Govt, ILO aim to increase decent jobholders in post-Covid era

The government, in collaboration with the International Labour Organisation (ILO), has set a goal to increase the number of decent and productive jobholders in Bangladesh in the post-coronavirus period.

The two parties will work towards that goal until 2026, said a press statement adding that they will improve strategic policy and institutional frameworks to achieve it.

They will also build capacity for inclusive, equitable and sustainable economic development, decent work and social protection for all, as outlined in the fourth Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) for Bangladesh.

A memorandum of understanding on the project was signed on Thursday by Md Ehsan-E- Elahi, secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Mesbah Uddin Ahmed, chairman, National Coordination Committee on Workers Education (NCCWE), Ardashir Kabir, president, Bangladesh Employers Federation (BEF) and Tuomo Poutiainen, country director, ILO Bangladesh.

Begum Monnujan Sufian, state minister of labour and employment, oversaw the launching ceremony of the programme at Radisson Blu in Dhaka as its chief guest.

Decent Work Country Programmes (DWCPs) are strategic frameworks for delivering ILO's support to countries where ILO draws on its distinctive global normative mandate centred on promoting international labour standards, social dialogue, and deploying decent work expertise to promote decent work for all.

Each DWCP is organised around a limited number of priorities and outcomes.

Speaking about the fourth DWCP, State Minister Sufian said, "The new DWCP has had to consider several crucial developments such as climate change, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, employment changes as a result of the 4th Industrial Revolution and a continuously changing economic and employment landscape. These ever-evolving challenges require us to collaborate and focus on sustainable and long-term developments to drive growth and decent work for all."

To mitigate these challenges the DWCP 2022-2026 for Bangladesh focuses on four key thematic areas: inclusive and sustainable economic development and decent jobs creation; equitable human development and well-being; promoting international labour standards and labour rights, strengthening labour market governance and social dialogue; and ensuring gender equality and eliminating gender-based violence.

ILO Bangladesh Country Director, Tuomo Poutiainen said on the occasion, "The decent work country programme supports Bangladesh in its quest to modernise institution of work and provide support for employment creation and sustainability of businesses. It will particularly focus on inclusiveness of the labour market so that youth women with disabilities and other marginalised groups have better opportunity to attain productive and decent work."

Md Kamal Hossain, secretary, Technical and Madrasah Education Division, Ministry of Education, Nahid Monjura Afroj, joint secretary, Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, Md Jashim Uddin, president, Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce & Industries (FBCCI), and Md Shahidul Alam, director-general, Bureau of Manpower, Employer & Training (BMET) were also present on the occasion.