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NINTH
AFRICAN REGIONAL MEETING Abidjan, 8-11 December 1999
DRAFT CONCLUSIONS 1.
The delegates at the ILO's Ninth African Regional Meeting fully endorse the contents
of the Report of the Director-General of the ILO, ILO activities in Africa: 1994-99
and the Report Decent work and protection for all in Africa. In particular, they
endorse the choice for the 2000-2001 biennium of the following four strategic
objectives which they consider to be particularly relevant to the problems and
needs of African countries:
* Promoting and reinforcing fundamental principles
and rights at work and international labour standards; *
Creating greater opportunities for women and men to secure decent employment and
income; *
Social protection for all; *
Strengthening tripartism and social dialogue.
The delegates also attach
particular importance to giving due consideration to gender equality and development
which should be a component of all the programmes undertaken. In
the interests of attaining those objectives, the delegates would like to see the
eight InFocus programmes that are set out in the Programme and Budget Proposals
for 2000-01 implemented without delay. 2.
Focussing on the unemployment and poverty situation and the fact that two decades
of structural adjustment programmes have not improved the situation, the delegates
consider that in the context of global markets, Africa suffers from trade imbalances.
Development in different countries presupposes that appropriate economic and social
policies are in place, the latter being closely linked to the former. Debt relief
and allowing access to external markets and sources of finance are the prerequisites
for achieving growth in the countries of Africa. The Meeting recalls the crucial
social dimension of globalization, which is a precondition of any real and sustainable
development. It requests the ILO to be even more active in its advocacy vis à
vis the international community (especially the developed countries and donors)
and would like to see the Organization acquire greater visibility and influence
on the international community and enhance its synergy with other organizations
to achieve globalization of social progress.
3. The delegates request
the ILO to provide concrete assistance to its constituents in order to promote
real social justice, by strengthening their capabilities through technical cooperation
programmes that are relevant and have a significant impact in the light of current
problems and needs.
4. The continent is beset by many conflicts
which are the source of pointless human suffering and jeopardize economic development
and social cohesion. In this context, the social partners can play a major role
in promoting social dialogue, social justice, and lasting peace, thereby allowing
all to contribute to development, of which peace and security are the preconditions.
It is particularly appropriate to recall the original values on which the ILO
was founded. The delegates request the ILO to continue to be active in crisis-affected
countries and to develop its activities as soon as conditions permit in the interests
of consolidating peace. Fundamental
principles and rights at work and international labour standards 5.
The delegates recall that respect for international labour standards is not an
option but a necessity and one which promotes growth, which in turn stimulates
development. Reducing poverty, achieving economic growth and respect for workers'
fundamental rights are all indissolubly linked. Ratification at national level
of the fundamental Conventions is a concrete expression of the adoption by the
International Labour Conference of the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles
and Rights at Work, and is the best response to the social problems posed
by economic growth and globalization. All countries are therefore called on to
ratify the fundamental Conventions, if they have not already done so, to bring
their legislation into conformity with them and to implement them. 6.
Violations of workers' rights are still frequent occurrences in Africa, despite
the real progress that has been made in establishing democracy, and as a result
of this, workers still often face difficult situations. Governments and the social
partners must take appropriate action to promote respect for the fundamental freedoms
and trade union rights, encourage good governance and improve the effectiveness
of democratic institutions. The first step is ratification of Conventions Nos.
87 and 98. 7.
Child labour is a blatant violation of human rights. Crises, war, poverty and
unemployment increase the likelihood of its spreading, and the elimination of
child labour therefore represents a real challenge. But being African means above
all respecting and preparing for Africa's future through its children. The elimination
of child labour, beginning with its worst forms and those that are the most detrimental
to children, which cannot be justified even by poverty, is therefore a high priority
for everyone, and the delegates urge all countries to ratify Conventions Nos.
138 and 182 without delay and to ensure their implementation. They emphasize that
it is essential that this action be coordinated and concerted, and that everyone
share responsibility for it. 8.
The delegates also request that the International Programme on the Elimination
of Child Labour (IPEC) be extended to the countries of Africa that have not yet
been able to benefit from its assistance, in order to ensure that studies can
be undertaken without delay, with subsequent action plans and support programmes
aimed at the progressive elimination of child labour and, in the more immediate
future, of the worst forms of exploitation. Since IPEC intervenes in response
to an expression of national will, governments are invited to indicate their commitment
and their needs, and to seek partnerships on this issue with employers' and workers'
organizations. The international community is invited to support the efforts and
the willingness expressed by the African countries and accordingly to increase
the resources available to IPEC. 9.
The delegates emphasize the need to remedy the causes of child labour by combatting
poverty through the promotion of adult employment, ensuring that children receive
free education, increasing training opportunities and developing programmes for
equal opportunity and social and economic integration of the most vulnerable groups.
For greater efficiency IPEC will identify the best synergy with action undertaken
by the other ILO programmes and international and regional organizations, as well
as NGOs. 10.
ILO support is also requested in setting up at the national or regional level
reliable systems for the collection of statistical data on child labour and for
monitoring the programmes and assessing their impact. 11.
Although women play an essential role in production and services, they do not
yet enjoy the same opportunities as men in training, skills and access to decent
employment and income. Their representation in trade union organizations is still
inadequate. The delegates draw attention to the need for concrete action to promote
gender equality through appropriate provisions and programmes. 12.
The delegates request the ILO to work actively towards strengthening the capabilities
of the social partners to meet their respective obligations and responsibilities
in full with regard to the application of standards, and to ensure that regulations
are implemented. 13.
They also request the ILO to step up its efforts vis-à-vis the Bretton
Woods institutions to promote workers' fundamental rights so that they are systematically
integrated in the formulation, implementation and evaluation of structural adjustment
programmes by these institutions. Securing
decent employment and income 14.
In the view of the delegates, poverty in Africa can be eradicated only by ensuring
access to decent employment, both for women and for men. The delegates consider
that this is the region's top priority and that the ILO has a duty to help countries
to develop effective employment policies and strategies. The States themselves,
in their programmes and national and sectoral budgets, should put into practice
in concrete terms the commitments to promoting employment which they entered into
at the World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen. 15.
Creating more and better jobs will require measures to promote enterprises, to
improve productivity, decent incomes, and better social protection. Problems of
employment call for an integrated response that takes into account the many complex
aspects of human resource development, employment and income. 16.
Formulating and implementing policies and programmes that are relevant and effective,
and carrying out follow-up and evaluation, will require employment and training
information that is organized, reliable and regular, as well as a system for coordinating
the activities of all the national and external partners. The ILO should continue
to assist countries in setting up information and programming systems to assist
decision making in the areas of employment and training, as well as in harmonizing
methodologies with a view to promoting exchanges of information and regional cooperation. 17.
Creating an environment that encourages investment, guiding investments in such
a way as to maximise their job generating potential, as well as providing an enabling
environment for enterprise creation and development, whether large companies or
SMEs and micro-enterprises which all form vital links in the same chain, are the
responsibilities of governments, but the private sector must also be involved.
Programmes must be set up to help businesses develop appropriate strategies and
policies to serve as a framework for promoting employment. To that end it is essential
for the development agencies and donors to take coordinated and concerted action
geared to countries. 18.
Promotion of micro-enterprises and the implementation of measures aimed at promoting
the progressive integration of the informal sector in the formal sector should
be continued. The ILO should provide assistance to the countries of the region
in order to ensure that the jobs thus created are decent. 19.
Africa's main source of wealth is its human resources, which should be developed
through appropriate life-long training accessible to all, to enable people to
realize their potential and increase their opportunities of securing decent employment
and incomes. Special attention must be paid to access to employment of young persons
graduating from the training system, and therefore to the problem of creating
closer links between the training system and enterprises. The ILO will need to
raise awareness among the other organizations of the common system, the Bretton
Woods institutions and other donors of the need to integrate human resource development
in all economic reform programmes. 20.
A major concern is the social and economic integration of young persons, on which
the future stability and development of all the African countries depends. Governments
and the social partners, together with civil society at large, are responsible
for contributing to their integration. In collaboration with the other development
agencies and donors, the ILO must assist them in identifying appropriate strategies
and implementing integrated programmes covering education, training, the creation
of micro-enterprises, social protection and appropriate and sustainable systems
of financing. 21.
The crises and wars affecting many African countries have made large segments
of the population even more vulnerable, in particular women, refugees and displaced
persons, people with disabilities, etc. Governments and the social partners must
develop policies and programmes to further their social and economic integration
or reintegration, through access to training and decent employment and income.
22.
The employment action programmes developed by the ILO must be on a wide enough
scale to enable them to meet the major challenges facing countries. Those challenges
are: youth employment and employment for women, raising incomes, and improving
conditions in agriculture and the informal sector which employ the majority of
the active population in Africa. An expansion of the Jobs for Africa and
More and Better Jobs for Women programmes should be envisaged; countries
are expecting these programmes to produce tangible results. All of the programmes
implemented should further economic integration in Africa and be coordinated with
the regional and subregional economic communities. 23.
As regards the Jobs for Africa programme, the delegates particularly appreciate
the integrated nature of the programme and its suitability for incorporation in
national strategies which will ensure its lasting impact. They request that every
effort be made by the ILO and the UNDP to mobilize the resources that will be
needed to extend the programme to all the African countries and to continue funding
of the Jobs for Africa/PRESSA programme. The delegates noted with satisfaction
the interest of the African Development Bank in the programme and the fact that
the Bank insists on the need to make workers' and employers' rights a part of
development programmes, and underscores the importance of investing in human resources. Social
protection for all 24.
The delegates recall that there can be no decent work without adequate social
protection for workers, and that the lack of social protection is detrimental
to the productivity of an enterprise and therefore also to economic growth. 25.
Current social protection systems cover only the small proportion of the population
that is employed in the formal sector, although other social groups are in dire
need of protection. The delegates request the ILO to assist countries in designing
and developing sustainable and viable systems of social protection which extend
coverage to the entire population and especially to the informal sector and meet
the requirement for a minimum level of cover adapted to the needs of the greatest
number. 26.
Traditional social security systems are also affected by serious management problems
which make reform and modernization of those systems imperative. The delegates
draw attention to the need for transparent management by the three partners, with
increased participation of employers and workers. 27.
Protection of workers also means promoting their health and safety at work and
maintaining a healthy working environment, all of these things being aspects of
decent work. It is also an important goal of social dialogue. It must be possible
to extend these safety and health aspects to those sectors that are currently
the least protected, namely, agriculture and the informal sector. Monitoring and
inspection services must be prepared for that task and the social partners must
be helped to adopt the appropriate measures which, apart from anything else, are
conducive to greater productivity. The ILO/DANIDA subregional programme has been
cited in this context and the wish has been expressed that this programme should
be expanded. 28.
HIV/AIDS is the cause of heavy losses of human lives in Africa and affects the
youngest segment of the economically active population. It is thus not only a
medical and public health problem but also a social and economic one which jeopardizes
development and employment. It often gives rise to discrimination in employment
against HIV-positive workers. It also deprives many children of their parents
and forces them to go out to work prematurely. The African member States, aware
of the fact that the development of the AIDS pandemic in Africa alone could make
it impossible to achieve the Organizations's four strategic objectives, therefore
request the ILO to give the highest priority to this issue and to develop appropriate
programmes in coordination with governments, the social partners, other United
Nations agencies (the Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS UNAIDS) and
NGOs. 29.
The delegates endorse the terms of the draft Platform of Action submitted to them
and adopted a resolution, both these texts being annexed to this document. They
invite governments, employers' organizations and workers' organizations to contribute
to their implementation. They request the ILO to help them to do this and to develop
its activities in synergy with other agencies of the common system, in particular
UNAIDS. Tripartism
and social dialogue 30.
Faced with the challenges that are still ahead, the delegates emphasize the need
for the social partners to achieve a better understanding of their respective
roles and to assume their responsibilities fully. Strengthening their capacity
through appropriate training and support must therefore be a matter of priority
for the ILO. 31.
Tripartism and social dialogue provide an opportunity for countries to build and
consolidate social cohesion and peace, as well as development, by involving all
the stakeholders in shared objectives, through training in the management of industrial
disputes, through partnership in preparing and implementing decisions and a more
equitable distribution of the fruits of labour. These are the values of dialogue
and participation that the social partners must help to strengthen in their countries
so that they may inform the whole of society and the different sectors of the
economy. Dialogue among the social partners contributes directly to the effective
working and strengthening of democracy. 32.
It is agreed that the effectiveness of social dialogue presupposes : (a) the political
will and strong commitment to promote it; (b) that social dialogue in its present
structure, comprising government, employers and workers, should be strengthened;
and (c) that the social partners should be strong and independent. 33.
The member States are called on to ratify Conventions Nos. 87, 98 and 144, and
the delegates recall that national tripartite consultations must be organized
on a regular basis. Those consultations should cover specific subjects of common
interest, such as vocational training, social protection, safety and health at
work, etc. The delegates would like to see the ILO/Belgian programme on social
dialogue in French-speaking Africa (PRODIAF) and the ILO/Portugal programme on
social dialogue in Portuguese-speaking countries (PRODIAL) continue strengthening
tripartite structures and dialogue and their example extended to other subregions
as well. General
Recommendations 34.
In order to respond to the many complex needs and problems Africa still faces,
ILO activities in the field and assistance to constituents will have to be expanded.
The Meeting accordingly requests the ILO to strengthen its field structures and
the multidisciplinary teams in particular, by assigning them the human resources
and appropriate means to enable them to respond efficiently to their requests.
The ILO must live up to its objectives and fully integrate the regional dimension
of the problems raised, and must promote regional integration and cooperation
through its activities. 35.
The ILO must remain as close as possible to its constituents in order to be always
in a position, with them, to identify their needs and respond to those needs in
the most appropriate way. 36.
The delegates would also like to see the ILO play a greater brokerage role vis-à-vis
international donors so as to meet objectives in the area of poverty alleviation
and social justice. 37.
In the light of the realistic objectives that have been set and the resources
that have been mobilized, there must be a framework for follow-up on the programmes
and assessment of their results and, most importantly, their impact. The delegates
therefore request that machinery be set in place to follow up on the conclusions
and recommendations of this Regional Meeting. 10
December 1999
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