February 24, 2023 (ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia) - The Second Ministerial Conference on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) will take place on 02 March 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to review the progress made since the signing of the Djibouti Declaration on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration in the IGAD Region and provide guidance on key priority areas of common concern on different pillars of the Declaration.
Ministers of Labour and Employment of IGAD member states, namely Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda, representatives of African Union, social partners, development agencies and other key labour market actors in the region are expected to attend.

The ministerial conference will be preceded by a three-day expert meeting from 27 February to 01 March 2023 that will bring together experts of IGAD Member States and development partners to take stock of the implementation of the Djibouti declaration and deliberate on key priority areas of common interest.
To mention, the conference will discuss and provide guidance, advice and recommendations on the Program for Implementation of Djibouti Declaration (PIDD), and synopsis for the development of key regional policy instruments such as Regional Employment Policy Framework, Regional Social Protection Strategy as well as the roadmap towards the development of IGAD Regional Labour Market Information System (LMIS).

In addition, the conference is also expected to deliberate on key strategies towards improved coordination and action on key labour migration challenges of the region including fair Recruitment, bilateral labour agreements and building the capacities of labour attaches and embassies of IGAD Member States in key countries of destination. Furthermore, Horn of Africa Confederation of Trade Unions (HACTU) and Confederation of IGAD Employers (CIE) will also launch their five-year strategic plan.

The Ministers of Labour and Employment of IGAD Member States signed the Djibouti Declaration on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration during the first Ministerial Conference on the 21st October 2021 in Djibouti City, Republic of Djibouti. Through the declaration, the Ministers of Labour and Employment agreed to:

• Establish the IGAD Ministerial Committee on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration.

• Adopt the Terms of Reference and Standard Operating Procedures for the IGAD Ministerial Committee on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration.

• Adopt the IGAD Regional Guidelines on Rights Based-Bilateral Labour Agreements.

• Develop a Plan of Action to implement the Djibouti Declaration on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration (2021) with clear monitoring and reporting mechanism.

The Djibouti Declaration on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration is a key policy instrument to comprehensively address challenges of labour, employment, and labour migration in the Region and further overcome institutional gaps to improve coordination and action on labour, employment and labour migration. The Djibouti Declaration provides comprehensive policy guidance to IGAD secretariat, Member States, Social Partners, and other stakeholders on the following seven pillars:

1. Labour, and Employment Policy guidance,
2. Ratification and Domestication of Internalization Labour Standards,
3. Promotion of Rights of Migrant Workers,
4. Promotion of Social Dialogue,
5. promotion of extension of Social Protection for All,
6. Promotion of Gender Equity and Equality, and
7. Advancing Regional Coordination, Partnership and Financing.

The declaration also plays pivotal role in addressing institutional gaps through the establishment of the IGAD Ministerial Committee on Labour, Employment and Labour Migration. The IGAD Ministerial Committee on Labour, Employment and Labour migration is a high-level political platform for regional policy dialogue, coordination, collaboration, and implementation and monitoring of policies and programs on matters of labour, employment, skills and labour migration in the IGAD region.
The conference is organized by IGAD with the technical support of the ILO under the framework of the project on Free Movement of Persons and Transhumance in the IGAD region financed by the European Union.

Event Information:
Place: Haile Grand Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Time:
- 27 February to 01 March 2023 – Experts’ meeting
- 02 March 2023 – Ministerial meeting
Both events are open to all media houses – refer to addresses below for RSVPs and additional information.


Links for Further Information on the Djibouti Declaration:
- https://igad.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Declaration-Signed-English.pdf
- https://www.ilo.org/global/docs/WCMS_824830/lang--en/index.htm
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Contacts:

1. Lucy Daxbacher
IGAD Head of Mission to the Republic of Uganda,
EUTF Program Manager Protocols on Free Movement of Persons and Transhumance
Email: Lucy.Daxbacher@igad.int
2. Ibrahim Kasso
IGAD - Coordinator
Regional Migration Fund Project Operations
Djibouti –
Email: ibrahim.kasso@igad.int

3. Mahamed Ahmed Abdillahi
Communication Officer
T +253 21 353 529
M +253 77 079 003

4. Ephrem Getnet
Chief Technical Advisor,
FMPT – Djibouti City, Djibouti
getnet@ilo.org


3. Homa Mulisa
Sr. Communications and Information Management Asst.
ILO Country Office, Addis Ababa
ejeta@ilo.org

Email: mahamed.abdillahi@igad.int

Website: https://igad.int/
https://www.ilo.org/addisababa/countries-covered/ethiopia/lang--en/index.htm

Twitter: @addisilo @igadsecretariat