Newsletter of the Trade Union Development Cooperation Network, Issue no. 24, April 2012
Focus Moving from finance-driven to development-centred globalisation at UNCTAD XIII “Financial markets and institutions have become the masters rather than the servants of the real economy, distorting trade and investment, heightening levels of inequality, and posing a systemic threat to economic stability“ wrote in his report to the upcoming 13th session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD XIII) Dr Supachai Panitchpakdi, UNCTAD Secretary General. The conference, that will take place on 21-26th April 2012 in Qatar, has the ambition to place the focus of globalization away from the financial markets on to inclusive, sustainable development results. Trade union delegation, coordinated by the ITUC, will advocate the establishment of Social Protection Floors, securing states’ policy space for development, Decent Work Agenda as well as macroeconomic policies for jobs creation and targets for green jobs creation. Read more >>>  Policies Trade unions join the OECD/DAC Senior Level Meeting John Evans, TUAC Secretary General, represented the trade union movement following the first-ever invitation from the DAC Chair, Brian Atwood, to the OECD Development Assistance Committee Senior Level Meeting. The meeting took place on April 3-4 at the OECD Conference Centre in Paris. Read more >>>  Policies Value of aid from OECD countries declines In 2011 OECD countries spent 3% less on aid in real terms than the previous year. The first drop in 15 years is attributed to the global financial crisis. The biggest cuts were recorded in Greece, Spain and Iceland. With grim economic prospects and only a few countries on track, EU is unlikely to meet the collective 0.7% GNI target by 2015. Read more >>>  Policies OECD Global Forum on Development On 28-29 February 2012 OECD hosted in Paris the yearly Global Forum on Development. TUDCN and TUAC delegates joined the event to discuss the new OECD Strategy on Development and the best practice in effective public expenditure. Read more >>>  News from the Network CGSLB partner organizations from Africa using the TUDEP In the frame of our new 3 year Belgium development cooperation program 2012-2014 the Liberal Trade Union of Belgium (CGSLB) and her partner organizations committed to use the TUDEP tool in building out the quality of our partnership. Read more >>>  News from the Network Ecuador’s informal workers receive training as bar and restaurant attendants A vocational training programme aimed at preparing 20 informal workers to work as bar and restaurant attendants has come to a close in Quito, Ecuador. The initiative was part of the Training for Employment pilot project funded by AECID and carried out with the technical assistance of Ecuador’s Labour Relations Ministry. Read more >>>  News from the Network Belgium: Questions asked about the working practices of the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO) The findings of an investigation conducted by Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir in late February 2012 (“Public aid vanishes into tax havens” ) have aroused a great deal of public debate both in Belgium and abroad. According to the newspaper’s investigation, the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO), which is 84% owned by the Belgian state, “has invested some €151.7 million in 36 investment funds domiciled in 11 jurisdictions”, in particular financial centres such as Mauritius and the Cayman Islands. Read more >>>  News from the Network The future of development cooperation with Latin America – Report on a development actors’ conference in Brussels Around a hundred development actors attended a conference on the future of development cooperation with Latin America on 27 March 2012 in Brussels. The conference focused on identifying new trends and challenges in cooperation with Latin American, following numerous statements about consolidation and differentiation between cooperation policy at EU level and within EU Member States, such as Belgium. Read more >>>  News from the Network ‘Social dialogue for decent work’ - The new CSC/ACV trade union cooperation programme The start of 2012 saw Belgium’s Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (CSC/ACV) embark on a new three-year trade union cooperation programme. The new programme, entitled Social dialogue for decent work, aims to foster partnerships with organisations in nine countries across three continents: KSBSI in Indonesia, the CLC in Cambodia, the NDWM in India, CSC-Congo, CONSAWU in South Africa, the CDT in Morocco, the CGT in Colombia, the UGT in Brazil and the CTH in Haiti. The programme fits within a context of trade union cooperation supported by the Belgian government’s Directorate-General for Development (DGD). Read more >>>  News from the Network HIV/AIDS - Union involvement boosts VCT in Nigeria Union involvement boosts VCT in Nigeria Voluntary Counseling Confidential Testing (VCCT) organized under the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) – Trades Union Congress (TUC) workplace initiative has proved popular among workers in the Federal Capital Territory in Nigeria where HIV prevalence is considered to be third highest in the country. Read more >>>  News from the Network TUC backs the Live Below the Line campaign The Trades Union Congress (TUC) in the UK is backing the Live Below the Line campaign. The Live Below the Line campaign seeks to stir people's conscience on the need to eliminate extreme poverty and hunger at global level. It invites people to make a commitment to spend just £1 a day on meals for five days and have a glimpse into the lives of some 1.4b people throughout the globe having to do so out of sheer necessity. The UK campaign starts on 5 March and the global campaign will be from 7 to 11 May 2012. Last year's campaign supported by the TUC and affiliates raised over £180,000 for charities. Read more >>>  News from the Network UGTA: Workshop on unions and crisis A trade union workshop aimed at examining and discussing union action in the context of the current crisis was held within the framework of the cooperation project between the CCOO's 'Peace and Solidarity' Foundation and the Algerian trade union centre UGTA. Trade unionists taking part in the workshop entitled "The Global Crisis: What Role can Trade Unions Play?" examined the causes of the crisis, the challenges it raises, its impact on development and the repercussions in different countries, based on the Algerian and Spanish cases. Read more >>>  News from the Network UGTT: Commitment to Women's Rights and the Rule of Law Women's rights are unquestionable. The UGTT presented the Tunisian Constituent Assembly with a draft constitution founded on the principles of equality, the right to employment and social and economic justice as key elements. This activity is part of the joint project between the UGTT and the CCOO's 'Peace and Solidarity' Foundation, within the framework of the Africa - Mediterranean Cooperation Agreement, funded by the Spanish agency for international cooperation and development AECID. Read more >>>  News from the platforms Civil society organisations break down the Busan Partnership document In their analysis of the Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation CSO platforms point out document’s strong points as well as the shortcomings from the civil society perspective. The meticulous study offers a good understanding of the document and its implications for the CSO actors in development. Read more >>>	Not displaying correctly? View it in your browser.
	Français	Español
	In this Issue Focus UNCTAD XIII Policies Senior DAC meeting Value of OECD aid declines OECD Global Forum News from the Network CGSLB incorporates TUDEP Training for Employment Belgium: BIO Conference on Latin America New program of CSC/ACV HIV-AIDS work in Nigeria Live Below the Line campaign Workshop on TUs and crisis Women’s rights News from the platforms CSO analysis of the Busan Partnership
	Upcoming events 16-17 April 2012 TUDCN WG on EU Policies Brussels, Belgium 17-20 April 2012 TUCA Congress Foz de Iguazu, Brazil 21-26 April 2012 UNCTAD XIII Doha, Qatar 7-9 May 2012 TUDCN General Meeting Helsingør, Denmark 22-24 May 2012 TUDCN Seminar on Indicators [tbc] Geneva, Switzerland 20-22 June 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development “Rio+20” Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 5-6 July 2012 UN Development Cooperation Forum New York, USA
	Publications Frozen in time: Gender pay gap unchanged for 10 years ITUC Read more >>> CSO Analysis of the Busan Partnership BetterAid/Open Forum Read more >>>
	Other newsletters Union View (ITUC) International Development Matters (TUC) Cooperation Sindical al Desarrollo (CCOO) BetterAid Update OpenForum newsletter Solidar Round Up
	Contact us! International Trade Union Confederation Development Cooperation & Education Bvd du Roi Albert II 5, B1 1210 Brussels, Belgium [email protected] www.ituc-csi.org Visit TUDCN website!
	About us The Trade Union Development Cooperation Network (TUDCN) is an initiative of the International Trade Union Confederation that brings together affiliated trade union organisations, solidarity support organisations, regional ITUC organisations and the Global Union Federations. The objective of TUDCN is to bring the trade union perspective into the international development policy debates and to improve the coordination and effectiveness of trade union development cooperation activities.
	Supported by This document has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of the ITUC and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union.
Copyrights by ITUC, 2012