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EU Statement - ILO Governing Body, 355th session: The ILO in a changing multilateral environment: Towards better effectiveness and efficiency

18.11.2025
Geneva
Press and information team of the Delegation to the UN in Geneva

ILO Governing Body, 355th session 

17 – 27 November 2025

The ILO in a changing multilateral environment: Towards better effectiveness and efficiency

GB.353/INS/7

EU statement

Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The candidate countries Türkiye, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania[1], Ukraine, Republic of Moldova and Georgia, the EFTA country Switzerland, as well as Armenia align themselves with this statement. 

  1. We thank the Office for the update on the progress made on the Global Coalition for Social Justice. It is encouraging to see that the Coalition is still growing and counts [almost/already] four hundred partners, including a large number of EU Member States and the European Commission, who joined on behalf of the EU.

  2. The annual forum of the Global Coalition for Social Justice during the 113th International Labour Conference was a huge success. We congratulate the Director-General and the Secretariat for their efforts and thank the President of the Dominican Republic for his keynote speech. 

  3. We are very pleased that the Coalition is starting to deliver concrete actions on its 14 key interventions. The kick-off meetings in March and April this year provided a very useful opportunity for national constituents to become more familiar with each intervention and identify the key interventions most relevant for them on which to engage. We welcome how the Coalition has facilitated partners to engage with each other to advance the various goals. We look forward to hearing about the results of these engagements..

  4. We note that it is anticipated that the key initiatives will evolve through dialogue with the partners. This adaptability and flexibility are a defining strength of the Coalition as it seeks to progress social justice with its wide range of partners. Adjusting to new developments, such as new ILO- instruments or resolutions can inform this evolution. In that regard, we support exploring the issue of informality as a standalone key initiative in light of the recent ILC Resolution. This would also enhance the visibility and impact of Recommendation 204, adopted in 2015.

  5. Tackling informality is needed to advance decent work, social justice and sustainable development. It would thus greatly benefit from the added value of the Coalition, namely, a coordinated approach and from collaboration between international organisations, Member States and other partners of the Coalition.

  6. The ILC in June of this year also endorsed a resolution that invited the Members States to collaborate in supporting the implementation of the outcome of the World Social Summit through multi-stakeholder initiatives such as the Coalition. 

  7. The reference to the Coalition in the agreed text of the political declaration of the World Social Summit, achieved with the support of the EU and its Member States, signals that the Coalition’s recognition as a relevant platform for cooperation is growing and that it can contribute positively to the core commitments of the Summit. The importance of the Coalition is further emphasized by the highly successful Forum of the Coalition at the Doha-Summit, in the presence of Ms. Baerbock, president of the UN General Assembly

  8. In this regard, we strongly encourage the ILO’s constituents to support the Coalition in its efforts to drive progress on the commitments in the Doha Political Declaration.

  9. Thank you, Chair.

[1] North Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process