GENEVA – The Conference hosted three eminent guest speakers: H.E. Mr. Danilo Türk, President of the Republic of Slovenia, H.E. Mr. Martin Torrijos Espino, President of the Republic of Panama, and the Right Honourable Mr. Pakalitha Mosisili, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho.
The Conference was presided over by Mr. Edwin Salamín Jaén, Minister of Labour and Labour Development of Panama. Conference Vice-Presidents were Mr. Tayeb Louh, Minister of Labour, Employment and Social Security of Algeria, Mr. Ashraf W. Tabani, President of the Employers’ Federation of Pakistan and Ms. Rabiatou Sérah Diallo, Secretary General of the National Confederation of Workers (CNTG) of Guinea.
At the conclusion of the Conference, ILO Director-General Juan Somavia said the Conference had “placed decent work at the heart of the ILO’s institutional system” through the adoption of the Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization (see pp.40-41).
During the closing plenary, Dr. Carlos Tomada, Minister of Work, Employment and Social Security, Republic of Argentina, announced formally the recipients of the ILO’s second annual Decent Work Research Prize as Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz and leading Canadian labour researcher Harry Arthurs.
“This Conference demonstrated again the vitality of tripartism at the heart of the Organization, now re-energized to fully discharge its mandate in the context of the challenges of today.“ Juan Somavia, ILO Director-General
On 6 June, the Conference Plenary discussed the ILO’s new Global Report on freedom of association. During the last 10 years, the ILO has achieved a 50 per cent increase in ratifications of its eight fundamental Conventions on forced labour, child labour, discrimination, and freedom of association and collective bargaining, bringing universal ratification within reach.
On 2 June, the Conference elected new members to the ILO’s Governing Body for its next three-year term.
The Committee on Rural Employment held an in-depth discussion on the promotion of rural employment for poverty reduction. The Committee underscored the central role of agriculture as an engine of growth and poverty reduction. A wide range of topics were analysed, including trends in rural employment and decent work deficits, extending social protection coverage and the application of international labour standards in rural areas, as well as promoting better governance, empowerment and institutions.
The Committee on Skills adopted a set of conclusions to guide governments and the social partners in strengthening the linkages between skills, productivity, employment, development and decent work. Improving the quality and availability of education and training for women and men can engender a virtuous circle in which skills development fuels the innovation, investment, technological change, enterprise development, economic diversification and competitiveness that are needed to accelerate the creation of more and better jobs and improve social cohesion.