Poverty: Role of Governance and Social Dialogue

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Poverty Role of Governance andSocial Dialogue

• Patricia ODonovan
• IFP/DIALOGUE

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Some questions

• What are the links between governance and social
  dialogue?
• What are the links between poverty reduction,
  governance and social dialogue?
• How does the ILO define good governance?
• What can the ILO contribute to the governance
  discussion?
• What is the impact of social dialogue on PRSPs?

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Millennium Development Goals

• Develop a global partnership for development
  (Goal 8)
• Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable,
  non-discriminatory trading and financial system
  (includes a commitment to good governance,
  development and poverty reduction both
  nationally and internationally) Target 12
• No indicators

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Definition of Governance

• The way a society organises and rules itself in
  order to make and to implement choices

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What aspects of the governance discussion can the
ILO influence?

• Labour market governance industrial relations
  infrastructure, labour market regulation and
  labour market institutions
• Workplace governance rights, protection,
  paticipation, equality
• Economic governance social dialogue at the
  national, sub-regional and global level
• Corporate governance information and
  consultation rights, Declaration on
  Multinationals, Corporate Social Responsibility
  etc.
• Public service governance quality of service
  linked to quality of work, rights, reform

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What criteria should the ILO promote to define
good governance?

• Participation
• Equality of access
• Transparency in decision-making
• Accountability
• Independence
• Resources and capacity

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Social Dialogue

• Process
• Participation
• Key economic actors
• Who else?
• Agenda rooted in reality
• Unique entry point for the ILO into the
  macroeconomic discussion at national level
• Growing opportunities at sub-regional level
• Is there a global social dialogue?

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What is the unique role which the ILO can play in
PRSPs?

• Facilitate the participation of the social
  partners (includes cajoling, encouraging,
  nudging, persuading, enticing )
• Provide the policy framework (Decent Work)
• Assist to adapt the decent work agenda to the
  country specific issues
• Insist on recognition of the key role of the
  social partners
• Build a tripartite consensus
• Link the macroeconomic policies to the poverty
  reduction strategy
• Long-term commitment

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How can the ILO do this?The Tanzania Approach

• Give the partners the information in an
  accessible and user-friendly format
• Build skills and knowledge
• Reinforce their right to participate
• Broaden the alliances
• No country ownership without the participation
  of the social partners

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Problems

• Social partners capacity, multiplicity of
  organisations, conflict, no institutions or
  culture of social dialogue
• Labour Ministries
• Lack of trust and respect
• Exclusion from economic policy-making
• Isolation
• Overshadowed/overtaken by other poverty actors
• Lack of follow-up

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Targets

• 1.Effective participation of the social partners
  in PRSPs in X number of countries
• 2. Decent Work component incorporated or
  mainstreamed into X number of PRSPs during this
  biennium
• 3. Qualitative difference to poverty reduction
  strategy

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Effective consultative process some indicators

• Social partners informed in advance of major PRSP
  events
• Social partners receive in due time the PRSP
  documents
• Social partners meet together or separately to
  discuss the PRSP
• Existence of tripartite machinery where the PRSP
  is discussed

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• Social partners meet with government (World Bank
  and other relevant players) to discuss the PRSP
• Social partners maintain regular contacts with
  NGOs on the PRSP
• PRSP reflects inputs from social partners
  (compare with previous version)
• PRSP contains Decent Work component