Events and meetings

November 2014

  1. Sustainable Development: The Promise of Technology

    For people with disabilities who are of working age, the rapid progress in information and communications technology (ICT) and assistive technology offer ever-increasing opportunities to participate in the world of work.

October 2014

  1. Breaking the vicious circle of disability and extreme poverty

    Observed on 17 October each year, the day aims to promote awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution worldwide. People with disabilities who make up some 1 billion of the world’s population are at greater risk of poverty due to discrimination and barriers to participation in all spheres of society that can help them escape poverty and break down prejudices. Inclusion in all development activities is critical to breaking the cycle of poverty and disability.

September 2014

  1. What works on employment services for youth and why?

    Area of critical importance Jobs and Skills for youth knowledge-sharing workshop

June 2014

  1. Media Advisory: ILO and the Zambia Federation of Employers to organize first roundtable discussion under the theme “Unlocking the potential: A Zambia Business Roundtable on Disability and Employment”

November 2013

  1. International Day of Persons with Disabilities - 3 December 2013

    The Day is observed each year on 3 December to encourage better understanding of issues facing people with disabilities, and mobilize support for their quest for dignity, rights and full inclusion in society. This year's theme - Break barriers, open doors: for an inclusive society and development for all - provides an opportunity to further awareness of disability and the removal of all types of barriers - attitudinal, physical, social, economic and cultural - to realizing the full and equal participation of disabled persons in all spheres of society - education and training at the workplace and in politics, the arts and social activities in general.

June 2013

  1. ILO High-Level Panel on Skills for Competitiveness

    The side event, organized by the ILO at the WTO Fourth Global Review of Aid for Trade on 9 July in Geneva, provided an opportunity for sharing research findings and policy approaches on the role of skills development in translating trade openness into sustainable growth of productive and decent work. Diverse research and survey data show that many firms rank finding adequately skilled workers as a major constraint to their business. New research from the WTO documented that, in particular, such difficulties impede small and medium sized enterprises from connecting to and benefitting from global value chains.

April 2013

  1. Regional Experts Knowledge Sharing Workshop 2013

January 2013

  1. Web Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities: Benefits for All

    Tuesday, 12 February 2013 - Webinar convened by the ILO, the UN Global Compact Office and G3ICT

December 2012

  1. International Day of Persons with Disabilities - 3 December 2012

    This year’s theme is “Removing barriers to create an inclusive and accessible society for all”. It provides an opportunity to address the exclusion of persons with disabilities by focusing on promoting accessibility and removing all types of barriers in society.
    The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognizes that the existence of barriers constitutes a central component of disability. Under the Convention, disability is an evolving concept that “results from the interaction between persons with impairments and attitudinal and environmental barriers that hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.”

December 2011

  1. International Day of Persons with Disabilities - 3 December 2011

    Observed on the 3rd of December each year, the day aims to encourage better understanding of disability issues. This year’s theme is “Together for a better world for all: including persons with disabilities in development”. It seeks to promote the inclusion of persons with disabilities and their communities in development efforts.

May 2011

  1. Knowledge-Sharing Workshop on Skills for Employment: Good Practices and Effective Institutions to Bridge Education, Training and Decent Work

    The International Labour Organization (ILO) is organizing a two-day workshop on skills for employment as part of the G20 Training Strategy to support strong, sustainable and balanced growth.

December 2010

  1. International Day of Persons with Disabilities - 3 December 2010

    This year's theme is "Keeping the promise: Mainstreaming disability in the Millennium Development Goals towards 2015 and beyond". It aims to ensure that disability and the concerns of people with disabilities are included in the commitments to end global poverty made by the international community. The inclusion of persons with disabilities in all development activities is essential to realizing the MDGs and other development goals. This year’s Day will serve as a reminder to governments, global leaders, policy-makers and other stakeholders to keep up their efforts on behalf of disability-inclusive development.

October 2010

  1. Abuja Conference launches new guidelines aimed at empowering millions of Africans with disabilities

    The 4th CBR Africa Network Conference (CAN) launched new guidelines designed to empower persons with disabilities by supporting their inclusion in health, education, employment, social, skills training and other community services.

May 2010

  1. Technical validation workshop on Skills for Green Jobs - 17 May 2010

    The purpose of the technical validation workshop was to validate the findings of the global policy-applied research project on Skills for Green Jobs. The Global synthesis report and the European synthesis report were discussed. The workshop aimed to: a) identify environmental challenges and skills response strategies; b) discuss green restructuring processes on the labour market and related retraining needs; c) highlight current and future occupational changes and their implication on vocational training; d) propose specific policy recommendations and suggestions for further steps.

March 2010

  1. ILO Conference on "People with intellectual disabilities: Opening pathways to training and employment in the African region"

    In Africa, some 10 to 15 million people have an intellectual disability. Because of stigma and discrimination, a majority are excluded from education, training and employment and live in poverty and isolation. To help meet the challenge of more equitable access to vocational training and employment opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities, the ILO-Irish Aid Partnership Programme organized a sub-regional conference in Lusaka, Zambia in early March on the issue.

  2. ILO Conference to promote training and employment opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities

December 2009

  1. International Day of Persons with Disabilities

    This year's theme for the International Day of Persons with Disabilities - "Making the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Inclusive: Empowerment of persons with disabilities and their communities around the world" - supports the message of challenging exclusion. It aims to highlight the need to continue to work for the mainstreaming of persons with disabilities in all aspects of society and development if the MDGs of reducing poverty are to be achieved.

November 2009

  1. Panel Discussion on People with Disabilities in Times of Economic Crisis

    ILO's Employment Sector's Disability Team organized a panel presentation followed by a discussion. The aim of the event was to examine how the current economic downturn is affecting women and men with disabilities and to advocate that they be included in measures to tackle the crisis.

April 2009

  1. Implementing the right of people with disabilities to vocational training

June 2008

  1. Sub-regional Meeting "Disability Legislation: Decent Work for Persons with Disabilities in Asia"