Social Dialogue on Social Protection System in Timor-Leste

Social dialogue seminar on social protection system in Timor-Leste signifies the first activity of a new and important technical cooperation project of International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Training Centre of the ILO (ITC/ILO) funded by the Ministry of Solidarity, Employment and Social Security Portugal: the ACTION/Portugal.

ACTION/Portugal main objective is to reinforce social protection systems in African Portuguese-Speaking Countries (PALOP) and Timor-Leste.

The project is structured around four axes for intervention:

• Supporting national institutions in the design, implementation and evaluation of social protection programmes with a view to the implementation of national Social Protection Floor schemes;
• Strengthening the capacity and skills of national institutions for the implementation of comprehensive systems and integrated social protection, through training and capacity building activities;
• Encouraging access for PALOP countries and East Timor to information, practices and training resources, to support implementation processes and extend the social protection available at regional and international levels; and
• Contributing to the exchange of knowledge on innovations and good practices within the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) in the implementation and reinforcement of Social Protection Floors.

The Seminar

At this early stage of ACTION / Portugal, it is intended to initiate social dialogue processes for the joint and shared definition of the specific areas of the project intervention for future years. For the purpose, the ILO will conduct an articulated national seminar in a set of activities for managers and technical staff of the institutions of the social protection system of each country, in order to ensure that the social partners and policy makers are soon involved in the early stages of the project.

Objectives

• To present the goals and structure of the ACTION / Portugal project;
• Transmit the strategic goals that the ILO and UN hope to achieve with the Global Campaign for Social Protection Floors and Recommendation 202. These principles will guide the work done in throughout the entire project; and
• Carry out a survey and a diagnosis of the technical assistance needs and training through a process of social dialogue at national level on the reality of the social protection system in Timor-Leste. This will be accomplished by methodology of ABND (Assessment Based on National Dialogue) developed by ILO. The conclusions of this exercise will guide the project activities from 2016.