Ministerial Session - 18th Regional Seminar for Labour-based Practitioners

Summary of the discussions at the 18th Regional Seminar for Labour-based Practitioners held in Tunisia on September 9-13, 2019

Noticia | 2 de marzo de 2020
18th Regional Seminar for Labour-based Practitioners “Towards sustainable and inclusive local development: local resource-based approaches and decent job creation”, 9-13 September 2019, Tunis, Tunisia.

Ministerial Meeting and Declaration - September 9-10

Meeting at the Ministerial session from 09-10 September 2019 at the Palace Hotel in Gammarth Tunis, as part of the 18th Regional Seminar of Labour-based Practitioners, the Ministers and country representatives from South Africa, Benin, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar, Mauritania, Mali, Libya, Niger, Rwanda, Uganda and Tunisia responsible for Employment, Transport; Public Works, Development and International Cooperation; Local Affairs and Environment, Economy Planning and Investments, take the opportunity to discuss the key challenges facing by African countries in the development of Employment Intensive Investment approach since the last 17th regional seminar for labour-based practitioners. On the occasion of this ministerial session chaired by his Excellency Mokhtar Hammami, Minister of Local Affairs and Environment of the Republic of Tunisia, Ministers and their representatives noted with satisfaction the progress made in most participating countries and elaborated the Tunis Declaration reaffirming their commitment to promote Employment Intensive Investment approach in the infrastructure sector and other sectors as one of the relevant instruments to promote the use of local resources in order to meet the challenges of unemployment and local and inclusive development.

The Tunis Declaration which was presented to the seminar delegates by the chairman of the ministerial session in the afternoon of the 10th September, is articulated in the following main points:
  • Put in place a strategy to diversify Employment-Intensive Investment Programmes (EIIP) into non-infrastructure works and services, to maximize employment opportunities and create sustainable livelihoods for the poor;
  • Strengthen the capacity of public bodies, local institutions and communities through skills training that is aligned to national education systems and reflect national/sectoral priorities and that meet the labour market needs;
  • Promote coordination and coherence of public policy and programmes and improve collaboration between the different implementation and governance structures;
  • Take concrete measures to improve public procurement policies and procedures, at both central and decentralized levels, to ensure full involvement of community-based organizations;
  • Design and implement public employment programmes in line with long-term national/sectoral policies and investment priorities and promote transparency and good governance;
  • Sustain and strengthen the methodologies of employment impact studies, put in place appropriate monitoring and evaluation systems for Employment Intensive investment projects and strengthen the participation of local communities.