By Nasratu Kargbo
With Health and Safety of Workers being one of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) focus, the institution’s Country Director Vanessa Phala together with the Minister of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) Alpha Timbo and other partners have signed and launched the Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) 2 for Sierra Leone.
The programme launched on the 25th of May 2023 is set to end in 2027 with an emphasy on creating jobs that recognize workers' health and safety.
Explaining the objectives of the DWCP, Phala said it is focused on promoting jobs, guaranteeing the rights of workers, extending UN social protection and promoting dialogue.
She added that respecting fundamental principles and rights of workers, ensuring that they are not paid below minimum wage and creating a conducive environment for workers are the focus of the DWCP 2.
She said jobs that are without such structure are not decent jobs and are destroying workers because they are unable to make meaningful contributions or properly support their families.
She said the programme seeks to arouse the nation’s interest in seeing employment issues as critical and decent work important in promoting inclusive growth.
“The DWCP being launched today is therefore a tool to address social and economic challenges facing the country and to ensure job-rich inclusive and sustainable growth. It is also an instrument that can be used by the government and the social partners to mobilize resources which will be used to address the issues of productive employment and decent work” said Phala.
Minister Timbo in his statement said the DWCP 2 seeks to address key issues such as equal pay for work of equal value, violence and harassment at work, equal opportunity and treatment for workers, and eliminating discrimination and child labour amongst others.
Timbo stated that the DWCP 2 aims to create jobs and improve the working conditions of workers especially women, youth, people with disability and vulnerable groups, in order for them to work in an environment where they can experience freedom, equity, security and dignity.
The labour minister said decent work serves as a support tool for action in different areas such as employment promotion, working conditions, training, equality between men and women, and social protection.
He said that their administration has done great in promoting the working conditions of workers in the country. Highlighting the strides they’ve made, he mentioned increasing the minimum wage from six hundred to eight hundred new Leones and reviewing the labour laws.
Explaining the background of DWCP, the Vice Chairman of the Sierra Leone Employers Federation (SLEF) Tamba Alieu- Kokobaye explained that the first phase of the DWCP I was adopted and implemented in 2010 after the government signed a memorandum of understanding with the ILO for the adoption and implementation of the DWCP 1 which ended in 2012.
The ILO on the 17th May 2023 signed individual implementation agreements with the following institutions: Sierra Leone Local Content Agency, Sierra Leone Chamber of Agribusiness Development (SLeCAD), Apex Bank and Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDA) in order to create decent jobs.
The four-year project which is funded by the European Union (EU) will be implemented in the following districts- Kenema, Bombali, Bo and Port Loko. The amount given for the implementation of the project is Eight million Euros.
Copyright © 2023 Politico (26/05/23)
