Decent Work & Economic Growth

UN Development Agenda Found Falling Behind in Reaching Goals

By Shanta Rao

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) – As part of its the Agenda for Sustainable Development, the United Nations is determined to “to leave no one behind” in its strong commitment to ensure the elimination of extreme poverty and hunger by the year 2030, which is an integral part of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by world leaders in September 2015.

But in a new report released July 17, the UK-based Overseas Development Institute (ODI) points out that only 25 of the 44 countries presenting their progress on SDGs at the UN’s High Level Political Forum (HLPF), which concludes July 19, are ready to meet the central commitment of “leaving no-one behind.” The report has been released to coincide with the UN’s 10-day HLPF.

: IDN-INPS UN Bureau; UN INSIDER; 17 July 2017

Photo: African ministers at the global observance of the World Day to Combat Desertification in Burkina Faso.

African Ministers Keen to Halt Migration of Jobless Youth

By Rita Joshi

BONN (IDN) – Senior government ministers from several African countries have emphasized the need for addressing the plight of jobless young people in sub-Saharan Africa. Ignoring their predicament is a recipe for political instability and global insecurity, warned a high-level symposium of Africa's interior, environment and foreign affairs ministers in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso,

The Symposium on June 15 examined the threats connected to sustainability, stability and security, namely, conflicts linked to access to degrading natural resources, instability due to unemployment of rural youth and insecurity and the risk of the radicalization triggered by social and economic marginalization and exposure to extremist groups.

: Rita Joshi; UN INSIDER; 16 June 2017

Photo: Daniel Osiemo, acting NEPAD Kenya Secretariat Chief Executive Officer (left) and Estherine Fotabong, Director of Programmes (right), NEPAD agency addressing the press during the launch of the Skills Initiative for Africa consultative Workshop held in Nairobi, Kenya. Credit: Wanzala Justus | IDN-INPS

Access of African Youth to Labour Market Receives Boost

By Justus Wanzala

NAIROBI (IDN) – The African Union (AU) in collaboration with the government of Germany has established an initiative to help young Africans acquire practical skills for meeting the needs of labour markets.

The aim is to strengthen their occupational prospects in view of the continent’s unemployment crisis.

Most hit are young people, with around 60 percent of the unemployed under the age of 25. Key players in implementation of the initiative are the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) and the German government’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation, as well as the German KfW Development Bank. NEPAD is a socio-economic development flagship programme of the AU.

: Phil Harris; THE WORLD; Africa; 10 May 2017

Photo: Israeli restrictions aggravate Palestine economy. Credit. Iran Daily

UN Study Accuses Israel of 'Distorting' Palestinian Economy

By Jaya Ramachandran

GENEVA (IDN) – Undeterred by Israel's sensitivity to all perceived criticism, a new study by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has expressed disapproval of the country's policies in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

"The security, military, political and economic measures implemented by Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory – the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem – since the onset of occupation in 1967 have significantly distorted and disoriented the Palestinian economy," says the study, The Occupied Palestinian Territory: Twin-Deficits or an Imposed Resource Gap?

: Jaya Ramachandran; UN INSIDER; 04 May 2017

Effective Governance Critical for the Quality of Asia-Pacific Economic Growth

By Shamshad Akhtar

Dr. Shamshad Akhtar is an Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) and the Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). – The Editor

BANGKOK (IDN) - The Asia-Pacific region’s high and steady economic growth has been an anchor of stability for the struggling world economy in recent years. Developing economies of the region now account for almost a third of global GDP (gross domestic product), slightly less than the combined output of the developed economies of North America and Western Europe.

If the region continues to grow at the current pace, it would account for more than a half of world economic output by the year 2050. With its increasing importance, the role of traditional ‘success factors’ such as education, high investment and savings rates, reliance on world markets through exports, is likely to evolve as well. Future economic growth will need to rely more on productivity gains which, in turn, require effective institutions and better governance, in both public and private spheres.

: IDN-INPS UN Bureau; UN INSIDER; 01 May 2017

Asian-Fuelled Heritage Tourism Could Be An SDG Enabler

By Kalinga Seneviratne

BANGKOK (IDN) - The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) Global Summit, held for the first time in Southeast Asia, pivoted on how Asia-fuelled tourism would impact the industry worldwide. The discussions also centred around whether tourism could be an enabler of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) if it were heritage-focused offering community experiences – rather than “exotic” sites – so that significant leakages of tourism revenue could be tapped.

Financial leakages in tourism occur when revenues arising from tourism-related economic activities in destination countries are not available for re-investment or consumption of goods and services in the same countries. Financial resources 'leak away' from the destination country to another country, particularly when a tourism company is based abroad and when tourism-related goods and services are being imported to the destination country.

: Kalinga Seneviratne; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 29 April 2017

Photo: Viwanou Gnassounou, Assistant Secretary General of the ACP Group. Credit: IISD

Local Construction Materials Hold the Key to Jobs Across Southern Africa

By Ronald Joshua

BRUSSELS | MAPUTO, Mozambique (ACP-IDN) - Once neglected minerals and materials may hold the key to millions of jobs across Southern Africa at a time when oil and metal exporting countries are grappling with low commodity prices.

Mega infrastructure projects agreed by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Heads of State are projected to draw in 986 billion dollars in investments over the next ten years, ramping up the demand for construction materials exponentially. Estimates from the African Development Bank indicate that for each billion invested in African infrastructure, between 3-7 million jobs are created.

: Ronald Joshua; THE WORLD; Africa; 04 April 2017

Children await the arrival of King Norodom Sihamoni on the streets of Siem Reap. Credit: Neena Bhandari

Education & Jobs Crucial As Cambodia Records Pro-Poor Growth

By Neena Bhandari

SIEM REAP/BATTAMBANG, Cambodia (IDN) - The once conflict ridden, impoverished country of Cambodia has made significant strides towards stability and progress, but it is still facing several socio-economic development challenges.

In 2016, it became a lower middle-income country after recording an annual average economic growth of seven percent over the past decade. “The country’s economy has trebled and the number of people living in poverty has halved in the last 15 years. We have to set development issues in the context of those successes,” says Nick Beresford, United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Cambodia Country Director.

: Neena Bhandari; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 30 March 2017

Photo: UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka and actress Patricia Arquette join the campaign for equal pay. Credit: UN Women/Ryan Brown

Women Still Trail Behind Men in All Aspects of Life, Says UN

By Shanta Roy

Women make 77 cents for every dollar men earn. Up to 90 percent of women workers are informally employed. Advancing women’s equality in total could bring a potential boost of 28 trillion dollars to global annual gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025.

NEW YORK (IDN) – The statistics unveiled at an annual meeting of women at the UN were disturbingly revealing: On a global average, women only make 77 cents for every dollar men earn.

There is still a “myriad of laws” in over 150 countries which openly discriminate against women, affecting more than three billion worldwide – and relating to virtually every aspect of women’s lives.

: IDN-INPS UN Bureau; UN INSIDER; 19 March 2017

Photo: Madina Abylkassymova, Vice-Minister for National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, addressing Security Council in an open debate on March 15 on human trafficking, modern slavery and forced labour. Behind her is Ambassador Kairat Umarov, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United Nations. Credit: Kazakh Permanent Mission to the UN in New York.

Security Council Stresses Need to Fight Human Trafficking

By Santo D. Banerjee

NEW YORK (IDN) – With conflicts driving the desperation and disorder that enables human traffickers to thrive, Security Council has held an open debate on human trafficking, modern slavery and forced labour and highlighted the need for three P's: Prevention, Protection, Prosecution.

The dimensions of the challenge are huge. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) suspects victims in 106 countries. The International Labour Organization (ILO) reports that 21 million people around the world are victims of forced labour and extreme exploitation. The perpetrators of such crimes cash profits of some $150 billion annually.