6 Aug 2018

Promotion of 'green jobs' sought by new regional agreement

2:19 pm on 6 August 2018

Pacific countries will be supported to promote so-called "green jobs" using new technology under a new agreement..

The International Labour Organisation, or ILO, and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme signed the deal last month.

The agencies are joining forces to promote a "transition towards a greener economy through decent work".

The ILO's Regional Director for Asia Pacific Tomoko Nishimoto said the ILO has the expertise to help create jobs which link to sustainable development.

"Also the typical example is waste management, by facilitating recycling, reduced resource use. Those can be very much of a green job which can contribute towards the low carbon economy."

With its almost 100-year history, the ILO was a valuable resource for Pacific countries looking for help in reaching their sustainable development goals, Ms Nishimoto said.

"We have the wealth of expertise, training materials, approaches which promote employment creation and protect the workers and community people who are involved in the environmental activities and fight against the climate change effects," she said.

Through the agreement, Pacific countries may be able to obtain financing for new projects under the Green Climate Fund, she said.