ILO, stakeholders brainstorm on framework for labour migration statistics

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has said that timely and reliable labour statistics remains an essential requirement for evidence-based policy-making in any given society.

This was disclosed by the Director of ILO Country Office for Nigeria, Mr. Dennis Zulu, at the Three Day National Capacity building Workshop on Labour Migration Statistics in Nigeria.

Zulu, who was represented by Mr. Augustine Erameh, National Project Coordinator, said, “ILO is pleased to organise this Three-day National Capacity building Workshop which focuses on highlighting the 20th International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) on Labour Migration Statistics.”

“This workshop forms part of ILO’s efforts towards responding to country needs in capacity building to enhance the engagement of relevant state actors in the area of labour migration statistics.

Organised within the framework of ILO’s Initiative for Labour Migration Employment and Reintegration (LMER) which is being implemented in Nigeria and Ghana, the activity is organized to facilitate engagement with stakeholders to better understand the underlying causes of poverty and social exclusion in Nigeria.

He further explained that labour migration continues to remain a feature of modern day labour markets, requiring the active engagement of all stakeholders to facilitate the development and implementation of effective labour migration governance frameworks across all levels of governance.

“Globally, millions of migrants who leave their country of origin usually leave as labour migrants in search for better work and employment opportunities.

“A better understanding of this phenomenon through evidence based lenses will no doubt go a long way to address challenges associated with irregular migratory flow of labour migrants and in the area of labour statistics, support in-country efforts for improvements in the labour markets.

“Particularly, this workshop will present participants with an overview of labour statistics, including their broadened scope and uses in the wake of the adoption of new statistical standards on work, employment and labour underutilisation by the 19th International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) in October 2013.”

Adding that, “ILO acknowledges the immense support of its partner, the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) who is supporting this Initiative and remains poised to sustaining engagement in very important issue.”

Speaking earlier at the workshop, Mr. Mustafa Heikki Ozel, Head of Statistical Coordination & Special Topic Units, said, “ILO having workshop in Nigeria is to assist countries increase their capacities and measure with labour related issues in line with international standards. With Nigeria’s population, it is very important for dialogue.”

“One of the problems of labour migration is not having statistics standards in the country.

In 2018, International conference of labour statisticians which gather every 5 years, adopted a guideline concerning International labour migration statistics, and these guidelines brings standards, their concepts and their finishing, so that data can be comparable.

Through this workshop we try to inform countries measuring issues according to international standard, adding that the workshop is to increase our relation with Nigeria in statistics, introduce international labour guidelines for harmonisation of data, he said.

According to the National Project Coordinator, LMER, project, Mr. Augustine Erameh, said the workshop is to facilitate stakeholders engagement with relevant government actors that have responsibilities and related mandate in the areas of labour migration statistics and data management.

“All of these is to contribute to ensuring that as a country there is improved labour migration statistics, especially in line with the ICLS.”

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Meanwhile, Mr. Kola Ogundiya,Head, Household Statistics Division, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said, “We have been collecting data in statistics but we’ve not involved international migration as a component of the statistics because the sample size for unemployment rate in the country is not sufficient enough to give us a robust estimate of international labour statistics, which has to do with foreigners working in the country and Nigerians working outside Nigeria.”

“We require specialised survey to capture such indicator not mixing it with labour force, as it will be so large. We are here to see the methodology they will use and we will see if we can marry it with labour force statistics.”