The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has called for more international financial support for developing countries struggling with debt and limited resources as they face multiple crises threatening to erase their development progress.
The ILO Director-General, Gilbert F. Houngbo, made the appeal at the World Bank Group/International Monetary Fund meeting in Marrakech, Morocco, last week. He stressed that developing countries need more debt restructuring, relief, and global financial system reform to continue funding social protection and decent work.
According to the ILO, low- and middle-income countries are spending more on debt service than on health and education combined, leaving them with little fiscal space for sustainable investments. The ILO also warned that employment prospects in these countries are unlikely to improve rapidly before 2025.
Houngbo cited the UN Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for Just Transitions, launched in September 2021 by the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, as a possible solution to these challenges. The Global Accelerator aims to bring together member states, international financial institutions, social partners, civil society, and the private sector to help countries create 400 million decent jobs, primarily in the green, digital, and care economies, and to extend social protection coverage to the over 4 billion people currently excluded.
The Global Accelerator proposes a three-step approach: first, to mobilize additional resources for jobs and social protection through enhanced multilateral cooperation; second, to align financing with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and human rights standards; and third, to ensure effective implementation and monitoring of the results.
Houngbo urged the government and the industry to work together to ensure the safety and benefits of artificial intelligence (AI), which he said has incredible potential for good and ill. He also highlighted the role of investments in human and productive capacities in preventing debt burdens from impeding sustainable development.
The ILO’s call for action comes amid growing concerns over the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the climate crisis on the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people. The UN estimates that the pandemic could push up to 124 million people into extreme poverty in 2023, while climate change could displace millions more in the coming years.
The ILO hopes that by addressing the deepening gap between rich and poor countries and creating a debt architecture that is fit for purpose in the complex and interconnected post-COVID world, the Global Accelerator can help build a more just, inclusive, and resilient future for all.
Source: Tribune Online
