The Second BRICS Employment Working Group (EWG) Meeting under the South African Presidency was convened from 9-12 May 2023 in South Africa with the participation of representatives from the BRICS Member States, International Organisations, i.e., the International Labour Organisation (ILO), African Regional Labour Administration Centre (ARLAC) and the International Social Security Association (ISSSA) and guests from the Governments of Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Also in attendance were the representatives from the academia and national social partners from organised business and organised labour, respectively represented by Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU). The Meeting considered two priorities, i.e., Improving skills and lifelong learning for workers in the informal economy to promote decent work and enhance transitions to formality, and Universal access to social protection and ensuring basic income security. Moreover, the meeting deliberated on the proposal for the establishment of a BRICS-wide Productivity Ecosystem for Decent Work programme to enhance productivity and promote decent work.
Representative of the Department of Multilateral Partnerships and Development Cooperation, ILO, Ms. Feixia Li joined the meeting and took part in the panel discussion on productivity ecosystem where she gave introduction of SSTC good practice in BRICS. She emphasized the role of BRICS in contributing to the global development and the importance of adopting an joint initiative that respect ownership and ensure sustainability with an aim to promoting decent work. She expressed the willingness of support the concrete outcome development on behalf the department. The programme of the meeting can be found here.