Green Jobs Programme for Asia and the Pacific

The ILO initiated the Green Jobs Global Programme in 2009 to promote opportunity, equity and a just transition to a green economy and inclusive growth for the world of work. The Programme encourages governments, employers and workers to collaborate on generating coherent and effective programmes that will lead to decent work for all in a greener economy.

Objectives

The Green Jobs Programme for Asia and the Pacific started with two pilot countries. It has expanded to 11 – Bangladesh, China, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand – and is now moving on to include other countries interested in greening such as Pakistan.

The main objectives of the Programme are to:

- enhance the capacity of ILO constituents to take part in dialogue on green jobs at local, regional and national levels by giving them access to quality data and information;

- influence national policies and so contribute to an inclusive growth model that is job-centred, environmentally sustainable, and that promotes decent work; and

- promote gender sensitive opportunities for green jobs by supporting demonstration activities and national programmes.

Strategies and areas of work

The programme is implemented through technical cooperation projects supported by the Australian Government-ILO Partnership Agreement (2010–12), and currently by ILO/Japan Multi-bilateral programme, the ILO/Korea Partnership Programme, as well as the Government of Malaysia.

Since the establishment of the Green Jobs Programme for Asia and the Pacific in 2009, it has worked in a wide range of areas covering:

Policy development and research

- strengthening the capacity of the Asia-Pacific region to support the development of coherent and integrated policies and programmes on green jobs; and

- support to lead countries in developing employment models for replication, consolidating national experiences and generating evidence-based analysis for informed policy discussions and decisions.

Capacity building and programme development

- strengthening the capacity of the region to support the development and implementation of projects and programmes with green jobs as critical elements for poverty reduction and sustainable development; and

- support to pilot testing and roll out of inter alia green entrepreneurship, greening of enterprises, skills for green jobs development, access to clean and renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable tourism, waste management (including e-waste), climate change adaptation and resilience building, crisis/disaster response, REDD+, with focus on the vulnerable, women and youth.

Knowledge sharing and cooperation

- strengthening of a knowledge network for a more effective interaction and diffusion of information within the ILO and among its constituents – government, workers and employers organizations.

Gains so far: Developed and tested models

Green Jobs Mapping and Assessments

An innovative methodology has been developed in collaboration with GHK Consultants facilitating better understanding of the linkages between employment, environment and the economy (pilot tested in Bangladesh in 2010).

It has been conducted in four other countries from 2010 to 2012: India (Gujarat State), Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines, and since 2013, in Mongolia under the UNEP-ILO-UNIDO-UNITAR Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE).

Phase 2, analytical research using green Dynamic Social Accounting Matrix (DySAM), is now being undertaken in Indonesia and Malaysia.