#Geneva; #OLO; #LifeLongLearning; #SkillsDevelopment; #PostCOVID19World Geneva/ILO, Nov 19 (Canadian-Media): The International Labour Organization (ILO) has published a new guide for trade unions on skills development and lifelong learning, ILO reports said. Image credit: ILO The guide “Skills Development and Lifelong Learning: Resource Guide for Workers’Organizations” , published by the ILO’s Skills and Employability Branch and Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV) addresses key challenges facing workers’ organizations, including best practices, key priorities and main challenges. It also outlines why trade unions should be involved in skills development and lifelong learning. According to the guide, building the capacity and engagement of workers’ organizations in skills development and lifelong learning, based on a human-centred approach and International Labour Standards, will help build a ‘better normal’ in the post-COVID-19 World. “What matters in the end, is that ALL workers can acquire the skills of their choice to get jobs and to keep jobs, and to be equipped to face the transitions they will be confronted with over the working life. Skills development and lifelong learning are essential to enhance workers’ capabilities to participate fully in decent work, to contribute to human development, active citizenship and the strengthening of democracy,” said Maria Helena André, Director of the ILO’s Bureau for Workers’ Activities. The guide is designed for workers’ organizations, trainers, facilitators and ILO officials. It is part of a comprehensive programme of support for workers’organizations in preparation for the 2021 International Labour Conference (ILC), which will discuss skills and lifelong learning. It also paves the way for the general discussion on standing setting for apprenticeships, which takes place at the ILC in 2022 and 2023. “If the lifelong leaning notion has to become a reality, the link between the world of education and the world of work needs to be very strong, bringing these together, through a process of social dialogue where governments, employers, and workers organization jointly formulate policies and programmes,” said Srinivas Reddy, Director of the ILO SKILLS Branch. A Global webinar bringing together workers’ organizations, technical experts, academics and senior ILO officials was held on the November 18th 2020 to launch the guide.
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#CanadaSchools; #Covid19Surge; #SchoolClosure Toronto, Nov 18 (Canadian-Media): Rising COVID-19 cases including in Canadian schools poses potential for another widespread school shutdown and extensions to the upcoming holiday break, media reports said. Stephen Lecce. Image credit: Twitter handle Among Canada's provinces and territories, Nunavut has become as of Nov 18 the first to shutter schools across the board once again for at least two weeks, with teachers delivering instruction remotely.
Meanwhile, the premiers of Manitoba and Quebec said they are also considering extending the upcoming school holiday beyond the two weeks already scheduled. Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce said his consultation with health officials is ongoing about school considerations for January, but has not made a decision. Journalists are essential in preserving the fundamental right to freedom of expression: UNESCO11/4/2020 #UN; #Journalists; #HumanRight; #InternationalDay; #StopCrimesAgainstJournalists United Nations, When journalists are targeted, “societies as a whole pay a price”, the UN chief said on Monday, the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists. Stop killing journalists. Image credit: UNESCO “If we do not protect journalists, our ability to remain informed and make evidence-based decisions is severely hampered”, Secretary-General António Guterres spelled out in his message for the day. And when they cannot safely do their jobs, “we lose an important defense against the pandemic of misinformation and disinformation that has spread online”, he added. Free press ‘essential’ There were at least 21 attacks on journalists covering protests in the first half of 2020 – equal to the number of such attacks in the whole of 2017, Mr. Guterres said. As the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted new perils for journalists and media workers, the UN chief reiterated his call for a “free press that can play its essential role in peace, justice, sustainable development and human rights”. “Fact-based news and analysis depend on the protection and safety of journalists conducting independent reporting, rooted in the fundamental tenet: ‘journalism without fear or favour’”, he concluded. Adverse consequences In her message, Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), maintained that through accurate reporting, journalists “bring truth to light”. However, she noted that for too many “telling the truth comes at a price”. While journalists are in “a unique and compelling position” to “speak truth to power”, the UNESCO chief observed that the two “do not always see eye to eye”. Between 2010 and 2019, close to 900 journalists were killed while doing their job, according Ms. Azoulay – more than 150 in the last two years alone. Journalists in crosshairs Although many have lost their lives covering conflicts, far more are being killed for investigating issues such as corruption, trafficking, political wrongdoing, human rights violations and environmental issues. And death is not the only risk journalists are facing. “Attacks on the press can take the form of threats, kidnappings, arrests, imprisonments or offline and online harassment with women being targeted in particular”, the UNESCO chief elaborated. Preserving freedom Even though the 2019 death toll for journalists was the lowest in a decade, the UN official pointed out that wider attacks are continuing “at an alarming rate”. States have an obligation to protect journalists -- UNESCO chief She noted that in seven-out-of-eight killings, the perpetrators go unpunished, and asserted: “We can and should do more”. “Journalists are essential in preserving the fundamental right to freedom of expression, guaranteed by Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”, she explained. “When journalists are attacked with impunity, there is a breakdown in security and judicial systems for all”. End impunity UNESCO commemorates the day annually on 2 November to raise awareness and highlight some of the specific risks that journalists face in their quest to uncover the truth. “On this day, I call on…all Member States and international and non-governmental organizations to join forces to guarantee the safety of journalists and root out impunity”, said the UNESCO chief. “Only by investigating and prosecuting crimes against media professionals can we guarantee access to information and freedom of expression”. Unleashing information UNESCO also marked the day by releasing the brochure Protect Journalists, Protect the Truth. Among other things, it revealed that most journalists were killed in countries with no armed conflict. And while impunity for crimes against journalists continues to prevail, in 2020, 13 per cent of cases worldwide were reported as resolved in comparison to 12 per cent in 2019, and 11 per cent in 2018. The findings also showed that in 2019, Latin America and the Caribbean region represented 40 per cent of all killings registered worldwide, followed by the Asia and Pacific region, with 26 per cent. “States have an obligation to protect journalists”, and judges and prosecutors must promote “swift and effective criminal proceedings” to ensure that perpetrators of crimes against them are held accountable, upheld Ms. Azoulay. |
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January 2021
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