GENEVA, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- The International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Association of Economic and Social Councils and Similar Institutions (AICESIS) signed an agreement Tuesday to boost promoting social dialogue and decent work.
Economic and Social Councils help to shape the future of work by promoting social dialogue between governments and social partners (workers' and employers' organizations), said the ILO in a statement.
The agreement was concluded by ILO Director-General Guy Ryder and AICESIS President Iacob Baciu at the ILO headquarters in Geneva on Tuesday.
Ryder said, "Economic and Social Councils and Similar Institutions, mostly work along the same lines as the ILO itself, providing a forum for social dialogue between workers, employers, and governments."
The new agreement covers major areas such as "social dialogue and tripartism, the decent work agenda, developing participatory democracy," the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as the social dimension of globalization and the future of work.
Ryder said, "This agreement with AICESIS opens new areas of cooperation that can contribute to finding sustainable solutions to the major challenges the world of work currently faces."
The agreement includes systematic information exchange as well as joint activities such as seminars to share best practices and improve the capacity of economic and social councils and similar national institutions for social dialogue.
Other forms of cooperation, including joint programs and study arrangements, are also planned, said the ILO.
The new agreement builds on a previous, similar, arrangement, signed in 2012.
"The signing of this agreement between ILO and AICESIS is a historical moment," said AICESIS President Baciu.
The agreement was signed during an international seminar on the digital revolution that looked at several key issues related to automation.
