Beirut (ILO News) – Kuwait pledged a further $0.5 million to support the ILO’s Decent Work Agenda in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT.)

Jamal Al-Ghunaim, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the State of Kuwait to the United Nations Office and other International Organizations in Geneva, made the contribution to the ILO Director-General Guy Ryder on 1 July in Geneva.

Director-General Ryder emphasized the importance of Kuwait’s contribution since 2009. He stated that such funding has enabled the ILO to bring about concrete achievements for the promotion of Decent Work in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in particular within the framework of the First Decent Work Programme during 2013-2017. He renewed the ILO’s appreciations to Kuwait for its continuous support, saying that it should facilitate the ongoing implementation of the Second Decent Work Programme for the period 2018-2022.

Ambassador Al Ghunaim congratulated the Director-General on the success of the Centenary Conference held in June 2019 and the adoption of the Centenary Declaration. He expressed hope that his country’s annual contribution would enable the ILO to expand its technical support to advancing Decent Work in the OPT.

The new funding brings Kuwait’s total contributions to the ILO’s promotion of decent work and social justice in the Arab States region to US$5.5 million.
The Second Decent Work Programme, covering the period 2018-2022, prioritizes enhancing employment and livelihood opportunities for Palestinian women and men, as well as strengthening labour governance and realizing fundamental principles and rights at work through freedom of association, strengthened collective bargaining and improved social dialogue mechanisms. It also prioritizes implementing and developing the Palestinian social security system towards extending social protection to all.