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Strengthening labour administration in Afghanistan - Final evaluation

eval_number:

2391

eval_url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/eval/2391

lessons_learned:

themes:

theme:

Armed conflict/crisis

category:

Employment

---

comments:

ILO project and country offices in fragile states

challenges:

The project office had access to only one armoured vehicle and driver, which was inadequate for the number of staff and projects that were undertaken at the time. This impacted on the amount of time it took to carry out project activities, limited the number and types of activities that could take place in the provinces, and meant that when there were missions in Kabul, the car was unavailable for other activities. Moreover, the Officer in Charge of the ILO Office in Afghanistan was involved in a serious incident in 2013. Taliban militants launched a large-scale attack involving the ILO in the center of Kabul in May 2013, sparking a five-hour battle with security forces. The Taliban had attacked a nearby rest house used by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. As a result of the attack, the Officer in Charge of the ILO and three IOM staff were wounded along with 10 others. An Afghan police officer was killed. Prior to the incident, ILO staff in Afghanistan had repeatedly requested better security, as the ILO was located in a shabby guest house environment surrounded by high buildings prone to shootings. However, the UN was slow to react to the changing security environment in Kabul. There was also concern expressed about the bureaucratic inertia of support structures, conveying frustration at the lack of quick decision-making and action on the part of ILO management in Bangkok, Delhi and Geneva.

success:

The incident served as a wake up call. Now the ILO is housed in an office/residential compound where the protection levels are akin to a fortress and is appropriately far from tall buildings. Furthermore, the ILO has increased security elements both from the project and regular budget side. There is another armoured vehicle and driver and one local security assistant. A P-3 security officer and a further armoured vehicle and driver are in the pipeline with another project. This has contributed to better staff security. The ILO has begun using a human resources agency to bring in consultants and provide them with equivalent security arrangements, and this has been working well.

context:

In a fragile state context like Afghanistan, where the security situation was often risky and could change or escalate quickly, it is important to have proper security arrangements on the ground, as well as logistics such as proper and sufficient transport means. In addition, not having a residential presence compounded security risks and constraints, as well as access to the provinces, thereby challenging operations and delivery.

description:

ILO operations in fragile states need to be backed up with adequate security and logistics, as well as quick decision-making and action.

administrative_issues:

ILO management should consider taking measures to provide better support structures to project offices in fragile states through adequate security and logistics, faster procedures, greater flexibility, and more decentralized management. Notwithstanding, the ILO has managed to achieve many things in fragile environments, and the SLLGA project is yet another example. There is obvious demand for ILO operations in fragile states, as shown by its implementation of projects in 15 of the 18 G7+ states and an increasing portfolio of projects in Afghanistan itself. The ILO is an active partner in a variety of inter-agency initiatives and international forums related to peace building and reconstruction. And in 2009 the ILO and UNDP developed the United Nations Policy for Post-Conflict Employment Creation, Income Generation and Reintegration to maximize the impact, coherence and efficiency of employment and reintegration support for fragile States provided by UN agencies. The ILO should not shy away from its unique and valued contribution in fragile states. However, it should provide its offices in these environments with the tools to do their job well.

url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/lessons/213361

---

location:

country:

Afghanistan

region:

Asia and the Pacific

---

eval_title:

Strengthening labour administration in Afghanistan - Final evaluation