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By Bimbola Oyesola
As workers return to work across the world, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) is seeking better welfare for migrant workers amid the context of COVID-19, through its Fairway project.
ILO noted that the effects of the global pandemic, in addition to being a threat to public health, also creates economic and social disruptions that threaten long-term livelihoods and wellbeing of millions of people.
“Thus, businesses and indeed employers grapple with challenges of continued existence and reinventing themselves in the world of work,” the ILO said.
Director, ILO Country Office for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and liaison office for ECOWAS, Vanessa Phala, speaking at a two-day training workshop for the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment on Labour Migration in the Context of COVID-19 in Nigeria, held in Lagos, stressed the Fairway project works towards promoting better protection for all migrant workers in vulnerable situations in countries of origin and destination, thereby enabling migrant workers contribute more to sustainable development.
According to her, the project supports constituents’ and other stakeholders towards enhancing effective labour migration in Nigeria and with particular reference to vulnerabilities exacerbated by COVID-19 pandemic, which has further weakened a fragile socioeconomic situation at the national level, accompanying response strategy identifies the need for enhancing capacities of the government through the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment to address emerging challenges in this context.
Phala stressed that also critical is the need to further provide continued support to the government in the area of policy and practice measures that safeguard a wide range of stakeholders working to enhance the operational environment of labour migration during and post COVID-19 in Nigeria.
Nigerian Labour Minister, Chris Ngige, represented by Sunday Onazi, said the ILO training is very apt going by COVID-19 which has ravaged the world and its devastating impact on migrant workers.
He said, “Government is committed to protect the rights and welfare of migrant workers in and out of Nigeria. We are here to build the capacity of our labour officers on how to protect the rights of migrant workers.
“It is important for migrant workers to know that the ministry has established migrant resource centres, an information hub situated in Lagos, Benin and Abuja. The hub offers services to migrant workers.”
