ILO - BRUSSELS
NEWSLETTER N° 2/2008
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Vienna Forum To Fight Human Trafficking
The international forum against human trafficking organised in Vienna from 13 to 15 February has generated fresh momentum for the global
alliance aimed at abolishing forced labour over the next decade. The forum was organised by UN.GIFT (United Nations Global Initiative to
Fight Human Trafficking), a coalition of six intergovernmental agencies, and saw some 1,200 high-level representatives from around the
world reach agreement on the need to focus the international fight against trafficking and forced labour more closely within an
international alliance proposed by the ILO. Both workers’ and employers’ representatives were heavily involved in the forum.
As you will recall, according to the ILO, at least 2.4 million people around the world fall victim to trafficking, used to provide
forced labour (in 43% of cases for sexual exploitation, in 32% of cases for economic means and in 25% of cases for various or undetermined
reasons). Half these victims are less than 18 years old.
For more information on the Vienna Forum and the analyses presented there,
click here or
here. One publication
worth noting on the ILO website is a video report on human trafficking in Moldova, which you can see by
clicking here.
South-South cooperation against child labour
The ILO and the Brazilian government have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) laying the bases for a South-South partnership
designed to prevent and eradicate child labour. The objective is to create a forum for South-South cooperation that enables the countries
in question to share their experiences with successful measures taken against child labour. Over the past few decades, Brazil has gained
considerable experience and consolidated good practices in this domain, so it has strong potential to share them with the other countries.
In parallel with this MoU, Brazil also announced a programme to fight child labour in Haiti. The programme will be coordinated by the
ILO’s International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (ILO-IPEC). Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, with
an estimated 300,000 children working as child labourers. A fair number of them are domestic make funds available to IPEC technical
cooperation programmes.
Click here to
find out more about the South-South partnership MoU or
here to read
a report on child labour in Haiti.
Europe ups its commitment to decent work for all
On 24 and 25 January 2008, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities
held a conference on decent work, bringing together the key actors from European and national authorities, developing countries,
emerging countries, civil society, social partners and international organisations. The findings of the conference have just been
worked into a fresh raft of proposals which the Commission will present in September 2008, following up on its 2006 report on
decent work. The Commission has also reiterated its commitment to take action to support the international agenda on decent work,
particularly by cooperating with the ILO and other UN agencies. In addition, it has announced its intention to deploy the European
Union’s various internal and external policies in a manner that underpins the concept of Decent Work for All.
Click here
for more information on the conference.
The Delivering as One programme in Albania
The Delivering as One pilot initiative will test in eight countries how the UN family can deliver in a more coordinated way at
country level to ensure faster and more effective development operations. With Europe's lowest per capita income, Albania volunteered
to take part in the programme. In Albania, the programme combines and synthesizes the work of 12 UN organisations and funds, with a
contribution of $75 million for the next four years. The ILO is taking part in three of the five main development objectives in the
Albanian programme: more transparent and accountable governance, greater participation in public policy and decision making, and
regional development to reduce disparities.
Click here
to find out more about the Delivering as One programme and its impact in Albania.
Maritime conventions have the wind in their sails
The government of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas has ratified the ILO's Maritime Labour Convention (2006), which sets out a seafarers'
‘bill of rights’ and is intended to constitute the ‘third pillar’ in the international shipping regulation. This makes the Bahamas the
third major shipping country in the world after Liberia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, to ratify the Convention. This is
particularly important since the Bahamas is the third largest flag state in the world. Ratification by the Bahamas now brings the ILO
even closer to meeting the requirement for the Convention’s entry into force, namely its ratification by at least 30 ILO member states
with a total share of at least 33% of world gross tonnage. Sometimes called the 'super convention', it has seen governments, ship owners
and seafarers reach agreement on comprehensive international requirements for seafarers’ working and living conditions and also agree to
promote quality shipping. The aim of the Convention is to protect the world's 1.2 million seafarers.
Click here
for more information about the Convention. Also worth noting in the shipping sector is the ILO's publication of a report on the world's
first biometric system for identifying seafarers' identity cards, as provided for under ILO Convention No. 185 on Seafarers'
Identity Documents. The report illustrates the advances made in this area and is available
here.
Promoting social dialogue in Africa
Over the last 10 years, the ILO’s Regional Programme for the Promotion of Social Dialogue in French-speaking Africa (PRODIAF)
has helped more than 20 African countries promote social dialogue between governments, employers and workers and thereby prevent
social conflict. Placing particular emphasis on countries emerging from a crisis, the programme is entering its third phase this year.
In an interview available by clicking
here,
Johanna Walgrave, acting director of the ILO’s Social Dialogue Sector, gives specific examples of the revitalisation of social dialogue.
She also explains the links between social dialogue, democracy and political stability as well as the connection between PRODIAF and
ILO's Decent Work Agenda.
New programme of courses for ILO International Training Centre
A key component in the support provided by the ILO to its constituents resides in the programme of the ILO International
Training Centre (ITC) in Turin. The timetable of courses on offer this year is available on the ITC
website. The ITC offers regular courses,
tailor-made training initiatives, all-in training projects and advisory services. It also designs and produces teaching material.
Roughly half of its activities take place on campus; the remainder comprise activities in the field or distance learning. Each year,
more than 450 programmes and projects are implemented, catering to the needs of over 11,000 participants.
Scheduled meetings
Click here for a list of meetings scheduled by the ILO for 2008.
Contact us
For more information on the ILO's activities, please contact the :
ILO Brussels
Rue Aimé Smekens 40
B -1030 Brussels
Belgium
Tel.: + 32 02 736 59 42
Fax: +32.02 735 48 25
E-mail: brussels@ilo.org
Website : www.ilo.org/brussels
