High level webinar paves the way for follow-up activities for the promotion of the MNE Declaration in WAEMU Member States

A well-attended high-level webinar took place on 28 March 2022 involving supervisors and colleagues of participants in the training course “Multinational enterprises, development and decent work: The approach of the ILO MNE Declaration”. The webinar allowed the participants of the training course to share with a wider audience the roadmap they had developed for the promotion of the MNE Declaration in their country.

The training “Multinational enterprises, development and decent work: The approach of the ILO MNE Declaration”, which took place online from 15 November to 3 December 2021, allowed tripartite constituents and social dialogue institutions of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), to deepen their knowledge of the Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy (MNE Declaration), and other instruments and initiatives to promote responsible, sustainable and inclusive business practices.

Based on the knowledge and insights acquired during the course, the 40 participants developed a roadmap focusing on using these international tools, and in particular the ILO MNE Declaration, to better mobilise the potential of multinational enterprises for achieving decent work for all in their respective countries.

Together with the International Training Center (ITCILO), the ILO subsequently organized a follow-up high level webinar open to all, including supervisors and colleagues of those who participated in the training.

“Bringing together constituents and social dialogue institutions of WAEMU member States gives this training a unique character. As part of the implementation plan of the ILO Abidjan Declaration, the training will hopefully lead to rich exchanges and sharing of experiences within the West African Economic and Monetary Union to promote the MNE Declaration and the application of its principles.”

Mr. Frédéric Lapeyre, Director of the ILO Country Office for Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Togo
Through this format, high-level representatives of WAEMU member States had the opportunity to enhance their understanding of the MNE Declaration and to discuss its relevance in West Africa. During the high-level webinar, participants presented key elements of the national roadmaps they had developed, thus paving the way for the implementation of concrete activities to promote the MNE Declaration and the application of its principles in the national context. A total of 150 national stakeholders from the WAEMU Member States registered for the webinar, received the recording and relevant resource materials, among them more than 70 attended the live session on 28 March 2022.

Dr. Birane Thiam, Permanent Administrative Secretary of the WAEMU Labour and Social Dialogue Council, highlighted how the Council recognized the importance and relevance of the ILO MNE Declaration for the realization of decent work and inclusive economic development in the region by adopting in 2019 an Opinion on the promotion of corporate social responsibility and the ILO MNE Declaration in WAEMU member States. The Opinion contains recommendations to WAEMU member States, to the Commission and to the social partners (employers' and workers' organizations) to promote decent work and improve social governance with regard to the operations of multinational enterprises and their investments.

Participants also had the opportunity to engage and interact with the appointed national focal points for the promotion of the ILO MNE Declaration in Cote d'Ivoire and Senegal, who shared their experience to maximize the positive contribution of MNEs in their countries through concrete initiatives and highlighted the role of social dialogue institutions in addressing the impact of multinational enterprises on development priorities. In particular, they encouraged the participants to adopt a pragmatic approach emphasizing the benefits of mainstreaming the promotion of the MNE Declaration into the regular activities of tripartite constituents.


From left to right: Josée Laporte, CSR Specialist at the Multinational Enterprises and Enterprise Engagement Unit (ILO); Kouassi Emmanuel Kobina, Deputy National Focal Point of the Government of Côte d'Ivoire for the promotion of the MNE Declaration; Khar Basse, National focal point for the promotion of the MNE Declaration for the High Council for Social Dialogue of Senegal.

Representatives of IOE and ITUC underlined the important role of employers’ and workers’ organizations in the promotion of the ILO MNE Declaration and the need to engage in meaningful dialogue when developing policies and strategies on responsible business practices and foreign direct investment (FDI) that contribute to the achievement of decent work for all. In this regard, they referred to two ILO tools for employers and workers, namely the Self-assessment tool for enterprises based on the Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy (MNE Declaration) and The ILO MNE Declaration: What’s in it for Workers?



From left to right: Githa Roelans, Head of the Multinational Enterprises and Enterprise Engagement Unit (ILO); Rodrigo Morales, Senior Adviser at IOE; Maité Llanos, Deputy Director at ITUC.

As Githa Roelans, Head of the Multinational Enterprises and Enterprise Engagement Unit, pointed out: “This is the beginning of a journey as we will all meet again in 2024 for a transnational dialogue involving tripartite delegations from the 8 WAEMU member States to facilitate exchanges of experiences, achievements and lessons learned in the promotion of the ILO MNE Declaration and the application of its principles. Until then, the ILO will continue accompany the WAEMU members efforts to promote this important ILO instrument.”

The commitment of WAEMU governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations as well as the engagement and collaboration of social dialogue institutions and the WAEMU Labour and Social Dialogue Council, highlight the potential of a sub-regional approach and the role an economic and monetary union can play in contributing actively to the structural transformation of the economy and the achievement of decent work for all.