Union Minister of Labour & Employment and Youth Affairs & Sports, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya will inaugurate the two-day Regional Dialogue on Social Justice under the Global Coalition for Social Justice and the Observance of the 74th Foundation Day of the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) on 24 February 2025 in New Delhi. Hon’ble Minister of State for Labour & Employment, Ms. Shobha Karandlaje, Secretary (Labour & Employment), Ms. Sumita Dawra, and the Director General, International Labour Organization (ILO), Mr. Gilbert F. Houngbo, will also be present at the inaugural session of this key international dialogue.

The Global Coalition for Social Justice is a landmark initiative by ILO to bring global, regional and national actors together for policy and action coherence towards advancing social justice. Launched in November, 2023, the Coalition has been joined by 336 partners including 90 governments within a short span.

India, as a founding member of ILO and a key member in the Coordinating Group of the Global Coalition, is playing a crucial role in the Coalition for furthering the agenda of social justice. Recognizing the need for collaboration between governments, businesses, and workers to promote social justice, India has decided to champion a key Coalition intervention “Responsible business practices for sustainable and inclusive societies.” This intervention is part of a core thematic area of the Global Coalition i.e. “Expanding access to and capabilities for productive and freely chosen employment and sustainable enterprises.”

In this context, the two day regional event is being organized by the Ministry of Labour and Employment and Employees’ State Insurance Corporation in collaboration with Global Coalition for Social Justice and International Labour Organization, with the support Confederation of Industry (CII) – Employers Federation of India (EFI).

Deliberations will focus on skills and employment, expanding social security, gender inclusion in the workplace, responsible business practices, corporate governance for decent work, and harnessing AI for social justice.

The event will also mark the Observance of the 74th Foundation Day of the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), celebrating its pioneering contributions to social security and workers’ welfare in India. ESIC, which administers one of the most comprehensive social security schemes in the country, has been playing a leading role in providing medical care, maternity benefits, and financial protection to workers and their families. The foundation day celebrations will highlight ESIC’s milestones and future roadmap for strengthening its services and coverage. The event will also feature honouring of key contributors to ESIC’s mission of transforming “social security to social justice”, kick-start of the “ESIC Special Services Fortnight,” and launch of ESIC publications detailing its achievements.

The inaugural session will also include unveiling of key initiatives such as the e-Shram mobile application, and publications:-

1. Position Paper on transforming India’s Social Protection Landscape through Data Pooling
2. Learnings and Reflections from the ISSA-ESIC International Seminar organized by India in January 2025
3. Best practices in responsible business conduct in India.
4. Compendium on Social Protection in India
5. Shram Samarth: A Journey to Excellence

A highlight of the event will be the formal announcement of joining of the Global Coalition by prominent Indian workers’ and employers’ organizations from India as partners. A joint statement on responsible business conduct is also expected to be released by India’s largest workers’ organization Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) and India’s key employers’ organization (CII-EFI), reflecting the collaborative resolve of Indian workers' organizations and industry towards inclusive and sustainable development.

Through this key Coalition event, India aims to reaffirm its commitment to leading the global march towards social justice and inclusive growth and leveraging global partnerships to drive meaningful action. The outcomes of this event are expected to inform future strategies for universal social protection and fostering responsible business ecosystems, contributing to the broader objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Decent Work Agenda.

More than 500 participants, including representatives from Coalition partners, governments, concerned Ministries of Government of India, employers’ and workers’ organizations, academia and enterprises, experts from international organizations bodies and ESIC members and officers, will participate during the inaugural session of the regional dialogue.

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Himanshu Pathak