Pacific Island Countries (PICs) are facing a number of labour market opportunities and challenges, including employment growth and skills development, among others, in order to absorb the increasing labour force in a context of increasing poverty, international labour migration, and climate change. Reliable, timely labour statistics and labour market information and analysis (LMIA) are critical for governments and employer and worker organizations to design, implement, and monitor and evaluate national, regional and local policies and programmes to address the opportunities and challenges and to assess the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and Target 1B: “full and productive employment and decent work for all, inclusive of women and young people.”

The ILO tripartite constituents also voiced the critical need for labour statistics and LMIA, which was incorporated into the Decent Work Country Programmes (DWCPs) of all ILO-member Pacific Island Countries. Furthermore, they called on the ILO to support the full implementation of DWCPs, adopting the Pacific Action Plan for Decent Work (2010). This Action Plan identifies as key outputs, “strengthening”: a) “PIC governmental capacity in the collection, storage and production of socioeconomic statistics, with a specific focus on labour market information”; and b) “tripartite constituent capacity in LMIA collection, interpretation and analysis.”

In response, the ILO conducted a capacity-building needs assessment in 2010 in the area of LMIA. An assessment questionnaire was sent to the eight ILO-Member PICs and an ILO mission undertook consultations with National Statistical Offices, Ministries of Labour, other Line Ministries collecting statistics, and with employers’ and workers’ organizations in Australia, Fiji, Kiribati, New Zealand and Samoa. In addition the mission consulted other development partners working in the field of labour statistics and LMIA.

To give substance to these identified requirements, the ILO will undertake a technical training course on Labour Statistics and LMIA in the Pacific with an important SPC technical contribution, on behalf of the principal producers and users of labour statistics. Such ILO-SPC partnership brings the expertise and comparative advantages of both organizations together, and sets the scene to ensure their coordinated and harmonized efforts serving the interests of the PICs.

The objectives of the technical training are to:

1. Recognize the complementary roles and needs of various government institutions in funding, collecting, analyzing and disseminating LMIA;

2. Improve their knowledge of labour statistics, concepts and definitions;

3. Understand and contribute to pertinent institutional LMIAS arrangements, including LMIA units, survey units, employment and training centres, social partner organizations, etc.;

4. Develop and improve their critical analysis of labour market actors and situations;

5. Analyze survey results on labour force characteristics, to evaluate labour market conditions and design appropriate local, national and regional policies and programmes in support of Millennium Development Goal Target 1B of “full and productive employment and decent ork for all, inclusive of women and young people” and;

6. Identify specific gaps in labour statistics, LMIA and relevant mechanisms that may also inform the preparation of a technical cooperation project whose aim is to improve labour market-related statistics and infrastructures so as to ensure their sustainability in the future.

The participants are from all 8 ILO member countries representing the Ministry of Labour, National Statistics Office and National Provident Fund. Timor Leste will also participate at the Training.

For further information please contact:

Mr. Edward Bernard
Programme Officer
ILO Country Office for South Pacific Island Countries
Tel: +679 3313410
Email