Social dialogue for formalization and employability in the Southern Neighbourhood Region (SOLIFEM)

The project (SOLIFEM) will support the transition from the informal to the formal economy through tripartite social dialogue in the countries of the Southern Neighbourhood, with a particular focus on Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon and the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). It will pursue this objective through strengthening the capacity of the ILO tripartite constituents to take action, through social dialogue, on two fronts – first, the development of integrated strategies on formalization and second, the development of skills training and recognition systems, with a particular focus on women and youth in the informal economy. The project strategy is built on the solid foundation of tripartism and social dialogue, in line with the ILO’s overall mandate and with Recommendation No. 204 on the transition from the informal to the formal economy. The consequences of the COVID-19 crisis, and especially its devastating impact on the livelihoods and incomes of vulnerable workers and enterprises in the informal economy, add even greater urgency to the promotion of sustainable formal employment opportunities in the region. The project will support the strengthening of national skills training and skills recognition systems to enable young people and women in the informal economy to access formal employment. A comprehensive set of interventions is proposed including tripartite diagnostic studies, capacity-building, awareness-raising, policy development and knowledge-sharing. These interventions will take place at two levels: national and regional. At national level in the four focus countries/territory, the project will generate knowledge, share expertise, develop and test innovative practices and strengthen policy dialogue and coordination between governments, workers’ and employers’ organizations, and other key stakeholders, on promoting formalization and boosting skills and employability for youth and women. At the regional level (involving countries from the whole Southern Neighbourhood), the project will promote the sharing of knowledge and lessons learned between countries and seek to strengthen mechanisms for regional social dialogue. The project will coordinate closely with the partners responsible for implementation of SOLiD II Component 1 on “Towards an inclusive and structured social dialogue in the Southern Mediterranean Neighbourhood”, in order to maximise synergies and ensure the continuous sharing of knowledge and experience.

Project symbol

INT/20/02/EUR

Admin unit

CO-Algiers
RO-Arab States/DWT-Beirut
DWT/CO-Cairo

Start date

01/03/2021

End date

31/12/2024

Total allocation

3439007

Total expenditure

Status

Active

3410110

Development Partners

European Commission, DG for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, European Neighbourhood

Country/Countries

Algeria
Lebanon
State of Palestine
Egypt

Outcomes

Outcome 3: Full and productive employment for just transitions
Outcome 5: Gender equality and equality of treatment and opportunities for all
Output A.1. More and better statistics with reliable labour market information systems
Outcome 1: Strong, modernized normative action for social justice