Partner in Focus: International Labour Organization

The International Labour Organization (ILO) recently held the 102nd Session of the International Labour Conference, where sustainable development, decent work and green jobs were on the agenda. Dorit Kemter (Expert, Green Jobs) with the International Labour Organization explains that work that ILO is doing in this area in this latest instalment of the Green Growth Knowledge Platform’s “Partner in Focus” feature.

“The greening of economies presents many opportunities to achieve social objectives: it has the potential to be a new engine of growth, both in advanced and developing economies, and a net generator of decent, green jobs that can contribute significantly to poverty eradication and social inclusion.”

With such jointly agreed statements, ILO constituents concluded their discussions on sustainable development, decent work and green jobs at the 102nd Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC), held from 5 to 20 June 2013 in Geneva. The ILC discussions offered the opportunity to define how governments, workers’ and employers’ representatives and the ILO Office can contribute to the creation of greener economies with decent and green employment opportunities for all.

Country experiences demonstrate that the creation of green jobs contributes significantly to sustainable development. Green jobs, i.e. decent jobs that contribute to preserving and restoring of the environment, present an effective means for reviving economies and creating employment, promoting socially inclusive development, whilst reducing the environmental impact of enterprises.

Over the years, the Green Jobs Programme of the ILO has actively promoted the creation of green jobs worldwide through policy and technical advisory services at national level; capacity development and knowledge sharing activities; as well as research and advocacy.

In cooperation with the Green Jobs Initiative Partners, the Programme published two global reports on green jobs. The most recently published report, Working towards sustainable development: Opportunities for decent work and social inclusion in a green economy, highlights how a green economy, if accompanied by the right policy mix, can create more and better jobs. Other global and national research reports include: Green jobs in Mauritius -Experiences from a Small Island Developing State; Green jobs for sustainable development - A case study of Spain; Skills for green jobs - A global review and Social dialogue for sustainable development - A selection of national and regional experiences.

The Programme’s country support includes interventions at policy level, such as national assessment on green jobs potential and policy advice for decision makers. Interventions also target specific sectors, notably renewable energy in Bangladesh, waste management in Chile, construction in the Philippines and tourism in Thailand.  Likewise, the Programme carries out activities at enterprise level to promote green entrepreneurship. For example, the Green Business Options training scheme equips young Chinese entrepreneurs with the relevant methods and skills for green business creation and management. With a similar approach, the Youth Entrepreneurship Facility offers Kenyan youth training and business start-up support for green enterprises. Skills development for green jobs is a cross-cutting issue for most country interventions. In the context of a regional project implemented in Central America, a network of technical and vocational education and training institutions decided to pay particular attention to this topic and develop new training standards for green occupations.  

In terms of capacity development and knowledge sharing, the Programme places great emphasis on the creation and exchange of relevant information and the provision of training programmes. For instance, the ILO’s International Training Centre (ITC) has developed a Green Jobs Learning Cluster with a dedicated portfolio of training courses for both governments and social partners, and also supports training activities at national and regional level.

The Green Jobs Programme has grown steadily both in terms of its geographic coverage and through its network linkages. A total of 27 countries have been assisted directly, and the programme’s network approach has led to a strong cooperation both with the different ILO departments, as well as with external partners. Together with UNEP, UNIDO and UNITAR, the ILO has recently created the Partnership of Action on Green Economy (PAGE) to jointly support countries in building inclusive, resource-efficient and low carbon economies.

The global Green Jobs Programme of the ILO was created in 2009 following a strong demand from constituents communicated at the International Labour Conference in 2007. The ILO has a long history of active engagement and support for sustainable development. The Organization has participated in the long chain of global environment and sustainable development meetings within the UN system since the Stockholm UN Conference on the Human Environment in 1972 to the most recent UN Conference on Sustainable Development in 2012, namely Rio+20. Moreover, the ILO has also been engaged in the ongoing negotiations in advancing the implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC).