The socio-economic disruptions triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine have not only strained already thinly spread development financing, but also labour markets, labour income and social protection systems, threatening the objectives of Agenda 2030 as poverty has increased for the first time in twenty years.
This has underlined the need to focus on the social dimension of Agenda 2030 for more sustained, sustainable and inclusive economic growth. At the country level, this requires a more human-centred socio-economic recovery strategy that promotes full and productive employment and decent work for all to effectively address poverty and socio-economic inequalities. This goal is supported by the UN Secretary General´s Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for a Just Transition, which aims to channel investments towards a job-rich recovery using integrated national financing frameworks (INFFs) to catalyse financial resources.
Around the world, a new generation of national development and/or Covid-19 recovery plans are increasingly including decent work aspects among national priority objectives. Some countries are accordingly revisiting or in the process of designing National Employment Policies and a growing number is expected to gradually integrate the Decent Work Agenda in national financing strategies resulting from an INFF approach.
To support the many governments embracing and leading an INFF process and seeking to integrate decent work objectives or, at the very least, preserve the decent work milestones achieved, the ILO and UNDP have developed practical guidance to ensure a decent work perspective throughout the building blocks of an INFF, and guide engagement through social dialogues between governments, national constituents and supporting international development partners.
While the practical application will differ depending on the country's context and ambitions, the guidance offers an approach to bring decent work policies and institutional frameworks into the INFF process and identify entry points for advisory, technical assistance and capacity building through a series of guiding questions. Structured around the building blocks of an INFF, it also provides a selection of resources and tools for analysis and planning and country illustrations focusing on the following decent work-related technical areas:
- Unlocking job-rich growth through public finance
- Investing in social protection
- Financial sector´s role in promoting decent work
- Fostering pathways to formality
- Investing in climate action for jobs and a just transition
- Investing in labour standards
The guidance is a living document that will benefit and be further enriched with lessons learned as more countries gain experience in mainstreaming Decent Work into their INFF process.
You can find the full publication here.