The second and final Employment Working Group (EWG) Meeting under Russian Presidency was held in Sochi, Russia. The Indian delegation led by Dr. Mahendra Kumar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Labour & Employment participated in the deliberations of draft Labour and Employment Ministers' Meeting declaration which will be adopted during Labour and Employment Ministers' meeting scheduled to be held on 9-10 September 2024.

The EWG meeting focused on finalizing the Ministerial Declaration. The deliberations at the Employment Working Group Meeting began with delegates carrying forward outcomes from the previous meetings. The priority areas for the discussions were strategies for life-long learning, vocational guidance, modernisation of employment services, ensuring safe and healthy working conditions, and social support mechanism.

Apart from representatives of member states i.e Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the representatives of new member states i.e. UAE, Egypt, Iran and representatives of International Labour Organization (ILO) and International Social Security Association (ISSA) also made suggestions on the priority issues. Indian delegation emphasized the need for re-skilling and up-skilling of the workforce to meet the demands of changing world of work.

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Himanshu Pathak