Decent Work and Danish Development Assistance

1. Decent Work and Danish Development Assistance Analysis of the priorities in Danish development assistance: focus on employment, social dialogue and labor standards

2. Short introduction • Danish Development Assistance in 2009: more than 15 billion. kr • An important instrument in the Danish foreign - and security policy. • Include 15 program countries • Strategies for cooperation in each of the 15 countries analyzed. • How big a focus in each country is on employment, social dialogue and labor standards? and • Is Danish aid policy targeted Decent Work?

3. Approach The analysis includes: • Danish aid history, priorities in recent years, changes, international agreements / obligations, the various forms of assistance, country strategies - program countries and focus on sector assistance (largest part), including Business sector assistance • ILO conventions and program cooperation • ILO core conventions and the program countries • Decent Work. • Danish debate, conclusions and suggestions

4. Strategies in program countries • The main headlines in the analysis are: Employment Social dialogue Labor standards Trade union involvement / engagement Business Sector Programme Support (BSPS). Decent Work ILO - Conventions and Implementation

5. Countries, BSPS and LO/FTF Council • Bangladesh LO/FTF • Benin (LO/FTF) • Bhutan • Bolivia • Burkina Faso (LO/FTF) • Ghana + BSPS LO/FTF • Kenya + BSPS LO/FTF • Mali + BSPS • Mozambique LO/FTF • Nepal LO/FTF • Nicaragua LO/FTF • Tanzania + BSPS LO/FTF • Uganda LO/FTF • Vietnam + BSPS • Zambia LO/FTF

6. Employment • Overall, focusing on employment (assistance priorities). • Traditional sectors: agriculture, health, education (and energy) • Greatest emphasis on employment are in 5 BSPS countries (Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Tanzania and Vietnam) • The content of sector program is somewhat surprising very different, some countries are "old" partner countries and other quiet new (Mali). • The elements are: support to financial services, Advisory/ counseling and loans to small and medium enterprises. In practice: a bank (financial services to households, local cooperative banks and small and medium enterprises), institutions (help small and medium-sized farms) and finally a common donor financed fund (to contribute to a strengthening of the financial sector and especially micro-finance institutions).

7. Social dialogue • Although employment is a priority in development assistance, are general descriptions of labor marked and social partners in relation to this, either only slightly affected or non-existent. • Country Program from Bangladesh, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, Nepal, Nicaragua, Uganda and Zambia did not mention these issues at all. • Implications and conclusion: The social partners play in general a little - or no role in the implementation of the strategies. • Besides the 5 business sector program countries, it´s only in Benin and Bhutan the labor market is described. • In other words, it succeeded in Danish development policy to focus on employment issues without even affecting the labor market and social partners in more than half of the program countries.

8. Labor standards • ILO core conventions and the issue of labor standards/workers rights in each countries? • Apart from a single country (Vietnam) this issue has not at all been mentioned in the country strategies. • Several Danish program countries do have “pain in the ILO core conventions” maybe not a surprise, but the issue is totally ignored. • The conclusion is clear: international obligations vs. ILO are not promoted in Danish development assistance and the union's position, role and function has no interest.

9. Trade union engagement • Trade Unions have absolutely no role in the overall strategy of the BSPS. • Trade Unions by LO/FTF Council (and 3F) are actively involved in technical assistance project collaboration in more than 2 / 3 parts of all program countries • Still far from effective collaboration and involvement. • In addition, the union movement through the embassies in each case (in particular Mozambique, Nepal and Vietnam) received additional project support but not as an actor in a coherent implementation strategy.

10. ILO conventions and program cooperation(1) • CLS (8): 9 countries have ratified all 8 conventions 4 countries have ratified the 7 out of 8 conventions (Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya and Nepal) 3 of these 4 countries have not ratified No 87 (Ghana, Kenya and Nepal) While Bangladesh has not ratified No. 138 1 country has ratified only 5 conventions (Vietnam), which lacks both the 87 & 98 and 105

11. ILO conventions and program cooperation (2) • Priority Conventions (4): 9 countries have ratified Convention 81 (- Nepal, Nicaragua, Tanzania and Zambia) Only 5 countries have ratified Convention 122 (Bolivia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Uganda and Zambia) Only 3 countries have ratified Convention 129 (Bolivia, Burkina Faso and Kenya) 12 countries have ratified Convention 144 (except Bolivia and Ghana)

12. ILO conventions and program cooperation (3) Other conventions: • 11 countries have ratified Convention 11 • 9 countries have ratified Convention 17 (DK has not ratified) • 10 countries have ratified Convention 19 • 10 countries have ratified Convention 26 (DK has not ratified) • 7 countries have ratified Convention 45 (DK has not ratified) • Overall: Program countries have ratified only a small part of the ILO conventions.

13. ILO conventions and program cooperation (4) Up - to-date conventions: • 11 countries have ratified Convention 14 • 4 countries have ratified Convention 94 • 8 countries have ratified Convention 95 (DK has not ratified) • 7 countries have ratified Convention 131 (DK has not ratified) • 7 countries have ratified Convention 135

14. ILO conventions and program cooperation (5) • In generally: program countries have not ratified many of the ILO conventions. • All in all only ratified 42 out of a total of 81 “up to date conventions”. • No country has ratified, however, more than 18 conventions (Bolivia), followed by Zambia (14) and Nicaragua (13). • At the other extreme is Mozambique (1), Nepal (3) and Vietnam and Bangladesh, each with 4 conventions. • Out of a total of 81 conventions, Denmark has ratified only 38 conventions (representing less than half) • Only 4 countries have ratified Convention 94

15. CLS and program countries It must be noted that: • still serious violations of fundamental workers rights • The right to form and join trade unions is not respected in practice • Enforcement of gender discrimination is often very weak and women suffer discrimination in many areas + Women generally earn less than men for work of equal value. • Most countries have ratified the ILO conventions on equal pay and discrimination, but people living with HIV / AIDS dismissed and discriminated against people with disabilities often. • Child labor is widespread. Although primary education is free and compulsory, not all children access to education. • National legislation often prohibits forced labor. But enforcement of these laws are bad. (Prostitution, plantations and domestic work) • In conclusion, the IFS reports that enough to address, but is not seen in individual country strategies. • It would become Denmark to contribute to effective implementation and enforcement of these core Conventions.

16. Decent Work and Denmark • The Decent Work concept is not existent in Danish development assistance. DK do not prioritize or focus on Decent Work. • The so-called Decent Work Country Program (DWCP), where the ILO with other international actors seeking to promote the Decent Work concept concretely in individual countries, nor has (apparently) Danish interests. • There is therefore a lot of work to if Denmark is prepared to implement ILO declaration on social justice for a fair globalization from 2008. BM proposal for a Danish national action plan is a step in the right direction. Unfortunately, there is apparently a missing link between the Danish development aid and political engagement with the ILO • Denmark's contribution to the ILO was cut by 1 / 3 when the Anders Fogh government came into power in 2001. • Since LO DK managed to increasing the amount by an additional 10 million DKK in 2008/2009 but in the State Finance budget 2010, these funds are lost again. • A new agreement with ILO will properly be only budget support • We need a new Government

17. The Danish debat • Ministry of Foreign Affairs has just started debate on a new Danish development strategy, which should be completed in the first half of 2010. There is therefore a unique opportunity to formulate specific trade union priorities for future Development assistance policy and practical country strategies The analysis clearly shows the inconsistency between decent work components (employment, social dialogue and rights) and the current development aid. • ITUC discussion is more than welcome. A common trade union approach is needed.