Message to staff from the Director-General
on the occasion of International Day for the Eradication of Poverty
17 October 2002

The ILO is pleased to join the observance of International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.

As an Organization established to promote peace based on social justice, our Constitution positions the ILO in the fight against poverty. That we are part of the war against want is stated without ambivalence in the 1944 Declaration of Philadelphia: "poverty anywhere constitutes a danger to prosperity everywhere" . In keeping with this mandate, the Decent Work Agenda which we are pursuing today is also a development agenda.

The promotion of productive employment is at the heart of the ILO's contribution to the UN Decade for Poverty Eradication (1997-2006) and to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Productive employment is a major route out of poverty and social exclusion. As we know only too well, most economies in the world today are not generating enough employment for those who want to work. And many who work long hours in poor conditions do not earn enough to raise themselves out of poverty.

The ILO Report "A future without child labour" found that 246 million children - one in every six children aged 5 to 17 - are involved in child labour. One in every eight children in the world - some 179 million children aged 5-17 - is still exposed to the worst forms of child labour. The FAO's recently published annual report tells us that every year 6 million children under the age of five die from hunger. Decent work for parents must be a key element of a strategy to tackle these intolerable
situations so closely connected with poverty.

Women constitute the majority of poor people; their work is commonly underpaid; more women than men work in precarious categories of employment; more of them are unemployed. Tackling gender inequality and improving the situation of women at work is both a matter of rights and a direct means of helping to bring families out of poverty.

Today we also need to focus on the ravages of HIV/AIDS and the implications for poverty as breadwinners are decimated and families and communities destroyed. The ILO's contribution to prevention through the workplace is critical.

Realising decent work requires the combined efforts of international and national agencies. The ILO must be a strong advocate for full employment as a direct policy objective in the fight against poverty. To be credible we must develop effective strategies, good products and a sound knowledge
base.

Let us all rise to this challenge We have much that we can build upon.

The ILO is making an important contribution to the global debates on poverty eradication through its World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization. The Global Employment Forum 2001 dealt with employment, growth and poverty eradication. The 2002 ILC discussion on the informal
economy was highly relevant. Our flagship documents - the World Employment Report and the World Labour Report can be used to build our knowledge base on social exclusion and poverty. A number of poverty-related thematic studies and research projects have been undertaken or are underway. They deal with issues such as international migration, social security, structural adjustment, skills development and insecurity. The results must be used to deliver sound policy advice and to develop effective operational programmes.

Youth are a particularly vulnerable group - young people below the age of 20 comprise 40% of the world's population and 85% of them live in poor countries. We have accepted the responsibility of taking forward the work on the Secretary-General's High-Level Network on Youth Employment which came out of the Millennium Assembly.

To become a more effective part of the UN effort against poverty, the ILO has joined the UN Development Group which plays a central role in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals at the national level. We have engaged with the World Bank in the PRSP exercises.

Our own Decent Work Pilot Programmes in Panama, Morocco, Ghana and the Philippines focus on the link between decent work and poverty eradication. Many of our operational programmes are tackling the challenge.

Eradicating poverty is also about restoring dignity and respecting rights. The ILO brings to the table a strategy that is based on growth, rights and social protection. It is a strategy which offers voice to the poor, opens up possibilities to organize and advance their interests and to do so without discrimination. It also closes the door to forced labour and child labour as options for social and economic development.

But we still have much to do.

We need to knit the many strands of our work into a coherent ILO poverty response. We need to constantly assess our impact and effectiveness. On this cross-cutting issue we must ensure that we are all pulling in the same direction, as part of one team. I urge each of you to be part of an effective ILO response to the eradication of poverty.

The United Nations Office in Geneva is organizing an event to mark the occasion in conjunction with a non-governmental international organization, ATD Fourth World. It will take place on Thursday, 17 October, from 17:00 to 18:00 in the Salle des Pas Perdus at the Palais des Nations. I encourage
you to attend. The programme includes messages from adults and children involved in the fight against poverty Further information on events in Geneva and New York can be found at:
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/poverty/poverty_link3.htm