Social Protection Sector
ILO is a specialized agency of the United Nations

Social Protection Sector

Effective social protection contributes to fair growth, social stability and enhanced productivity. With this in mind, the ILO has set out three main objectives reflecting the three major dimensions of social protection:

What's new

  1. I-News

    New UN report says rural women face increasing inequality: Calls for policies enabling women to drive rural economic growth and poverty reduction
    21 January 2011

    A new United Nations interagency report on the gender dimension of agricultural work says women still benefit less than men from rural employment and face new challenges due to the current economic and food crises.

    1. Gender dimensions of agricultural and rural employment: Differentiated pathways out of poverty

  2. First ILO World Social Security Report

    Social security plays critical role in times of crisis, but still eludes much of the world
    16 November 2010

    A new report by the International Labour Office (ILO) says that while social security measures have played a critical role in reducing the social impact of economic crises both now and in the past, basic social security coverage remains out of reach for most of the world, especially in low-income countries.

    1. World Social Security Report 2010/11. Providing coverage in times of crisis and beyond
    2. Executive summary of World Social Security Report 2010/11. Providing coverage in times of crisis and beyond

  3. Social Protection and the International Day of Rural Women

    The story of rural women living with HIV
    14 October 2010

    Faith is 61 years old and is one amongst 760 000 women living with HIV in Tanzania. She lives in a rural village in the Kilimanjaro region in the northern part of the country. She is a member of a women’s dairy cooperative that also provides financial services and support through a village community bank, including savings and credit.

  4. Social Protection and the International Day of Rural Women

    The story of Nha Liza in Cape Verde
    14 October 2010

    Luísa Oliveira Marques, 81, Cape Verdean, lives on the island of S. Vincente in Salamansa, a fishing community in the northwest of the island.When questioned about her youth she said she did the same as all women of her time, never worked, only helped, took care of the family.

  5. Social Protection and the International Day of Rural Women

    Making maternity protection for rural women a reality
    14 October 2010

    Adequate maternity protection at work can be a matter of life and death for rural women. Maternal mortality continues to be strikingly high in rural areas – 640 deaths per 100,000 livebirths.

  6. Information centre

    New Communication Tools for the Social Protection Sector
    16 September 2010

    The Social Protection Sector’s communication and knowledge-sharing capacity has recently been strengthened by the creation of two major tools: •an Information and Communication Centre, and •the new Social Protection website.

  7. Social Protection Floor Advisory Group

  8. World Day for Safety and Health at Work

  9. Executive Summary - International labour migration: A rights-based approach (PDF)
    31 March 2010

  10. HIV/AIDS

    ILO conference adopts unprecedented new international labour standard on HIV and AIDS
    17 June 2010

    Governments, employers and workers meeting at the annual conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO) today adopted a new international labour standard on HIV and AIDS - the first international human rights instrument to focus specifically on the issue in the world of work.

  11. PR No. 13 - Fifth item on the agenda: HIV/AIDS and the world of work - Report of the Committee on HIV/AIDS
    16 June 2010

  12. PR No. 12 - Fourth item on the agenda: Decent work for domestic workers - Report of the Committee on Domestic Workers
    16 June 2010

  13. Domestic workers

    Decent work for domestic workers: towards new international labour standards
    31 May 2010

    Domestic work employs millions of workers, mostly women, around the world. The June 2010 session of the International Labour Conference will hold a first discussion on a new international labour standard for a domestic workforce that is growing worldwide. ILO Online spoke with Manuela Tomei, Director of the ILO’s Conditions of Work and Employment Programme, about working conditions of domestic workers, and how they can be improved.

  14. ILO-UN Social Protection Floor Initiative

    The role of social security in crisis response and recovery, and beyond
    16 June 2010

    The crisis has reinforced the perception that the extension of social security should be a high priority. While in many developing countries social security systems were previously considered unaffordable, they are now regarded as important investments to support sustainable economic growth. Furthermore, in times of crisis, social security systems are playing an essential role as economic stabilizers. Interview with Michael Cichon, Director of the ILO’s Social Security Department, about the UN Social Protection Floor Initiative and social security in times of crisis.

  1. World Day for Safety and Health at Work

    Marked every year on 28 April, this global awareness-raising campaign is intended to focus international attention on emerging trends in the field of occupational safety and health and raise consciousness on the magnitude of work-related injuries, diseases and fatalities worldwide.
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