ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday met International Labour Organization (ILO) Director General Gilbert F. Houngbo and discussed cooperation between Pakistan and the UN labour body, particularly measures to create productive employment opportunities for skilled workers and youth.
The ILO director general, accompanied by a delegation, paid a courtesy call on the prime minister in Islamabad.
Welcoming Houngbo, the prime minister appreciated the robust cooperation between Pakistan and the ILO, saying Islamabad valued the promising partnership, particularly in creating employment opportunities for the country’s skilled workforce and young people.
Shehbaz stressed the need for greater facilitation by the ILO in international certification and professional training of Pakistani skilled workers in line with standards of the international labour market.
The prime minister said the government was taking effective measures for the welfare, protection and professional development of the country’s labour force in line with international covenants.
He highlighted the government’s efforts to enhance industrial growth, productivity and competitiveness, saying the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) had been reinvigorated for the purpose.
Shehbaz emphasised that greater collaboration and constructive engagement between Pakistan and the ILO could further strengthen SMEDA’s initiatives.
Houngbo thanked the prime minister for the meeting and expressed his eagerness to work with Pakistan in a joint effort aimed at the protection, professional advancement and prosperity of the country’s labour force.
The ILO chief also appreciated the positive coordination between the organisation and the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development.
He reaffirmed the ILO’s continued collaboration with the government, employers and workers in Pakistan to promote cohesive progress of the labour force and industrial development.
The ILO director general was accompanied by Senior Adviser Hitomi Nakagome and ILO Country Office for Pakistan Director Gier Thomas Tonsil.
Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Chaudhry Salik Hussain, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Syed Tariq Fatemi, Acting Foreign Secretary Nabeel Munir, President Employers Foundation of Pakistan Majyd Aziz, Deputy Member (Workers) of the ILO Governing Body Muhammad Saad and senior government officials also attended the meeting.
