation to the sixth periodic report of Angola *

1.The State party is invited to submit in writing the information requested below (preferably not exceeding 10,700 words) by 30 November 2024.

A.General information

2.Please provide information on the number of cases in which the provisions of the Covenant have been invoked before the State party’s domestic courts, and examples thereof. In view of paragraph 8 of the State party’s report,please provide detailed information on training provided to judges, lawyers and law enforcement officials on the provisions of the Covenant and their justiciability, including gender-sensitive training. Please also provide information on how the legislature was involved in the implementation of and follow-up to the previous concluding observationsand in the development of the sixth periodic report.Furthermore, please provide information on the implementation and results of the National Human Rights Strategy and its action plan, as highlighted in paragraph 267 of the State party’s report,with regard to the realization of economic, social and cultural rights.

3.Please provide information on the measures taken to strengthen the independence of the Ombudsman’s Office and to bring it into conformity with the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles). In particular, please provide information on progress made in ensuring that sufficient human and financial resources are allocated to enable the Ombudsman’s Office to carry out its mandate effectively.

4.Please provide information on the measures taken by the State party to protect human rights defenders working on economic, social and cultural rights, particularly journalists and those advocating for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons, and to address the reports of intimidation and reprisals. Please provide information on the number of cases investigated, the number of prosecutions and convictions, and the penalties imposed on the perpetrators. Please also provide information on measures takento ensure that civil society organizationsworking on economic, social and cultural rights can operate without undue restrictions and interference.

5.Please provide information on steps taken to officially recognize Indigenous Peoples. Please provide information on the populations covered by the International Labour Organization (ILO)Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention, 1957 (No. 107), including their numbers and distribution across the territory, and statistical data relating to their enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, particularly with regard to access to healthcare, education, adequate food and water. With reference to paragraphs 57 and 58 of the State party’s report,please provide detailed information on the circumstances in which prior consultations are conducted to obtain the prior, free and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples and communities affected before granting licences to businesses for economic activities. In this connection, please provide detailed information on prior consultation processes that have taken place in the last five years.

6.Please provide information on measures taken, and their results, to effectively enforce the anti-corruption legislation referred to by the State party in paragraph 14 of its report.Please provide detailed information on the cases filed with anti-corruption bodies, particularly those brought against high-level officials, including the number of cases filed, investigated and prosecuted, and the sentences passed on those involved in corruption. Furthermore, please provide information on legislative or other measures taken to ensure the protection of whistle-blowers.

7.Please provide information on measures taken by the State party with regard to the mitigation of climate change, including specific measures, and their impact, to meet the nationally determined contributions for reducing emissions that the State party has set itself under the Paris Agreement. Please also provide information on the progress made in reducing per capita greenhouse gas emissions and on targets that the State party has set for further reductions. With respect to climate change adaptation policies and measures, please provide information on:

(a)How the State party assesses the impacts of climate change on the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, particularly for marginalized and disadvantaged individuals and groups;

(b)Whether the State party has developed or plans to develop a national adaptation plan, with an adequate allocation of all required resources, to address the impacts of climate change on, inter alia, economic, social and cultural rights;

(c)Measures taken to strengthen preparedness for and responses to natural disasters, disaster risk reduction measures and measures taken to adopt a strategy to this end, with an adequate allocation of financial resources;

(d)Which institutions are tasked with the development and implementation of climate change adaptation measures and policies for rapid- and slow-onset impacts in different areas, such as agriculture, water, food security, housing and health, and how coordination among the institutions responsible for disaster preparedness and management is ensured.

B. Issues relating to the general provisions of the Covenant (arts. 1–5)

Maximum available resources (art. 2 (1))

8.Please provide updated information on the evolution of the following, covering the past 10 years:

(a)The proportion of the population living below the nationally defined poverty line;

(b)Levels of inequality, before and after taxes and transfers, if possible defined as the ratio between the total income of the richest 10 per cent of the population and the total income of the poorest 40 per cent and as the ratio between the assets owned by the richest 10 per cent of the population and the assets owned by the poorest 50 per cent;

(c)The economy, in particular through the annual variations of gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita and the level of public debt in proportion to GDP;

(d)The proportion of public revenue generated through taxes and as a percentage of GDP, the proportion of public revenue obtained through direct and indirect taxes, the corporate tax revenue rate and the percentage of total revenue generated from personal tax collected on the incomes of the richest 10 per cent of the population, as well as provide an evaluation of the amount of tax evasion and tax avoidance and the fiscal cost of the main tax benefits;

(e)Public expenditure as a percentage of GDP and, within total public expenditure, the proportion of the public budget allocated to social spending, including social security, food, water and sanitation, housing, health and education;

(f)The current status of the State party’s external debt situation and difficulties faced in its management;

(g)The proportion of the public budget allocated to defence;

(h)Any fiscal policies adopted in response to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Non-discrimination (art. 2 (2))

9.Please provide information on steps taken towards the adoption of a comprehensive anti-discrimination law, prohibiting direct and indirect discrimination on all grounds. Please provide information on the number of discrimination cases brought before the national courts and any other complaint bodies in the past five years, detailing the types of discrimination involved, the penalties imposed on the perpetrators and the remedies provided to the victims.

10.Please provide information on the measures taken to effectively prevent and address discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity, including enhancing access to justice and measures aimed at raising awareness of the economic, social and cultural rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons among members of the public and State officials.

11.Please provide statistical data on the number of refugees and asylum-seekers in the State party, disaggregated by sex, age and country of origin, and on measures taken to ensure their enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, particularly with regard to access to paid work, health care and education. With reference to the Committee’s previous concluding observations,please provide information on progress made in reviewing the legislation and policy that requires asylum-seekers to reside in closed reception centres unless they can demonstrate self-sufficiency. Additionally, please provide detailed information on measures taken, and their impact, on ensuring the issuance and renewal of identification documents for all asylum-seekers and refugees in the State party.

Equal rights of men and women (art. 3)

12.With reference to the Committee’s previous concluding observations,please provide information on the outcomes of the measures referred to by the State party in paragraphs 82 to 90 of its reportwith regard to:

(a)The effective protection of women and girls against all forms of discrimination, including in inheritance;

(b)Addressing stereotypes regarding the roles and responsibilities of women and men in the family and society;

(c)Enhancing access to justice for women, particularly those in rural areas.

13.Please provide information on the measures taken, and their impact, on promoting women’s participation in stable and formal employment. Please provide information on measures taken to address structural causes of the gender pay gap, including occupational gender segregation of the labour market and the low rates of remuneration for jobs predominantly occupied by women.

C.Issues relating to the specific provisions of the Covenant (arts. 6–15)

Right to work (art. 6)

14.Please provide information on the outcomes of the national development plan for the promotion of employability, mentioned in paragraph 91 of the State party’s report. Please also provide information on the national strategic employment policy for 2023–2027, as referenced in paragraph 108 of the State party’s report,including preliminary outcomes associated with its implementation. In this regard, please provide information on measures taken to create decent employment opportunities and reduce unemployment, particularly among young people and women. Please provide updated statistics for the past five years on the employment, unemployment and underemployment rates, disaggregated by age, sex, disability, ethnic or national origin, educational level, socioeconomic status, and urban/rural area of residence.

15.In view of the concluding observations by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, please provide information on measures taken, and their outcomes, to ensure the effective implementation of the quotas of employment for persons with disabilities in both the public and private sectors, as provided for in Presidential Decree No. 12/16. Furthermore, please provide information on other measures taken to promote the employment of persons with disabilities, particularly those living in rural areas, persons with intellectual disabilities, persons with hearing impairments and persons with psychosocial disabilities.

16.Given the extent of the informal economy in the State party, please provide information on obstacles to the transition from the informal to the formal economy, including an update of the statistical data presented in the State party’s report, and on the progress made in this regard.

Right to just and favourable conditions of work (art. 7)

17.Please provide information on:

(a)Steps taken to strengthen the labour inspection system, including training for labour inspectors and the allocation of financial and human resources to labour inspection;

(b)Labour inspections carried out during the reporting period, including relevant annual statistical data, and information on the main areas of violations of labour legislation identified through inspections, including cases of occupational diseases, and the measures taken to address them;

(c)Whether the minimum wage mentioned in paragraph 118 of the State party’s reportis applicable to all sectors, on the extent to which the minimum wage enables a decent living for workers and their families, and on compliance with the minimum wage, including details on compliance rates and penalties imposed for non-compliance;

(d)Measures adopted to ensure the effective implementation of the principle of equal pay for work of equal value within the State party in accordance with article 28 of the General Labour Act (Act No. 12/23);

(e)Mechanisms in place to guarantee just and favourable conditions of work for workers in the informal economy.

Trade union rights (art. 8)

18.Please provide information on:

(a)Measures taken to ensure effective protection against acts of anti-union discrimination and interference, including through the application of sufficiently dissuasive penalties;

(b)Steps taken to address legal barriers to the establishment of trade unions;

(c)Measures adopted to ensure that there are no undue restrictions to the right to strike, and to bring legislation into line with article 8 of the Covenant;

(d)Steps taken to address legal restrictions to the enjoyment of the right to collective bargaining and to ensure the full enjoyment of this right, particularly for public servants not engaged in the administration of the State.

Right to social security (art. 9)

19.Please provide information on the current social security system, including both contributory and non-contributory programmes, particularly regarding public spending allocated to each programme, and on the eligibility, coverage, take-up rates, and level of benefits of each programme. Please provide information on measures taken to ensure that social services are available across the country and that the amounts of social security benefits are sufficient to provide beneficiaries with an adequate standard of living. Please also provide information on measures taken and the progress made towards achieving universal social security coverage, including of workers engaged in the informal economy.

Protection of the family and children (art. 10)

20.Please provide information on measures taken to ensure universal access to birth registration. Please also provide information on steps taken to ensure that the absence of birth registration does not prevent individuals from exercising their economic, social and cultural rights, including with regard to their access to social security benefits, health-care services and education.

21.Please provide information on the prevention and elimination of child labour, particularly in its worst forms, in the context of the national plan for the eradication of child labour 2021–2025 and its action plan, outlined by the State party in paragraphs 131 and 132 of its report.In this regard, please provide statistical dataon the number of labour inspections carried out over the past five years in relation to child labour, the number and nature of the violations detected and the penalties imposed relating to the employment of children. Please also include the results achieved in terms of the number of children who have been removed from the worst forms of child labour and subsequently rehabilitated.

Right to an adequate standard of living (art. 11)

22.Please provide further information on the impact of the measures outlined in paragraphs 174 to 191 of the State party’s reporton reducing poverty, particularly in rural areas. Please also indicate how the needs of the most marginalized and disadvantaged groups are reflected in these programmes, and the resources that have been made available for their implementation. Please also provide information on progress made in ensuring access to adequate and affordable housing. With reference to the Committee’s previous concluding observations, please provide statistical information for the last five years on evictions carried out in accordance with the measures outlined in paragraph 199 of the State party’s report.

23.Please provide information on measures taken, and their outcomes, including relevant statistics, to address undernutrition and food insecurity in the State party. With reference to paragraph 191 of the State party’s report,please provide information on the results of the implementation of the programme for strengthening resilience and food and nutritional security in southern Angola.

24.Please provide information on the efforts being made by the State party to ensure universal access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation, particularly in rural areas. Please provide information on the measures taken to ensure water quality and to protect water resources, particularly in the context of the exploitation of natural resources and industrial activities.

Right to physical and mental health (art. 12)

25.Please provide information on measures taken to ensure the availability and accessibility of quality health care in the State party and to reduce the disparities between urban and rural areas in accessing health-care services. Please provide detailed information on measures taken to ensure the allocation of adequate financial and human resources, adequate medical equipment and infrastructure, and the availability of medicines and medical supplies at health-care facilities. Furthermore, please provide information on measures taken, and their effectiveness, including relevant statistics, to address non-communicable and communicable diseases, particularly malaria, tuberculosis and neglected tropical diseases.

26.Please provide information on measures taken to ensure the availability, accessibility and quality of sexual and reproductive health-care services, information and education, including the availability of affordable, safe and effective contraceptive methods.

Right to education (arts. 13 and 14)

27.Please provide updated statistical data, disaggregated by sex, disability, ethnic or national origin, economic status, and urban/rural areas, on enrolment rates, completion rates and dropout rates at all levels of education. Furthermore, please provide detailed information on the measures outlined in paragraphs 242 to 250 of the State party’s report,and their corresponding outcomes,with regard to promoting school enrolmentand preventing school dropout, particularly during secondary school, with an emphasis on the challenges faced by pregnant girls.

28.Please provide information on measures taken, and their impact, on improving the quality of education, including the availability of qualified teachers and further steps taken to improve school infrastructure, including access to water, sanitation, and hygiene services.

Cultural rights (art. 15)

29.Please provide information on the adoption and implementation of the curricular adjustment programme (2018–2025), outlined in paragraph 252 of the State party’s report,and other measures taken with regard to the promotion of minority languages.

30.Please indicate what steps have been taken to ensure that everyone, particularly disadvantaged and marginalized individuals and groups, has affordable access to the benefits of scientific progress and its applications, including the Internet.