Employment-Intensive Investment Programme (EIIP) for immediate response during and immediately after crises events

Key points:

• Crises and the Importance of Employment Interventions: Crises hinder socio-economic development and undermine the livelihoods of households and communities. Common repercussions include damaged workplaces, job losses and reduced income, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable populations. In such challenging circumstances, employment plays a crucial role in fostering short-term stability, facilitating reintegration, promoting socio-economic advancement, and establishing sustainable peace by providing individuals and communities with the means for survival and recovery.
• ILO’s Response to Crises: At the forefront of the ILO’s efforts in delivering humanitarian and development assistance during and after crises is the Employment-Intensive Investment Programme (EIIP). Within these contexts, EIIPs have been widely implemented by the ILO as crucial tools for achieving employment. They play a vital role in ensuring that “no one is left behind” by supporting vulnerable populations entering the labour market, thereby paving the way to more equitable and peaceful societies.
• EIIP Approach: The approach supports countries in Asia and Arab States with immediate, medium-, and long-term interventions through reconstruction and rehabilitation of damaged infrastructure and the improvement of the environment and community assets. It addresses conflict drivers related to the lack of livelihoods and access to infrastructure. Ultimately, this response stimulates the economy, generates local multiplier effects and contributes to inclusive governance, sustainability, resiliency-building, and social cohesion.
• EIIP Contributes to HDPN: Through the application of various EIIP country activities, the EIIP approach has proven to be highly effective in integrating the ILO mandate within the framework of Humanitarian Development Peace Nexus (HDPN). This not only brings in the ILO’s exceptional and specialized expertise in promoting productive employment and decent work but also supports the operationalization of the nexus. By simultaneously addressing both humanitarian and development needs, it contributes to the attainment of peace and resilience.