SA nominates Prof Mthunzi Mdwaba for top ILO job
SOUTH Africa has formally nominated and lodged papers for Professor Mthunzi Perry-Mason Mdwaba to run as the next director-general of the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
According to a statement issued by the Department of Employment and Labour, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of South Africa to the UN in Geneva and Other International Organisations Mxolisi Nkosi lodged the papers nominating the adjunct associate professor of law at UWC as the next ILO head endorsed by the SADC Tripartite and also by the AU.
The election of the new director-general will be held in March in Geneva, Switzerland.
Mdwaba has expressed his commitment to the ILO ideals of decent work and dignity and to strengthening tripartism.
“It is my expressed desire to contribute to building an ILO that systematically demonstrates it cares for all its staff and constituents, and works to effectively deliver on commitments to ensure the dignity of everyone engaged in the world of work,” Mdwaba said.
He said over his years of service at the ILO, he had become fiercely committed to addressing issues of social injustice at a global level, and believed the ILO, and multilateralism in general, had a profound role to play in ending injustices and ensuring the dignity of all people.
“My campaign for the ILO DG position will focus on my commitment to renew the 187-member state organisation and reposition it by consolidating and enhancing all that it has achieved over the years to serve all constituencies in a balanced way, based on three pillars: change, social justice and impact,” Mdwaba said.
The election of the new DG comes just over two years after the ILO celebrated its centenary in 2019.
According to a statement, Mdwaba says he believes he is the right person to lead the ILO at a time when the future is becoming more uncertain, especially as it relates to; increasing gender inclusivity, youth unemployment, inequalities, rising informality, a more complex health and safety environment at work, decent work deficits and weakened multilateralism.
The Covid-19 pandemic has further exacerbated these worrisome trends, with increasing mental health issues also now a major concern.
Mdwaba has the understanding and tripartite multi-constituency sensitivity to lead the ILO to become a global reference on future of work issues and provide international thought leadership to re-shape the world of work.
“Professor Mdwaba is an accomplished businessman, organised business activist, academic and thought leader who is well-grounded in the ILO and its tripartite culture after representing the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) at the highest governance levels with distinction,” the statement said.
Mdwaba is an ex-officio member of the Global Commission on the Future of Work; employer spokesperson for the programme, finance and administration, past chairperson of the employers at the ILO Turin International Training Centre, member of the B20 task force on employment and education and co-chair at the G20 Germany as well as the G20 Italy and chairperson of the Business Human Rights and Responsible Business Conduct Policy Working Group of the IOE.
In addition he participated in various collaborative tripartite initiatives within the ILO and beyond.
Acknowledging the fact that the ILO’s focus is the world of work, he argues that it must nevertheless, be seen to be in touch with, and influence issues of trade, gender, race, development and business human rights and responsible business conduct.
At international level, the ILO is the only UN specialised agency that is tripartite in nature, consisting of the representatives from government, business and labour. |