THE Director General of the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies (MINILS), Ilorin, Comrade Issa Aremu, has commended the leadership role of Nigeria in the recent election of Mr Gilbert F. Houngbo, the first African to head the International Labour Organisation (ILO) since its formation over 100 years of its existence.
Mr Houngbo, a West African from Togo, who is currently serving as the President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), was elected by the ILO’s Governing Body, comprising representatives of governments, workers and employers, during the 334th meeting in Geneva on the 25th March, 2022. He will be the 11th Director General of the ILO, the first African to hold the post.
While declaring open a 4-day Trade Union workshop on Strategic Leadership in Ilorin last week, Comrade Aremu disclosed that it was “the spirited efforts, cooperation and unity of purpose” of the Honourable Minister of Labour, Dr Chris Ngige, organised labour represented by the NLC, workers’ organisations and employers’ associations in Africa that led to the historic election of Mr Houngbo.
Comrade Aremu, who was also part of the government delegation to the 334th Governing Board in Geneva, Switzerland, said the election of Mr Houngbo attested to the Nigeria’s leadership role in Africa in general and labour-friendly policies of President Buhari in particular.
Recalling the re-election of Akinwumi Adesina as the first Nigerian two-term President of the African Development Bank in 2020 and election of Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria, on 1st March, 2021 as the first woman and the first African to hold the position of the Director-General of the WTO, Aremu said “positioning worthy Africans” in strategic international organisations is a commendably “sustainable legacy” of President Buhari.
The keenly contested election ended with majority of 30 votes for Mr Houngbo with French challenger, Muriel Pénicaud, coming second with 23 votes.
There were five candidates for the post of ILO Director General that included South Korea’s Kang Kyung-wha, Mthunzi Mdwaba (South Africa), Muriel Pénicaud, former Minister of Labour of France and Greg Vines of Australia.
Speaking after his election, Houngbo said: “Although my origins are African, my perspective is global. In an age, unfortunately of dividedness, my commitment to be a unifying Director General stands firm… I will be the Director General of nobody and the Director-General of everybody”.
He promised to offer platform for the tripartite constituents of the ILO – governments, employers and workers. The new Director General’s five-year term begins on 1st October, 2022. The current Director General, Guy Ryder, from the United Kingdom, has held the office since 2012.
The ILO’s Governing Body is composed of 56 titular members (28 governments, 14 employers and 14 workers) and 66 deputy members (28 governments, 19 employers and 19 workers). The employer and worker members are elected in their individual capacity.
The ILO is the oldest specialised agency of the UN. It was founded in 1919 after World War I, and has a mandate to promote decent work for all. It has 187 Member States. Nigeria joined the ILO at independence in 1960 and has adopted most of the core conventions of the ILO and recommendations in the areas of hours of work, minimum wages, right to freedom of assembly and association among others.
