International Labour Standards

Explore Recommendation No. 205 on Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience (2017), providing a comprehensive framework to address the impact of crises from conflict and disasters on societies and economies. The recommendation prioritizes recovery, reconstruction, and tackling root causes of fragility, while advocating for resilience-building measures. Supported by a comprehensive strategy, including awareness raising, policy advice, knowledge dissemination, and international cooperation, it aims to assist governments, employers, and workers in implementing the recommendation and advancing the role of decent work in crisis prevention and response.

The ILO’s work in fragile contexts

Fostering partnerships across the humanitarian, development, and peace nexus.

The emergence of multiple crises strains the prospects for recovery and universal social justice. Simultaneously, the world of work, particularly workers’ and employers’ organizations, can play a role in stabilizing, recovering from, and preventing crises, primarily through promoting social justice.

The ILO actively engages in crisis and post-crisis situations, promoting decent work, social justice, and contributing to peace and recovery. It focuses on early and proactive involvement across the humanitarian, development, and peace (HDP) nexus, addressing, in partnership with its constituents and UN partners, both immediate and long-term socio-economic aspects while tackling conflict drivers related to decent work deficits.

The ILO supports coordinated crisis response for more effective and coherent efforts in partnership with other players. The organization prioritizes constituents’ leadership at every stage of the HDP nexus, with a specific focus on the most vulnerable individuals.

Partnership for improving prospects for forcibly displaced persons and host communities (PROSPECTS)

The PROSPECTS Programme is a comprehensive initiative designed to enhance access to employment and livelihood opportunities for host communities and forcibly displaced individuals in regions grappling with significant displacement challenges. This partnership, involving the ILO, IFC, UNHCR, UNICEF, and the World Bank, operates in eight countries in the Middle East, North Africa, and East Africa. The programme concentrates on crafting evidence-based solutions tailored to local contexts, aiming to bolster labour markets, business development, social protection, and policy environments. It prioritizes gender-responsive and integrated approaches to address the complexities of forced displacement and promote inclusive development.

Operationalizing the humanitarian-development-peace nexus for social protection in the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Prior to the current hostilities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, commitments to a humanitarian, development, and peace (HDP) nexus approach were translating into tangible actions, with coordination at the forefront. Innovations led by the ILO provide valuable lessons applicable to HDP nexus contexts globally.

Al Batool’s triumph: Turning refugee dreams into reality

Starting anew with a home-based busines

Al Batool, a Sudanese refugee in Egypt, faced tremendous challenges as a single mother of four when she arrived in Egypt seven years ago. Struggling to secure regular employment while caring for her children, she eventually turned to the idea of starting a home-based business, making Sudanese incense sticks. However, without the necessary financial support and business knowledge, she struggled to make progress. Her situation took a positive turn when she learned about an enterprise development programme initiated by the ILO PROSPECTS programme in Egypt, in collaboration with Caritas.

Mentorship and determination for entrepreneurial success

With determination and the guidance of mentors, Al Batool learned the essential aspects of business development and management through the ILO's Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) training programme. This newfound knowledge enabled her to establish a sustainable enterprise successfully. Furthermore, her business performance earned her a cash grant through the PROSPECTS programme, allowing her to expand her product line and significantly increase her profits. Al Batool's success story highlights the impact of such programmes in empowering individuals and communities, particularly women entrepreneurs, in Egypt.

PROSPECTS for change and local development

The ILO recognizes that entrepreneurship can offer a vital pathway for individuals, including forcibly displaced populations, to create livelihoods, support their families, and contribute to local economic development. Al Batool's journey exemplifies the positive outcomes that can be achieved through programmes like PROSPECTS, which have benefited over 6,000 women entrepreneurs in Egypt and continue to pave the way for more success stories in the future.

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