How agro statistics can enhance African labour market policies

Abidjan (ILO News) – With agriculture being the largest employer of youth in Africa, senior experts from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) will take part in a strategic technical meeting on agricultural statistics in Africa organised by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

The workshop’s goal is to share experiences in the gathering of agricultural data across different countries, to study current techniques in conducting surveys on the ground as well as in data processing with an overall objective of improving technical capacity of African countries in delivering quality statistics related to agriculture.

Participants at the workshop in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire will also review and discuss best tools and guidelines in agriculture, in order to help policy makers formulate well-informed agricultural and labour market strategies.

Senior experts from national statistics offices and public institutions of African countries will be examining the policy framework of decent work indicators and as well as indicators for sustainable development goals.

Discussions will also include labour statistics, employment and underutilization of labour in the general context of reliable data collection.

Earlier this year (February 2016), the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop a four-year Joint Action Plan on strengthening sustainable labour statistics in youth employment, social protection, labour migration and economic and social fragilities in Africa.