ILO and Labour Minister to hold meeting on social security

NI Wire

New Delhi

Mon, 19 May 2008: 

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and Employment are going to hold two-day meeting from May 19 with delegates from other Asia Pacific countries to discuss on the ways to ensure effective social security coverage particularly for workers in the informal sector inerms of both policy and practical feasibility.

The broad objective of the meeting is to identify a set of policy approaches within which participating countries can pursue effective and progressive extension of social security coverage, while integrating and taking advantage of both the formal, national institutions of social security as well as the NGOs and also of the ILO’s capacity to promote dialogue between the social partners to this end.

The other specific objective includes sharing of knowledge and experience regarding strategies and to find out good practices and encourage initiatives and responses to emerging challenges and to foster a consensual approach.

Its targeted outcome relates to the role of security and its extension mainly to the unorganised sector in the line of the objectives of the Asian Decent Work Decade.

The meeting will surely act as a platform to bring out the best experiences of the participating countries and exchange of those ideas among the countries while providing opportunity to deepen the commitment and regional cooperation.

It is also envisaged that ILO will assist the meeting in promoting a well-articulated understanding, on the part of the participating countries.

The representative from international agencies including WHO, ADB, the World Bank, IMF, UNDP, EC, ASEAN, SAARC, ISSA etc with representatives of local institutions active in social security field, have also been invited to attend the meeting as observer.

The theme of the discussion will be social income security including old-age pensions and also work related to older ages and relevant needs for their health care.

However, the meeting may advance on a range of significant topics, including those of finance and governance of social security, and of social security needs in relation to labour migration.

Also, the specific needs and access to social security of women maternity, family/care responsibilities and career/work patterns etc will form a part of discussion.

The meeting will be inaugurated by Oscar Fernandes, Minister of State (IC) for Labour & Employment on May 19 at Vigyan Bhawan.

Such conferences hold importance in the light of globalisation, liberalisation and widening disparities among the countries and are tailored to facilitate understanding among the participating country. The challenges ahead are to construct a pluralistic social system which will ensure protection to all groups of society.