All publications: microenterprises + small enterprises + informal enterprises + value chains

Applying the ILO’s Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work Approach: A Practical Guide

This guide provides practical guidance for ILO country teams and partners on applying the Productivity Ecosystems for Decent Work approach. Drawing on country experiences, it offers an operational framework, examples and good practices for designing...

Can digital services help tackle the extension service dilemma?

Evidence and lessons on improving farmer practices at scale from the ILO’s An Ka Baara project in Mali.

Policy brief

Enterprises, supply chains and the transition to formality: linkages and innovation

This policy brief explores how multinational enterprises (MNEs) and supply chain linkages can help advance the transition from the informal to the formal economy. Drawing on innovative approaches and good practices across sectors and countries, it...

Case study

Systems thinking meets human thinking

Removing constraints and rewiring incentives and behaviours for better State-led social protection delivery in Jordan.

Registration of individual businesses in Viet Nam: Drivers, challenges and lessons from international experience

This report examines the legal, institutional and policy environment governing individual businesses in Viet Nam and identifies opportunities to promote their formalization.

Markets for Inclusion (M4I): Catalysing inclusive growth and job creation for refugees and vulnerable groups

This programme brief presents the Markets for Inclusion (M4I): Catalysing inclusive growth and job creation for refugees and vulnerable groups, funded by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) and implemented by the ILO.

Aligning enterprise development with decent work objectives: A new paradigm for MSMEs policies

Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) generate most of the world's jobs and are central to inclusive economic growth. Yet too often, MSME policies assume that better employment outcomes will naturally follow from business development,...

Review of key policies supporting private sector development in Viet Nam

This report reviews the policy and regulatory framework supporting private sector development in Viet Nam, with a focus on SMEs.

International experiences in the development of Viet Nam’s private sector

This report examines international experiences in private sector and SME development from the Republic of Korea, China, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, India and Estonia.

Sustainable, competitive and resilient value chains: the One UN response

The United Nations stands ready to leverage its unique strengths - global neutrality, convening power, normative and human rights expertise, and deep field presence - to support countries and businesses in building value chains that are not only...

Sustainable, competitive and resilient value chains: the One UN response - Two pager

The United Nations stands ready to leverage its unique strengths - global neutrality, convening power, normative and human rights expertise, and deep field presence - to support countries and businesses in building value chains that are not only...

Just transition

Enabling a just transition for Japanese automotive parts SMEs

This report examines how Japanese automotive parts SMEs are adapting to electrification and other industry transformations, and identifies the support needed to enable a just transition for workers and enterprises.

Market systems development for decent work

Big talk, any walk?

What results from 100+ projects can tell us about market systems development effectiveness.

Regional value chains for recovery: Creating jobs and shared growth in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan

This study examines how the complementary strengths of Syria, Lebanon and Jordan can be leveraged to generate inclusive employment and support economic recovery through regional value chain development. Focusing on four key sectors, medicinal and...

Enabling small and medium-sized enterprises towards a low-carbon future: a study of the decarbonization experience of six Japanese SMEs

ILO Publication

Digital Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Assessment for Youth in Kigali and Musanze, Rwanda

The ILO-led Digital Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Assessment for Youth in Kigali and Musanze, Rwanda, developed with national partners and supported by Luxembourg, looks at what young digital entrepreneurs need to start, grow and sustain businesses....

Formalization and Decent Work

The national roadmap for SME and worker formalization

With a large share of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and workers operating outside formal systems, this roadmap outlines practical and coordinated actions to support the transition from the informal to the formal economy in Pakistan.

ILO Working Paper 167

Labour market concentration and wage inequality: A cross-country descriptive analysis

This working paper explores how labour market concentration relates to wage inequality across countries, and the role labour market institutions can play in shaping these outcomes.

From Aid to Opportunity

Lessons from over a decade of implementation of the ILO’s Approach to Inclusive Market Systems (AIMS) in fragile and forced displacement contexts

ILO PROSPECTS Publication

Unlocking markets for climate resilience – Mapping private sector delivery of climate-smart solutions

This report maps private sector climate-smart solutions in Uganda to identify scalable, market-based approaches that strengthen resilience and livelihoods in refugee and host communities.