New Insights on the Systemic Approach to Creating More and Better Jobs

Decent work is a challenge that is both important and complex. A third of the global labour force isn't earning enough to lift themselves and their families above the poverty line. Three-quarters of workers in Africa and Asia are in vulnerable employment, and annually, an estimated 2.3 million people die every year from occupational accidents. Although most development and government programmes focus on creating more jobs, it's clear that we need to focus on their quality as well.

To address these challenges, the Lab uses a systemic approach to catalyze large-scale and long-lasting change. The approach first aims to understand and then address the underlying reasons why these challenges exist. It focuses on selected markets (commodities like the soybean value chain or whole sectors like construction) and has been used to improve outcomes across the Decent Work Agenda, including areas like gender equality, productivity, skills and employability, youth employment, working conditions, and health and safety.

The new brief "A Systemic Approach to Creating More and Better Jobs" lays out the steps to understand why and how the approach is used. It provides updated insights, concrete examples, guidance, and practitioner tools that demonstrate the versatility of the approach and provide an understanding of how to use a systemic approach to address key decent work challenges in a range of contexts.

This brief is available in English, Spanish, and French.