ILO Information Newsletter

International Labour Organization

Government of the Republic of Moldova

Information newsletter

#1

June 2012

“Effective Governance of Labour Migration and its Skill Dimensions”

Bi-annual information newsletter of the project funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented by the International Labour Organization (ILO). This is being undertaken in co-operation with the social partners and the Governments of the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, as well as the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the World Bank. The project is part of the EU’s thematic programme of cooperation with third countries in the area of migration and asylum.

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epublic of Moldova in Brussels: Study visit to exchange experiences and improve knowledge of the labour migration management This was designed to enhance knowledge and best practices on governing migration in order to maximise benefits to countries of both origin and destination, as well as to the migrants themselves.

The key European institutions which manage labour migration policies hosted a study visit delegation of Moldovan officials to Brussels over April 17-20, 2012.

The delegation from the Moldovan Parliament and Government met with representatives of several European Union institutions, including the European Commission’s Directorates General for Home Affairs, Education and Culture, as well as the European External Action Service, a relatively new EU institution focusing on the convergence of member states’ foreign policies, including on migration and labour. The delegation was also able to meet with the European Economic and Social Committee, which coordinates economic, social and cultural activities and includes trade unions, employers’ organizations and civil society.

In addition, the Moldovan delegation met with H.E. Mr. Eugen CARAS, Ambassador and Chief of the Mission of the Republic of Moldova to the European Union.

The main objective of this study visit was to strengthen the capacity of Moldova’s national decision-makers in developing and implementing rights-based laws, policies and programs on migration, based on a deep understanding of EU institutions and their mandates. The agenda for the visit centred on the presentation and exchange of views on priority areas of cooperation, as well as a focus on policy options for the effective governance of labour migration and its skills dimensions.

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The study visit of Moldovan Parliament and Government officials was organized as part of a follow-up to a December 2011 workshop for policy makers and other key stakeholders in migration management.

This workshop was attended by policy makers, social partners, academia, private employment agencies, etc. and focused on governance policies for labour migration.

Special consideration was given to the integration into national development programs of such policies, as well as the management of labour contracts and of the process of recruitment of migrant workers. Concurrently, the workshop included sessions on how to identify and communicate with migrant workers before their departure. The training was conducted

by IOM international experts, Mr. Vassiliy Yuzhanin and Mr. Pawel Szalus.

The study visit to Brussels enabled the Moldovan officials to assess the actions undertaken by state institutions in the management of migration and to consider further improvements, through better alignment of the national legal framework

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abour migration can be turned into a ‘virtuous circle’, bringing considerable benefits to all parties, but it needs to be better managed and more attention should be given to the skills dimensions.

with EU legislation. Opportunities were also apparent for a strengthening of cooperation with EU member states in the areas of education and labour migration, as well as extending the abovementioned cooperation through the implementation of practical programs.

The discussions also prompted a restating of the importance of implementing stipulations under the Mobility Partnership Declaration and Visa Facilitation Agreement, as well as embarking on new cooperation frameworks, such as the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area initiative.

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nowledge, skills and tools for the implementation of bilateral agreements on social security: Social security for Moldovan labour migrants Draft Regulations on the Implementation of Bilateral Agreements on Social Security in Moldova have been developed. Some twenty-three representatives of the Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family, Ministry of Health, National Social Insurance House, National Medical Insurance Company and Republican Council for Medical Expertise of Vitality have been trained and have the knowledge and skills to implement them.

In recent years Moldova has concluded separate social security agreements with Austria, Bulgaria, Estonia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Czech Republic and Romania. In order to facilitate the effective functioning of these agreements, the project provided support for the development, through a participatory process, of the Regulations on Implementation of Bilateral Agreements on Social Security.

Furthermore, a workshop and a Training of Trainers (ToT) course were organized as part of this project in November 2011 and May 2012, respectively. These initiatives aimed to both improve the capacity of the national partners and to contribute to a sustainable transfer of knowledge and skills to the territorial units that are expected to be involved in the implementation of agreements in the future. Topics addressed at these events extended to pensions, death and unemployment benefits, medical assistance, and sickness and maternity allowances. The participants stated that they had gained knowledge, skills and practical tools. Their feedback also highlighted the need to undertake information campaigns

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for both the personnel involved in the implementation of agreements, as well as for Moldovan migrants. Such campaigns will raise the level of awareness of the primary stipulations of the social security agreements and will increase the likelihood of their consistent application.

Both these initiatives, the development of the Regulations, and the capacity building events, benefitted from the expertise of Ms. Magda-Simona Sotropa, a highly experienced international consultant.

“The whole process of drafting Regulations on the Implementation of Bilateral Agreements on Social Security in Moldova, as well as the capacity development events are very important”, said Ms. Laura Grecu, Head of the Social Insurance Policies Department, Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family. “This is a

contribution to the development of a social security system, adjusted to the needs of a society facing the migration phenomenon”.

“States and civil society organizations increasingly recognize that international migration is more an integral part of development and functioning of modern economies” said Ms. Kaarina Immonen, UN Resident Coordinator in Moldova during the launch of the “Effective Governance of Labour Migration and its Skill Dimensions” project.

“Migration can be a developmental experience. As countries try to stimulate their economic growth, the role of migrants as innovators and entrepreneurs got increased attention as well”.

Mr. Sergiu Sainciuc, Deputy-Minister of Labour, Social Protection and Family and Chairman of the Steering Committee in Moldova for the project “Effective Governance of Labour Migration and its Skill Dimensions”: “The social partners and development agencies share the idea that migration can bring benefits both to countries of origin such as Moldova, the countries of destination and the migrants. We appreciate very much the significant contribution of the “Effective Governance of Labour Migration and its Skill Dimensions” project in Moldova for promoting rights-based migration policies and programmes.

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This initiative, supported by the International Labour Organization, International Organization for Migration and the European Union, has interventions in several areas: research, capacity development, sharing of practices and knowledge, improving regulatory frameworks and policies, strengthening social dialogue, etc. All these aspects contribute to the alignment of national

policies and practice to international standards, thus creating an environment which is conducive to the protection of migrant workers”.

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he private employment agencies and their partners learn best through dialogue: Moldovan private employment agencies wish to increase their role in the local and international labour markets “Such events encourage us to do our work better,” said the participants in the Workshop to raise awareness and promote ILO Convention 181 on Private Employment Agencies, held on 26 and 27 April 2012 in Chisinau.

There are 85 private employment agencies working in Moldova. They cooperate with employers and partner employment organizations from Israel, USA, UK, Italy, Czech Republic and the Russian Federation.

Despite being numerous, in 2011 their cooperation agreements concluded with foreign employers only total 44, while the number of persons employed through private agencies amounts to 414.

A review of these private employment agencies in Moldova was undertaken as part of the project. The way these organizations function, and in particular how they set out to improve the access of Moldovan citizens to decent jobs while ensuring protection of their rights, was the main topic of the review.

The preliminary results of the review were presented during the information workshop on International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 181 on Private Employment Agencies, ratified by Moldova in September 2001.

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The workshop was attended by over 40 representatives of private employment agencies working in Moldova, as well as the representatives of employers’ organizations and the Government. During the event, participants discussed topics related to the legislative framework pertaining to the licensing and functioning of private employment agencies, the need for more effective and efficient monitoring mechanisms, the demand for more regular dialogue between private and public

employment services, etc. The event was facilitated by Ms. Donna Koeltz, Senior Specialist in Employment Services, Skills and Employability Department, ILO Geneva.

“The information on both international practices and the Moldovan experiences in recruitment abroad provided useful information which will be valuable in our work”, remarked Ms. Ana Mamaliga, Director of a private employment agency.

Validation of non-formal and informal learning Qualifications and skills of both migrants and non-migrants should be harnessed Thirty representatives of governmental organizations, social partners and vocational education institutions participated in a seminar on Recognition of Non-Formal and Informal Learning, held between June 6-8, 2012 in Chisinau.

her opening speech that the system of recognition of non-formal and informal learning is necessary both for migrants returning to their countries of origin who have acquired valuable skills, as well as for non-migrants, who have qualifications and skills to be validated and applied.

The seminar aimed to improve knowledge and consensus among key actors in the area of recognition of non-formal and informal learning.

The participants discussed the national context and prerequisites for the development and implementation of a national system for validation of nonformal and informal learning. They also gained familiarity with current European standards and institutional, legal and

Ms. Loretta Handrabura, DeputyMinister of Education remarked during

financial principles in this field. The seminar built upon the best practices in countries where there is a functional recognition of non-formal and informal learning.

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Labour migration needs reliable and relevant statistics Experts in statistics from Moldova, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Ukraine, as well as representatives of ministries and government agencies responsible for migration, independent experts from the ILO and EUROSTAT (Statistical Office of the European Communities) along with representatives of the IOM and the World Bank participated in a Workshop on data collection and analysis on labour migration, held in Kiev on 21 and 22 November 2011.

Central topics of this international seminar included: • European and international standards on collecting statistical information on migration; • Discussion of methodologies and tools for collecting statistical information on migration; • Exchange of best practices between representatives of participating countries on collection of statistical data on migration from various sources; • Creation of a network of cooperation between experts in migration policies in the participating countries; • Formulation of recommendations on improving the data collection process and their harmonization.

The discussions and recommendations also focussed on the importance of statistics in the context of preventing brain drain and skills waste.

Mr. Vladimir Ganţa, consultant in Labour Market and Demography Statistics with the National Bureau of Statistics in Moldova moderated one of the sessions in Kiev. “The experts who participated in the workshop noted the significant

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progress that the Republic of Moldova has registered in the area of data collection on migration and its harmonization with international standards. The experts were particularly interested in the quality and variety of surveys which include data on labour emigration and are regularly produced by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), such as the Labour Force Survey, Households Budget Survey, Labour Migration Survey. The latter was a very successful initiative supported by the ILO. The various publications of the NBS, uploaded on the site www.statistica.md offer plenty of data related to labour emigration as of 2000”, said Mr. Vladimir Ganţa.

Moldovan specialists were invited on several occasions to share their experience with other countries during international conferences in Switzerland and Nepal.

With reference to administrative data, the Republic of Moldova is the only country from the Community of Independent States which has an operational Population

Register, with multiple possibilities for development. One of the next priorities in data collection on labour migration in Moldova will cover inter-ministerial activities, so as to ensure comparability of statistical and administrative data and their adequacy for the development of analytical papers and for policy making.

The “Effective Governance of Labour Migration and its Skill Dimensions” project aims at strengthening Moldova and Ukraine’s capacities to regulate labour migration and promote sustainable return, with a particular focus on enhancing human resources capital and preventing skills waste.

The share of the European Union funding constitutes 1,507,501.00 EUR, while the duration of the project is thirty months (Launch date: 1 March, 2011).

CONTACT INFORMATION: International Labour Organization, Project Office in Moldova

Address: 1, V. Alecsandri str., Chisinau, MD-2009, Republic of Moldova, tel./fax: +373 22 26 93 99 e-mail: lipcanu@ilo.org, povar@ilo.org, www.ilo.org

International Organisation for Migration, Mission to Moldova Address: 36/1, Ciuflea str., Chisinau, MD-2001, Republic of Moldova, tel. +373 22 23 29 40/1, fax: +373 22 23 28 62, e-mail: iomchisinau@iom.int, www.iom.md

This information newsletter has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the implementing partners and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

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Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family of the Republic of Moldova Address: 1, V. Alecsandri str., Chisinau, MD-2009, Republic of Moldova, tel.: +373 22 26 93 01, fax: +373 22 26 93 10 e-mail: secretariat@mmpsf.gov.md, www.mmpsf.gov.md

Government of the Republic of Moldova

International Labour Organization

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