South Korea, ILO mark 22 years of labor cooperation with first partnership reception

First partnership reception held in Geneva on sidelines of 114th ILO Conference; South Korea the only ILO member running a dedicated employment and labor cooperation project; six countries including Cambodia, Vietnam and Mongolia receive support on youth employment and industrial safety

Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon speaks at the Korea-ILO Cooperation Project Partnership Reception, co-hosted with the ILO at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday. [Ministry of Employment and Labor]

South Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor is expanding its cooperation with the International Labour Organization to help developing countries create more decent jobs and strengthen their labor administration capacity.

The ministry co-hosted the Korea-ILO Cooperation Project Partnership Reception with the ILO at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday, the ministry announced Tuesday. The event was held on the sidelines of the 114th ILO Conference.

The Korea-ILO cooperation project is an international development initiative that draws on South Korea's policy experience and expertise in employment and labor to help developing countries improve their regulatory systems and build capacity to implement international labor standards. Launched in 2004, the project is currently in a three-year cycle running from 2024 to 2026, with a total budget of $11.95 million (about 16.6 billion won).

South Korea is the only ILO member state running a dedicated cooperation project in the employment and labor field. It currently operates 10 projects — five in the Asia-Pacific region and five in Latin America — supporting six countries including Cambodia, Paraguay, Vietnam and Mongolia in areas such as labor market integration for older workers, youth employment, industrial safety and the promotion of social dialogue.

The reception was the first of its kind in the project's more than 20-year history. Representatives from the South Korean government, the ILO and beneficiary countries gathered to share key achievements and discuss the direction of future cooperation.

Attendees included ILO Deputy Director-General for Development Cooperation Laura Thompson, Cambodian Minister of Labor and Vocational Training Heng Sour, and delegations from Paraguay, Mongolia, Vietnam, Malawi and Kenya. ILO Director of Development Cooperation Frank Hagemann presented the project's major outcomes and future development plans.

Thompson said South Korea had been "the ILO's most important and enduring development cooperation partner" over the past 22 years through the Korea-ILO project. She added that it had delivered "tangible results addressing real policy needs on the ground in areas such as youth employment, industrial safety and vocational skills development."

Heng Sour called the Korea-ILO cooperation project "a cherished partnership that has brought meaningful change to the lives of Cambodian workers and to the development of the labor sector." He said South Korea's support had made "a practical contribution to strengthening social protection systems, improving occupational safety and health, and enhancing social dialogue and labor administration capacity."

Minister Kim Young-hoon said the Korea-ILO cooperation project was "a partnership built on trust that has continued since 2004," pledging to "strengthen practical cooperation with the ILO and beneficiary countries across a wide range of areas, including expanding quality youth employment, creating safer workplaces and building employment service capacity."

The ministry plans to use the event as a springboard to deepen the trilateral cooperation framework among South Korea, the ILO and beneficiary countries, expand projects that reflect the needs of recipient nations and raise South Korea's standing in the international community.

fact0514@heraldcorp.com