Supporting Progress on Labour Standards in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), labour governance institutions, including the Labour Inspectorate and Labour Courts, are weak. They lack skills, knowledge, clear operating procedures and human and financial resources. Workers’ organizations are fragmented and employers’ organizations do not always understand the benefits of well-functioning labour institutions. These shortfalls have a direct impact on workers’ rights as compliance with labour laws is not promoted. Violations of workers’ rights related to safety and health at work, wages and hours of work (Acceptable Conditions of Work) as well as discrimination based on all grounds are common. These violations affect all workers in the formal and informal economy and across all economic sectors. In order to address this situation, the project will apply holistic lens to strengthen labour inspection and labour courts, stimulate inter-institutional collaboration and deepen collaboration with social partners. It will focus on strengthening the capacity of all the members of the labour inspectorate to provide advice, guidance, and enforcement of legal provisions. It will also work with labour officials to strengthen mediation and conciliation and with labour judges for the proper adjudication of labour disputes. The project will also aim to expand employers’ and workers’ cognizance of how workplace compliance is necessary to ensure decent working conditions, and how it can lead to greater productivity. It will work with representative workers’ and employers’ organizations to emphasize that dialogue mechanisms can assist in addressing regulatory deficits. The project will focus its efforts primarily in Kinshasa and in a couple of pilot provinces across a broad spectrum of economic sectors. Pilot provinces and sectors will be selected following the planning of the labour inspectorate work.

Project symbol

COD/21/03/USA

Admin unit

CO-Kinshasa

Start date

15/12/2021

End date

14/04/2025

Total allocation

2395378

Total expenditure

Status

Active

2395378

Development Partners

USA, Department of Labor, Bureau for International Labor Affairs

Country/Countries

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Outcomes

Outcome 2: Strong, representative and influential tripartite constituents and effective social dialogue