Audio
2008
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ILC coverage: Tackling the food crisis
11 June 2008
Speaking at a high level panel of the 97th International Labour Conference, the Right Honourable Mr Pakalitha Mosisili, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho, shares his views on how to tackle the food crisis through investment, production and decent work.
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Making Chocolate Child Labour Free
11 June 2008
There are over a quarter of a million children who work in the cocoa plantations of West Africa. It's hazardous work, which exposes children to highly toxic pesticides. ILO Radio reports from Cameroon, where the International Labour Organization has been working to eliminate child labour from cocoa production and help children return to school.
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ILC coverage: Decent Work in Bahia, Brazil (in Portuguese)
10 June 2008
The Governor of the Brazilian State of Bahia Jacques Wagner today presented the world’s first state-level Decent Work initiative at the annual conference of the International Labour Organization. The plan was created with support from employers and workers and is considered an innovative model to generate more and better jobs.
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Balancing economic growth and climate change in Asia with Green Jobs
10 June 2008
In the light of global warming Asian countries are faced with the complex challenge of maintaining their economic growth and promoting opportunities for decent work while reducing their environmental impact. The view is gaining ground that climate change is directly related to the way we work, and ultimately can only be halted by changing the patterns of work and shifting to new modes of production and consumption. In response the ILO has launched its Green Jobs Initiative. Sophy Fisher asked Peter Poschen, ILO speciaist in Sustainable Development, to explain what is meant by Green Jobs.
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ILC coverage: New Panama Canal built with respect for labour rights (in Spanish)
10 June 2008
The President of Panama, Martín Torrijos, today told the annual conference of the ILO that “work to expand the Panama Canal will be carried out with respect for decent work and labour rights, and profits from the Canal will be used to combat poverty”, which he described as "a universal shame" requiring firm political decisions.
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ILC coverage: Urgent counter measures needed to ward off "sub-prime work" says ILO Director General
09 June 2008
Urgent counter measures are needed to ward off "sub-prime work", says the ILO Director General, Juan Somavia. The balance can be found in the Decent Work Agenda and a fair globalization.
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ILC coverage: The issues surrounding climate change in Africa - the road to green jobs (in French)
09 June 2008
The debate on global warming is gaining momentum in Africa. According to experts, African countries will be especially vulnerable to climate change due to the specific challenges they are facing, including the AIDS pandemic, diseases like malaria, and youth unemployment. However, couldn't climate change be for Africa an opportunity to get new impetus for development, rather than a major threat? In this interview, Peter Poschen, an ILO sustainable development specialist, ponders over this question and describes the "Green Jobs" initiative launched by the International Labour Organization.
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ILC coverage: After the Cyclone - the ILO's work in Myanmar
09 June 2008
In the immediate aftermath of Cyclone Nargis hitting Myanmar the focus was inevitably on humantarian relief and the aid operation. Now attention is shifting to the longer term, and issues such as whether the next rice harvest can be saved and food shortages averted, and what measures need to be taken to stop forced labour being used in reconstruction work. The prevention of forced labour is at the heart of the ILO's mandate in Myanmar. The ILO's Liaison Officer for Myanmar, Steve Marshall, has been in Geenva, reporting to the International Labour Conference on the situation. As he prepares to return to Yangon, Sophy Fisher asked him what he thought the longer term effects of the cyclone disaster would be, in terms of the ILO's work.
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ILO launches new initiatives in Africa (in French)
09 June 2008
The ILO Regional Office for Africa, the Social Security Department and the International Migration Programme launched two new regional initiatives aimed at extending social security coverage to African migrant workers and strengthening the financial governance of social protection systems in Africa. What are the issues at stake and what will be the concrete impact of these initiatives in the field? An insight from Mr. Assane Diop, Executive Director of the Social Protection Sector at the ILO in Geneva.
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ILC coverage: Building the new Panama Canal with Decent Work (in Spanish)
29 May 2008
The concept of Decent Work is an essential component of the new Panama Canal project expected to be ready by 2014, said Edwin Salamin Jaén, Panama's Minister of Labour and Labour Development, in a speech he gave today as the newly elected President of the 97th International Labour Conference.
