The government of Lesotho through the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Public Services, labour and Employment attained Chairmanship of the African Regional Labour Administration Centre (ARLAC) at the event held in Maseru on Tuesday.
When opening the meeting, the Minister of Public Services, labour and Employment, Mr. Ramoeletsi Richard Ramoeletsi said it is common cause that sound labour administration systems are fundamental for good labour market governance, equitable economic development and the effective implementation of international labour standards and decent work agenda.
Mr. Ramoeletsi said this meeting comes at a significant time when Lesotho has reconfigured ministries and the former Ministry of Labour and Employment merged with Public Service also the ratification of Convention 151 which extends unionisation and collective bargaining rights to public officers is a notable milestone achieved by the government
He added that this meeting takes place when the global economy is going through a difficult patch due to declining growth rates, noting that the mandate of the African Regional Labour Administration Centre (ARLAC) is to strengthen the labour administration system in member countries.
He said re-engineering ARLAC is one of the council’s important resolutions as it will keep the centre at pace with the current labour market development and needs as well as the accelerated technological advancements, hence ARLAC should take advantage of this opportunity to diversify its programmes. resources mobilisation strategies and partnership development strategies for it to be the centre of excellence in labour administration.
Moreover, Mr. Ramoeletsi said ARLAC as a training institution has to be financially stable, noting that its stability depends upon the Member States’ commitment to honour their obligation to pay their annual subscription.
In conclusion, the Minister said ARLAC needs to partner with other institutions regionally and globally to leverage its research and development, noting that Lesotho Institute of Public Administration and Management is ready to partner with ARLAC for not only widened publicity of ARLAC but also for joint training on the labour market governance institutions.
The incoming Chairpersonship of ARLAC also the Principal Secretary of Public Services, labour and Employment, Ms. Makhoabane Ledimo said the committee of Senior Officials is an important component of the ARLAC governance system as it consists of the chief accounting officers within the Ministries of Labour, Employment, in ARLAC member countries.
In conclusion, she said she recognised the importance of the responsibility that the committee of Senior Officials has entrusted her with and she pledged to carry out her duties and obligations in a trustworthy and diligent manner.
Also speaking, the ARLAC acting Executive Chief, Dr Locary Hlabanu said they failed to achieve the 5-year strategic plan they drafted due to challenges that they have encountered, however, he noted that they are proud of the progress they made in the key strategic priorities they set out to achieve.
Dr Hlabanu said ARLAC as a regional institution has continued to play a key role in facilitating policy formulation and building professional capacity in labour administration and generally, in labour market issues.
ARLAC is mandated to strengthen labour administration systems in English-speaking African member countries through training, research, consultancy and advisory services.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Government of Lesotho.