The Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Gilbert Houngbo, expressed his satisfaction with Azerbaijan's ongoing expansion of its cooperation with the ILO.
A meeting was held with the delegation led by Gilbert Houngbo at the DOST Agency under the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of Population. Before the meeting, the delegation was introduced to DOST Center No. 1 and the services provided to the population there. Presentations were made about the DOST Concept and the Ministry’s digital services.
During the meeting, the Minister of Labour and Social Protection of Population Anar Aliyev, provided information on the recent social reforms implemented in Azerbaijan based on the instructions of President Ilham Aliyev. He noted that the successes of these reforms have been highly appreciated internationally, with over 200 awards received in recent years.
He emphasized the active cooperation with the ILO in the social reform process, noting that Azerbaijan ratified the ILO’s 59 Conventions, including 9 fundamental and 4 priority Conventions. He also mentioned that the possibility of ratifying three additional ILO Conventions is currently being assessed. Anar Aliyev highlighted the successful implementation of two Decent Work Country Programs with the ILO and noted that the next Country Program project is being developed.
The fruitful discussions on just transition held jointly with the ILO during the successful COP29 hosted by Azerbaijan last November were also mentioned. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Labour Center, which began operating in Baku in 2023, supported the development of relations between OIC member countries in the fields of labor, employment, and social protection, and the importance of the signing of a cooperation document between the ILO and the OIC Labour Center in September last year was emphasized.
It was noted that in 2020, Azerbaijan liberated its territories from Armenia's 30-year-long occupation, ensuring the restoration of the country’s territorial integrity and the historical justice, and the implementation of UN Security Council resolutions. Unfortunately, over 12% of Azerbaijan’s territory has been contaminated with landmines by Armenia, and Azerbaijan is among the top five countries in the world with the highest landmine contamination. Since the Second Karabakh War, the number of mine victims in Azerbaijan has reached 388.
The large-scale reconstruction and restoration works in the liberated territories, based on the concepts of "smart cities" and "smart villages," and the active employment programs implemented under the Great Return Program for the returning residents, were also highlighted.
Gilbert Houngbo expressed his positive impressions of his visit to Azerbaijan and mentioned that he had witnessed the country's rapid development. He expressed his satisfaction with Azerbaijan’s continued expansion of its cooperation with the ILO. The ILO Director-General also emphasized the importance of the continuous nature of reforms in the fields of social welfare, labour, and employment, and the broad application of innovative solutions in these areas.
During the meeting, future cooperation between Azerbaijan and the ILO was discussed, and an exchange of ideas took place regarding the expansion of joint work in several new directions.
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