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  1. The EU-ILO partnership for development cooperation  

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European Union - ILO Cooperation

Development cooperation holds an important place in the European Union’s (EU) broader framework of international cooperation. Through its partnership with the ILO, which is firmly rooted in the belief that economic and social progress should go hand in hand, the EU supports actions globally.

The EU's strategic contribution to the ILO

In addition to individual member State contributions, the EU funds ILO Development Cooperation and promotes the Decent Work Agenda throughout the world. Providing US$ 493.9 million in voluntary contributions between 2014 and 2022, the EU supports 65 on-going actions and is the largest contributor to the ILO’s development cooperation programme.

The EU's support to ILO interventions 

EU Strategy for Development Cooperation

The European Consensus on Development outlines the EU’s integrated approach to development in support of the 2030 Agenda. The EU’s development policy remains focused on poverty eradication, while also integrating the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. In practice, this means that the Consensus incorporates cross-cutting issues such as gender equality, mobility and migration, sustainable energy and climate change, and good governance, democracy, the rule of law and human rights into all aspects of the EU’s development cooperation activities. The EU Global Strategy helps put the EU’s vision into action by supporting multilateralism in the following sectors: security and defence, building state and societal resilience, integrated approach to conflict and crisis, cooperative regional orders, rules-based global governance, and public diplomacy.

The EU is working to integrate Decent Work into its country-level operations as illustrated by the Promoting employment and decent work in development cooperation manual. This tool is designed to enhance the ability of European Commission staff to diagnose challenges to productive and decent employment in partner countries, engage in technical dialogue with local counterparts and promote decent work as part of the EU’s international development efforts.