GENEVA - South Korea has pledged US$500,000 for projects tackling migration, occupational safety and health (OSH), basic vocational training, social security, and youth employment, in a new framework agreement signed here on 13 January.
Six projects in Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Thailand and Viet Nam will benefit from the partnership.
The agreement was signed by Don Skerrett, ILO Executive Director responsible for Regions and Technical Cooperation, and Mr. Byung-Suk Chung, Deputy Minister of Labour, Republic of Korea.
"In a region of economic tigers, South Korea is a pacesetter; from a recipient of development aid to a donor of aid in just a few short years is a real success story," said Mr. Skerrett.
"We have always been committed to our responsibility as an ILO member State," remarked South Korea's Deputy Minister of Labour. "We first became active in terms of providing support in 2002, in tandem with the Government of Japan, in efforts to combat child labour. We found it was a very positive and important development."
Since joining the ILO in 1991 South Korea has become the tenth largest contributor to the ILO regular budget, with an annual contribution of US$5 million. "We felt that generating additional funds could be a useful and effective way of supporting ILO programmes and the campaign for decent work," said Mr Chung.
"South Korea is clearly committed to the development of decent work in the region," said Christine Evans-Klock, Director of the ILO Subregional Office for East Asia, which developed the majority of the six projects included in the framework agreement.
The projects under the agreement aim to build national capacity on migration management ( Note 2), occupational safety and health in hazardous occupations ( Note 3), core work skills and basic vocational competencies for the working poor, technical assistance on social security ( Note 4), and to develop a Training Fellowship Programme in Technology Education ( Note 5 ).
With 60 per cent of the world's youth living in Asia, youth employment is a priority concern. Under the framework of the ILO-headed Youth Employment Network (YEN), a project under the agreement will promote the sharing of experiences on youth employment policies and programmes among selected countries in the region. It will also provide support to Nepal and China to gather information on the problems young women and men face in making the transition from school to work, and to prepare action plans to meet the Millennium Development target of decent and productive work for youth.
Note 2: Cambodia, Laos, Mongolia and Thailand
Note 3: Cambodia, Laos, Mongolia, Thailand and Viet Nam
Note 4: Cambodia
Note 5: South Korea