Switzerland and the ILO sign a new framework agreement
The ILO also welcomes the announcement of Switzerland’s membership in Alliance 8.7
GENEVA - On Thursday, 1 April 2021 the Director-General of the International Labour Organization, Mr Guy Ryder, met with the President of the Swiss Confederation, Guy Parmelin during an official visit to Bern. In the presence of employers and workers organizations, the partners signed a new framework agreement between Switzerland and the ILO on development cooperation.
The new framework agreement covers cooperation with ILO’s key Swiss governmental partners, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), in line with the recently adopted Dispatch on Swiss Development Cooperation. Replacing the previous framework agreement signed in 2016, this update outlines a comprehensive whole-of-Government approach to the development cooperation jointly undertaken by the ILO and Switzerland. By clarifying common strategic priorities, respective roles and rules of engagement, it represents an essential tool for implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the ILO Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work and the socioeconomic response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The launch of the new framework agreement coincides with the announcement of Switzerland becoming an official Partner of the Alliance 8.7, joining the 17 Government Institutions and 22 Pathfinder Countries already working together to protect the fundamental rights of the world's most vulnerable workers. The Alliance 8.7 is an inclusive and transparent partnership that unites UN agencies with Governments, Workers and Employers' Organisations, Civil Society and Survivor Networks to accelerate the eradication of child labour, forced labour, human trafficking and modern slavery, in accordance with Target 8.7 of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development.
The Alliance 8.7 is also the custodian of the 2021 Action Pledges initiative for the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour through which Switzerland has pledged to “pass legislation on due diligence on child labour and to make all possible efforts to ensure its entry into vigour before the end of 2021”.
The new framework agreement covers cooperation with ILO’s key Swiss governmental partners, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), in line with the recently adopted Dispatch on Swiss Development Cooperation. Replacing the previous framework agreement signed in 2016, this update outlines a comprehensive whole-of-Government approach to the development cooperation jointly undertaken by the ILO and Switzerland. By clarifying common strategic priorities, respective roles and rules of engagement, it represents an essential tool for implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the ILO Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work and the socioeconomic response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The launch of the new framework agreement coincides with the announcement of Switzerland becoming an official Partner of the Alliance 8.7, joining the 17 Government Institutions and 22 Pathfinder Countries already working together to protect the fundamental rights of the world's most vulnerable workers. The Alliance 8.7 is an inclusive and transparent partnership that unites UN agencies with Governments, Workers and Employers' Organisations, Civil Society and Survivor Networks to accelerate the eradication of child labour, forced labour, human trafficking and modern slavery, in accordance with Target 8.7 of the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development.
The Alliance 8.7 is also the custodian of the 2021 Action Pledges initiative for the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour through which Switzerland has pledged to “pass legislation on due diligence on child labour and to make all possible efforts to ensure its entry into vigour before the end of 2021”.