Strengthening social dialogue in the labour sector - Ethiopia and Eritrea

Commencement and implementation of this project has been hampered by the lack of willingness of the Government of Eritrea to participate. The donor agreed (late 2005) that the project could proceed on the basis of national activities conducted in Ethiopia. It was also agreed that the two components involving Eritrea (national-level activities and common activities involving Eritrea/Ethiopia) would be replaced by a new subregional component, extending the target group of beneficiaries henceforth to include the tripartite constituents from six East African countries (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia-Somaliland, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda). The project will end in December 2007. The development objective of the project with respect to Ethiopia is to ensure the proper functioning of the labour relations system and enable it to respond to dynamic social and economic changes. Its medium-term objectives and related activities are: strengthening the capacity of the institutions of labour administration and dispute settlement (project activities: conduct needs assessments; design and implement a capacity-reinforcement programme; improve the implementation of the labour law, through better inspection and enforcement; strengthen the capacities of trade unions and employers’ associations to participate in collective bargaining, networking and decision-making); promotion of the practical application of human rights at the workplace; the enhancement of social and economic progress through social dialogue (project activities: prepare a study on the functioning of social dialogue in Ethiopia; disseminate the findings through a seminar; conduct a study tour for members of the Labour Advisory Board to share other country experience; develop guidelines to improve the functioning of the Board); the pursuit of social justice in all aspects of the national development plan; and the promotion of the peace-building process among the countries concerned.

Project symbol

RAF/03/21/EEC

Admin unit

DIALOGUE

Start date

01/11/2004

End date

31/12/2007

Total allocation

496207

Total expenditure

Status

Closed

496207

Development Partners

European Commission, Europe Aid

Country/Countries

Africa - regional

Outcomes

Social Dialogue and Industrial Relations