Gilbert Houngbo, first African to head the International Labor Organization

Published on: 03/25/2022 – 14:05 After his time with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), former Prime Minister Gilbert Houngbo will take over the management of the International Labor Organization (ILO) in October 2022. He was preferred to the former French minister Muriel Pénicaud, also approached for this position. The former Prime Minister of Togo, Gilbert Houngbo, took the helm of the International Labor Organization (ILO) on Friday March 25, becoming the first African to hold this position. He was elected in the second round by the members of the Governing Body representing the 187 member States and the organizations of employers and employees, the ILO having the particularity of being a tripartite organization.Gilbert Houngbo, 61 years old, is a native of a rural prefecture in Togo. He has spent the majority of his career in international organisations, where he is seen as a seasoned senior civil servant. 10 years and who has reached the limit of two terms. Gilbert Houngbo preferred to the French Muriel PénicaudGilbert Houngbo currently chairs the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in Rome. But he knows the ILO very well, where he held the position of Deputy Director (2013-2017) in charge of Field Operations. Former Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Director of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) , he was also a member of the strategic team and administrative and financial director of the organization. Five candidates were in the running for this election – behind closed doors and by secret ballot. Its main opponent was the former French Minister of Labor Muriel Pénicaud, who was supported by Paris and the European bloc. Born after the Great War in 1919, the ILO has so far never been led by a woman, nor by a representative from Africa or Asia. On the other hand, it counts among its former bosses two Frenchmen, the first of whom, Albert Thomas (1919-1932). his ambition was to preserve the progress made in recent decades in terms of social justice. effect of new technologies. Especially since the Covid-19 pandemic has given a boost to teleworking technologies which make it possible to abolish geographical barriers and work as a team remotely. With AFP