ILO funding move welcomed

The International Labour Organization (ILO) no longer relies on funding from tobacco companies and affiliated organisations, for the time being, according to a note posted on the website of the Framework Convention Alliance (FCA).
‘In its Decision concerning contracts that had tied the ILO to an industry whose products kill more than seven million people each year, the Governing Body of the ILO adopted an integrated strategy to address decent work deficits in the tobacco sector,’ the note said.
‘The Governing Body has directed the ILO director general “to continue efforts to mobilize various sustainable sources of funding from the public and private sector with appropriate safeguards”.’
The FCA said it was confident the ILO would apply appropriate safeguards to its future fund-raising efforts to ensure that it no longer accepted funding from the tobacco industry.
‘The FCA also commends the ILO for its continued dedication to protecting the rights of workers within the tobacco sector and for the commitment it has shown in thoroughly addressing the issue of funding from tobacco companies.
‘The ILO’s contracts with the Eliminating Child Labor in Tobacco Growing (ECLT) Foundation and with Japan Tobacco International (JTI) expire in June and December 2018, respectively.
‘Rejecting funding from tobacco companies will allow the ILO to maintain its impartiality and enhance its capacity to address the issues that trap workers in systemic poverty including unfair contracts, collusion by companies over leaf prices, and inflation of the costs of farm inputs.
‘Other UN agencies should take note. The ILO has set an important precedent by taking the issue of tobacco industry funding seriously and addressing it institutionally. It has positioned itself to go further in addressing the root causes of systemic poverty in the tobacco sector, free from the undue influence of tobacco companies, consistent with Article 5.3 of the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) and the Model Policy for agencies of the United Nations system on preventing tobacco industry interference.
‘The Governing Body has also directed the ILO director general to organise a tripartite meeting as a matter of urgency, to further develop and implement the integrated strategy. This upcoming tripartite meeting presents an opportunity to expand protections for workers within the tobacco sector and completely shut the door on any undue tobacco industry influence.’