Euro-Mediterranean Employment and Labour High Level Working Group Brussels, 14 February 2012 Dorothea Schmidt Employment Specialist Decent Work Support Team for North Africa, Cairo

1. The challenges before and after the recent events in the Southern Mediterranean countries 2. The outlook 3. Some food for thought regarding possible solutions (based on the experience in North Africa)

1. Unemployment, underemployment and inactivity 2. Inequality and exclusion (including gender, regional disparities, ethnic minorities) 3. Lack of skills and unsatisfactory economic performance (miss-match and productivity) 4. Insufficient social protection (including wages) 5. Insufficient social dialogue 6. Non- acceptance of ILS

Source: ILO, Global Employment Trends Model, October 2011

Source: Montenegro and Hirn (2009)

Source: ILO, Global Employment Trends Model, October 2011

SERVICE SECTORMANUFACTURING Source: ILO, Global Employment Trends Model, October 2011

 Social dialogue became stronger in some countries and is getting more difficult in others  Social protection became weak because of budget constraints and lack of political decision making  Wages decrease  Gender inequalities increase  Regional disparities increase but get attention  Ethnic minorities are even more vulnerable  Openness with regards to ILS but no decisions taken yet

Source: IMF, October 2011

Source: ILO, Global Employment Trends Model, October 2011

in million Amounts of jobs that would need to be created LFPR as 2011 LFPR 60% UER as 2011UER 6% Arab States GCC North Africa Source: Author’s calculations based on ILO, Global Employment Trends Model, October 2011

 Creating opportunities for people while empowering them  Protecting the most vulnerable (empowering and rule of law)  A coherent employment policy for each country  National and sub-state action plans  Improving labour market institutions  Improving knowledge on labour markets and M&E systems  Looking for alternatives  Volunteer services  Social economy approaches  LED approaches  Integrated approaches  Etc…

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