Events and meetings

The ILO Office in Sri Lanka organizes and takes part in a wide range of meetings, conferences, workshops and training events. More information about the events listed below can be found by clicking on the relevant link or contacting us by email.

March 2011

  1. Train the Trainer (TOT) workshop on Capacity Building of Labour Inspectors on Effective and Modern Labour Inspection Strategies

    3 - 5 March 2011

    Sri Lanka has embarked to recruit 300 new inspectors. The Inspectors need to be provided with induction training and on the job training on planning, programming and evaluation of inspections. The training programme focussed on imparting practical skills to the trainers in order to be able to develop capacity within the new labour inspectors in order to ensure compliance of the labour law in Sri Lanka.

January 2011

  1. Asia-Pacific Knowledge Sharing Network on Youth Employment (APYouthNet): Rejuvenation Event

    25 - 28 January 2011

    APYouthNet will host a rejuvenation event to take stock of the progress made in the community since its launch two years ago.

  2. National Green Jobs Conference

    24 - 25 January 2011

    The National Green Jobs Conference “Green Jobs: the Way Forward” was organized by ILO in collaboration with the Ministries of Labour and Labour Relations and Productivity Promotion, with financial support from the Australian Government, under the ILO-Australia Partnership Programme 2010 – 2015. The conference discussed ways of supporting environmentally, economically and socially sustainable enterprises and development, and the creation of more green jobs in Sri Lanka. More than 100 participants, representing government departments and institutions, employers' and workers' organizations, private sector, NGOs, research institutes and media attended this two day conference.

October 2010

  1. The Role of Trade Unions in Youth Employment

    19 - 21 October 2010

  2. Regional training programme for Trade Unionists on Child Labour

    11 - 13 October 2010

    Module based training programme for selected trade unionists

August 2010

  1. International Youth Day celebrations (IYD)

    12 August 2010

    International Youth Day was celebrated on 12th August in the Province of Sabaragamuwa. 200 young women and men from the plantations convened for a career guidance programme to mark the occasion. Many of them unemployed, registered themselves in the Labour Market Unit of both the Ratnapura District Secretary’s office and the Provincial Office. One of the drama groups trained to continue the Forum theatre component of the ILO-Japan Youth Employment project presented a short, but crisp performance focusing on challenges faced by youth living on plantations foremost amongst them being adult alcoholism that affected their education and prospects of employment. The programme was organized by Plantation Human Development Trust (PHDT) in collaboration with the ILO/Japan YE project.

July 2010

  1. APYouthNet Online Discussion Forum on Active Labour Markets for Young People

    19 - 31 July 2010

    Moderated by Professor Niall O’Higgins from Salerno University in Italy, this forum seeks participants’ experiences, expertise and feedback on the issue. Participation is open to all who have an interest in youth employment related issues.

  2. Launch of the study on “Promoting Employment-Intensive Growth in Sri Lanka: Policy Analysis of the Manufacturing and Service Sectors

    2 July 2010

    The study examines the employment effect of growth in manufacturing sector industries in Sri Lanka covering a period of 17 years from 1990 and focuses on two periods, the slow growth period of the 1990s and the period of high growth (post-2000). The study uses an integrated framework which qualifies the relative importance of the key factors determining of employment elasticity and its variations between the two time periods. The findings indicate that manufacturing sector has responded positively to policy reforms of post-1977 period in terms of growth, export orientation, productivity, profitability and employment creation.

  3. Launch of the study on “Sri Lanka’s Working Poor”

    2 July 2010

    The first ever comprehensive study on “Sri Lanka’s Working Poor will be launched on 2nd July 2010. The study examines the links between the nature of employment and the incidence of poverty and investigate in greater detail the prevalence of poverty among different classes of employed. It also examines factors other than growth and redistribution that contribute to poverty among them. This study builds on earlier analytical work commissioned by the ILO on informal employment in Sri Lanka using the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) data of 2006. That study found informal employment accounting for 65 per cent of total employment and informal employees on general earning considerably lower wages than formal employees.

June 2010

  1. Sri Lanka's Road Map to 2016 - Elimination of the worst forms of Child Labour, Colombo Sri Lanka 21-23 June 2010

    21 - 23 June 2010

    A high-level conference organized to make a public commitment to the 2016 Roadmap on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour and present it to key stakeholders in the process, including concerned public and private sector agencies, donors and development partners.

May 2010

  1. National Policy on HIV/AIDS in the world of work - Consultative meeting

    18 May 2010

    This Policy was developed through a consultative process with the workers, employers, civil society and the government, with the technical assistance from the International Labour Organization.(ILO) The objective of this workshop is to present the policy for wider consultation.

March 2010

  1. Stakeholder Consultation on the Existing Legislation on Trafficking in Persons in Sri Lanka.

    31 March 2010

    The Ministry of Justice & Law Reforms in collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO) is organizing a National Stakeholder Consultation on the Implementation of the Existing Legislation on Trafficking in Persons in Sri Lanka. The Consultation is organized cognizant of the need to revisit the national legislation on Trafficking in Persons with a view to recognizing its potential as well as identifying challenges to implementation. It is envisaged that the Consultation will help build consensus and leverage services to eliminate all forms of trafficking in persons, in Sri Lanka. The Consultation will secure the participation of all national stakeholders including the Ministries of Justice & Law Reforms, Foreign Affairs, and Foreign Employment Promotion & Welfare, The Attorney General’s Department, Police Department, Sri Lanka Navy and the National Child Protection Authority.

  2. National Workshop on the Legal and Regulatory Review of the existing legislation on Labour Migration in Sri Lanka.

    12 March 2010

    The objectives of the workshop are to present the legal and regulatory review of the existing legislation and all regulations currently in effect on labour migration in Sri Lanka for wider consultation among the stakeholders.

  3. Tripartite Seminar on the Eight ILO Core Conventions in Male, Maldives

    8 - 10 March 2010

    The ILO Colombo in collaboration with the Ministry of Human Resources, Youth and Sports convened a tripartite seminar in Male on the eight core conventions of the ILO with the aim of identifying ways forward for ratification. The inaugural session was attended by the Vice-president, the Minister for Human Resources, Youth and Sports, the Minister for Economic Development and the Attorney General.

  4. Capacity-building Workshop for Trade Unions in Male, Maldives

    7 March 2010

    A one-day workshop was convened for trade unions and trade associations in Male, Maldives. The workshop was facilitated by Ariel Castro, Specialist for Workers' Activities, ILO Subregional Office in New Delhi.

  5. Tripartite Workshop on Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining for Sri Lanka, Nepal, the Maldives and Bangladesh 1-3 March 2010

    1 - 3 March 2010

    The ILO Colombo Office, jointly with the International Training Centre of the ILO (ITC-ILO) and the International Labour Office in Geneva are organizing the “Tripartite Workshop on Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining for Sri Lanka, Nepal, the Maldives and Bangladesh” (code A351808) to take place in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from 1st to 3rd March 2010.

February 2010

  1. Tripartite Review Meeting

    2 February 2010

    The ILO Colombo convenes a tripartite Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) Review meeting every sixth month. The meeting will discuss the DWCP draft workplan for the biennium 2010-11.

December 2009

  1. Launch of Sri Lanka's labour and social trends 2009 report

    8 December 2009

    The report presents an overview of major trends in labour and social conditions in Sri Lanka and key policy challenges posed by these trends. It also looks ahead to 2020 with informed projections, likely scenarios and policy implications.

October 2009

  1. ILO Colombo 25th anniversary celebrations

    30 October 2009

    The ILO country office in Sri Lanka celebrated its 25th anniversary on 30 October 2009.

  2. Tripartite Meeting on Negotiating Decent Work in the Age of Globalization in South Asia and China

    26 - 27 October 2009