Articles

July 2006

1. Safer work in agriculture in Viet Nam

   13 July 2006

   The agricultural sector in Viet Nam which employs 58 per cent of the country's total workforce is also one of the most dangerous, and farmers are exposed to many accidents and work-related diseases each year. The Viet Nam Chapter of the ILO/Japan Regional Programme for Capacity Building of Occupational Safety and Heath (OSH) in Agriculture was launched in May 2004 and helps the Government formulate a national programme on occupational safety and health and assist farmers improve their living and working conditions. Nguyen Van Theu, National Project Coordinator of the ILO, reports from Viet Nam.

2. From stitching to playing: Sialkot ten years after

   07 July 2006

   As the final match of the FIFA World Cup 2006 captures worldwide attention, the final match against child labour is still to be played - even though the ILO's recent global report on child labour sees its end "within reach". Last month, the ILO's International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) and FIFA kicked off an innovative football module in Sialkot, Pakistan, as part of rehabilitation efforts for former child labourers and children still to be removed from work.

3. Tackling the "decent work deficit"

   06 July 2006

   Government leaders, heads of international agencies and senior experts in economic and employment issues meet here on 3-5 July to highlight proposals for cutting poverty and providing new hope to the world's working poor. The meeting of the UN's Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) will focus on promoting decent work as the sustainable route out of poverty.

4. Decent Work FAQ: Making decent work a global goal

   06 July 2006

   The ILO's Decent Work Agenda calls for a development strategy that acknowledges the central role of work in people's live. The theme of this year's High-Level Segment of the United Nations' Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) reflects an international consensus that productive employment and decent work are key elements to reducing poverty. Here are some FAQs on decent work by ILO Online.

5. Decent work: How country programmes help forge a path out of poverty

   06 July 2006

   New pilot programmes are the leading edge of the ILO's efforts to implement its decent work agenda at the country level. Decent Work Pilot Programmes are founded on the ILO's four strategic objectives--employment promotion, rights at work, social protection and social dialogue - integrating economic and social objectives. In Ghana, a pilot Decent Work Country Programme has shown how people can put decent work into practice, and fight poverty in the bargain.

June 2006

1. International Day of Cooperatives (1 July 2006) Standing on their own: Cooperative reform in Tanzania

   29 June 2006

   Tanzania's cooperative reform programme reflects a wider process of reform internationally as cooperatives recreate themselves through member empowerment and increased commercial viability. The ILO's Promotion of Cooperatives Recommendation No. 193, agreed in 2002, provides the global framework for this reform. British journalist Andrew Bibby reports from Tanzania where cooperatives, which date back to the early 1930s, are adopting a new approach to sustainability.

2. 95th session of the International Labour Conference, 2006
   Combining labour market flexibility and security in the West Balkans

   16 June 2006

   With Montenegro's recent decision to separate from Serbia, the break-up of the former Yugoslavia has probably come to an end. After years of steep economic decline, political turmoil and armed conflict in the West Balkan countries, growth rates picked up in the second half of the 1990s although this economic dynamism did not translate into lower unemployment levels.

3. Final whistle to human trafficking and sexual exploitation

   15 June 2006

   As the football World Cup 2006 gets underway, a German NGO has launched a campaign against human trafficking for labour and sexual exploitation. According to German police sources, fears that the number of women trafficked for sex work during the games might go into the tens of thousands have failed to materialize.

4. 95th session of the International Labour Conference, 2006
   Unsafe workplaces: Labour inspectors face daunting challenges

   14 June 2006

   Many of the 6,000 deaths that occur daily due to work-related accidents or diseases could be prevented by effective labour inspection. Yet this vital aspect of workplace safety and health is facing a number of challenges, including a lack of training, inappropriate resources and even violence.

5. 

   95th session of the International Labour Conference, 2006
   Start your business, tailor your life

   14 June 2006

   According to the ILO Director-General Juan Somavia's report to the Conference, global unemployment increased by 21.9 per cent between 1995 and 2005. Among the main factors contributing to this rise, the report cites, is the deterioration of the employment situation in Eastern European and Central Asian transition countries.