Southern African Development Community (Sadc) labour ministers yesterday called for the crafting of pro-employment policies that will create more jobs for jobless citizens.

The sentiments were made yesterday in Lilongwe at the start of the 2022 annual meeting of the Sadc Employment and Labour Sector Ministers and Social Partners.

In her statement, Minister of Foreign Affairs Nancy Tembo said the Covid-19 pandemic has eroded many gains achieved in the last two decades.

She said many workers and employers have lost their lives and jobs, while businesses have been lost, productivity of many companies has stalled, and child labour in the region exacerbated.

Said Tembo: “We have to develop and apply a common strategy, to reverse the negative impact of Covid-19. We must, among other measures, invest in economic stimulus packages, adopt pro-employment budgeting, extend social protection coverage.”

On his part, International Labour Organisation (ILO) director for Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique George Okutho said the region continues to experience economic and social challenges that have over the past few years, been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.”

He  said: “Major challenges also persist in the areas covered by the ILO’s mandate: the large number of children in the region are obliged to work, while similarly greater numbers of young women who want to work cannot find a job.”

Okutha said Covid-19 has exposed the devastating consequences that prevail in the absence of well-designed system, to facilitate realisation of decent work for all.

In his remarks, deputy executive secretary for regional integration at the Sadc Secretariat Thembinkosi Mhlongo said the Sadc Secretariat has facilitated a number of Employment and Labour Sector engagements, following the last meeting of the ministers and social partners in April 2021.

He said the engagements successfully informed the development of key frameworks that are being proposed for the minister’s consideration and adoption at the meeting.

Mhlongo said of note is the proposed Revised Sadc Code of Conduct on Child Labour, which seeks to strengthen measures to eradicate child labour.

As a result of the interventions, he said it is notable, although still unacceptable, that southern Africa is reported by the ILO and Unicef in their 2020 global estimates to have a relatively lower incidence of child labour compared to several other regions on the continent.

In Malawi, government said over 650 000 workers lost their jobs to Covid-19 impact and the government has been launching job creation strategies for recovery.

The meeting started on Monday with technocrats from ministries of Labour in the region working on issues to be decided upon by the ministers.

It was held under the theme Bolstering Productive Capacities in The Face of the Pandemic for Inclusive, Sustainable, Economic and Industrial Transformation. n

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