Brasília – Egypt, which has been under a provisional government comprising military personnel for a month now, was praised by the International Labour Organization (ILO) this Tuesday (15th). The director-general of the organization, Juan Somavia, highlighted the efforts made by Egyptian authorities over the last few days to ensure freedom of association and in the country’s labour market. Somavia spent two days in Egypt, after the resignation of former president Hosni Mubarak, on February 11th.
In Egypt, Somavia met with the ministers of Finance, Samir Radwan, and of Migration and Manpower, Ahmed El Borê, and with the prime minister, Essam Sharaf, and student leaders who took part in the protests seen in the country.
“The fact that the Ministers of finance and labour are inviting the ILO to work together indicates the important policy convergence of the issues on which they are requesting our contribution: freedom of association, [guarantees on] wages, social protection and employment, especially for the youth,” said Somavia.
According to the ILO director-general, the organization is going to attend a ministerial meeting due next Monday (21st) whose main topic will be labour.
The transitional government of Egypt has taken office after Mubarak’s resignation and is expected to promote changes that the protesters have called for, such as improvement in the quality of life of Egyptians and in wages. There are also complaints, mostly among the youth, about the lack of job opportunities.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
