Employment and social protection in the informal sector

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE GB.277/ESP/1/1
277th Session
Governing Body Geneva, March 2000
Committee on Employment and Social Policy ESP
FIRST ITEM ON THE AGENDA
Employment and social protection
in the informal sector
ILO activities concerning the urban informal sector:
Thematic evaluation
Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 1
I. Myths and challenges of the informal sector ................................................................ 2
II. Policy issues and options .............................................................................................. 3
III. Past work....................................................................................................................... 5
1. Measuring the informal sector ........................................................................................ 6
2. Enhancing the micro-entrepreneur’s potential................................................................ 7
IV. Creation and capacity-building of informal sector organizations ................................. 10
1. Infrastructure, job creation and living conditions ........................................................... 12
2. Reforming training policies and systems........................................................................ 13
3. Enhancing workers’ social protection ............................................................................ 15
4. Reforming legal frameworks .......................................................................................... 18
5. Assessing macro-economic policies ............................................................................... 19
V. Future programme priorities and policy orientations.................................................... 20
1. Measurement of the informal sector ............................................................................... 20
2. Enhancing the productive potential of informal sector entrepreneurs ............................ 21
3. Creation of informal sector organizations and capacity-building ................................... 21
4. Job creation and improvement of conditions in the informal sector through
infrastructure................................................................................................................... 22
5. Training .......................................................................................................................... 22
6. Workers’ protection........................................................................................................ 23
7. Reforming legal frameworks .......................................................................................... 23
VI. Concluding remarks ...................................................................................................... 24
Appendix. Reference documents............................................................................................. 27
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Introduction
1. In the recent past the ILO has carried out a large amount of research and technical
cooperation activities relating to the informal sector and has provided extensive policy
advice. The results of this work have greatly influenced the analysis, design and
implementation of policies at the country level. There is also widespread international
recognition of the value of this work, which over the years has improved understanding of
the characteristics and functioning of the sector. Given the current compelling issues
deriving from the increasing proliferation of precarious forms of employment in most
countries, the Office felt that the time was ripe to take stock of the additional knowledge and
experience and to draw conclusions and recommendations for future policy orientations and
programme priorities.
2. For this purpose a thematic evaluation was carried out, providing a synthesis of the ILO’s
work in the urban informal sector,1 covering both regular budget and extra-budgetary
activities. The study reviews the accumulated knowledge and experience within the ILO
and assesses the implementation of the strategies that have been developed to address
specific problem areas. It also assesses the impact of the application of these strategies and
examines the important lessons learnt and potential areas for future work. A list of the ILO
documents, reports and publications reviewed is available on request.
3. This paper offers a summary of the thematic evaluation report. The outcome of its
discussion by the Committee will provide guidance in further defining various work items
at the start of the Programme and Budget for 2000-01.
4. Following the renewed emphasis placed by the Director-General on the quantity and quality
of jobs, as reflected in the concept of decent work, 2 the results of the evaluation have already
proven useful for the preparation of programme proposals by several technical units. The
informal sector is in fact a focus of attention in the Programme and Budget for 2000-01,
which includes a separate operational objective to guide ILO future action. The strategy
outlined in the programme and budget states that –
… the inclusion of informal enterprises in national development programmes will
be effectively promoted. This will be based on interventions in a range of fields,
including … establishing and strengthening associations of informal sector
workers, which provide an effective vehicle for advocacy, social protection and
community initiatives. Policy advice and support will help to identify and remove
legal, fiscal and administrative barriers preventing the inclusion of informal
sector operators in the modern economy. This will be supplemented by the
creation of closer linkages between informal and modern enterprises, for
example through innovative subcontracting arrangements and the development
of more efficient intermediaries in production chains. In these activities
employment creation and poverty reduction will be combined with the
improvement of social protection and safety and health and the promotion of
1 A thematic evaluation of the urban informal sector: ILO actions and perspectives, Evaluation Unit
(PROG/EVAL), Bureau of Programming and Management, July 1999.
2 ILO, Decent work, Report of the Director-General, International Labour Conference, 87th Session,
1999.
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gender equality, using the innovative methodologies developed in pilot activities
mainly in Africa, the Americas and Asia.3
5. Several InFocus programmes have incorporated a line of action reaching out to the
informal sector, in particular the InFocus Programmes on Skills, Knowledge and
Employability; Boosting Employment through Small Enterprise Development; Socio-
Economic Security; SafeWork; and Strengthening Social Dialogue.
I. Myths and challenges of the informal
sector
6. The results of the ILO’s substantial work have not only brought about a better
understanding of the structure and functioning of the informal sector, but have also helped
to demystify three commonly held beliefs that have influenced and even introduced bias
into the work of many analysts. These are –
! that all people engaged in informal activities are poor;
! that the sector is unorganized and unstructured;
! that informal activities are illegal.
7. Many informal sector operators and workers are indeed poor, but available empirical
evidence has shown that the informal sector as a whole is not synonymous with poverty. It
has a highly heterogeneous structure: the very poor are engaged in subsistence activities at
the bottom of the ladder, while at the top there are some very profitable economic ventures.
In many cases those active in the latter earn incomes well above the minimum wage in the
formal sector of the economy.
8. As far as the second myth is concerned, case studies have shown that informal sector
activities are far from being unorganized or unstructured. The urban informal sector has its
own mechanisms and networks of financial services, training, marketing, welfare schemes
and social safety nets. These rely largely on traditional, kinship, neighbourhood,
occupational and family ties, and these have proven effective and durable. Secondly, while
the bulk of informal sector workers are engaged in own-account activities – run by
individuals with or without the participation of unpaid family workers – the sector also
includes micro- and small-scale enterprises, largely in manufacturing, which hire workers
on a continuous basis and often have operating links with formal sector enterprises. In
most cases, such links take the form of subcontracting arrangements.
9. As regards the third myth, it has become clear that the illegal situation in which many
informal sector workers may find themselves is due to the non-applicability of existing
regulations to the economic conditions of informal sector activities and lack of knowledge
of the regulations, rather than to any outright desire to circumvent the law. Moreover, most
of the subsistence and micro-businesses operate at the periphery of or beyond the law
because of the unaffordable costs that compliance with existing regulations would impose
on their economic activities, putting at stake their ultimate survival.
3 Programme and Budget proposals for 2000-01, Vol. 1, “Strategy and orientation”,
GB.274/PFA/9/1, para. 66.
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10. The concept of the informal sector has figured significantly in the debate on employment
issues and development policies over the past three decades. With the phenomenal
expansion of the urban informal sector in recent years, national and international concern
about its role and functioning in the urban economy has increased even more.
11. Is promoting employment in the informal sector or in micro-businesses an adequate way to
combat unemployment and underemployment? To what extent can the informal sector
continue to absorb excess labour from rural areas and from the formal sector? Does the
informal sector hold the key to future economic growth and to job creation? Is supporting
the informal sector reinforcing the creation of unprotected forms of employment? Is the
informal sector a haven for cheap labour?
12. These are some of the burning questions posed today. Despite the inadequacy of most
answers to these questions, the predominant response at national and international levels
has been to target financial and technical assistance to urban informal sector economic
activities, especially micro-enterprises and small producers, and to adapt policies that
encourage and support self-employment, micro-entrepreneurship and the urban informal
sector as a whole.
13. Since its adoption by the ILO in the early 1970s, the concept of the informal sector has
been applied to analyse the employment situation and policy options in most developing
countries. A large proportion of the economically active population of these countries finds
an income-generating source in economic activities outside the formal or modern sector of
the economy. With the restructuring and rationalization of the public sector and the
deregulation of labour markets in the private sector, the informal sector phenomena have
also assumed significant proportions in many developed countries. Displaced workers from
both the public and private sectors are forced to seek or create work opportunities in the
informal sector. In most cases these opportunities are of lower quality than the majority of
modern sector jobs. The ILO has always been concerned with both the quantity and the
quality of jobs. These aspects have now become the focus of renewed attention following
the introduction of the concept of “decent work” contained in the Report of the Director-
General to the International Labour Conference in 1999.
II. Policy issues and options
14. From a review of approaches and strategies concerning the urban informal sector, the study
identifies eight key areas of priority action –
! measuring the informal sector;
! enhancing the micro-entrepreneur’s potential;
! the creation of and capacity-building among informal sector organizations;
! infrastructure, job creation and living conditions;
! reforming training policies and systems;
! enhancing workers’ social protection;
! reforming legal frameworks;
! assessing macroeconomic policies.
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15. Based on increased knowledge of the structure, scope and dynamics of informal sector
activities, the ILO has been able to develop approaches and measures concerning the main
policy areas in support of the urban informal sector. The priority concerns for ILO action
were defined in the Director-General’s Report to the International Labour Conference in
1991.4 The general aims of each priority area of action can be summarized as follows:
! to enhance the productive potential of the informal sector, and hence its employment-and
income-generating capacity;
! to improve the welfare of the poorest groups;
! to establish an appropriate regulatory framework, including the adoption of adequate
forms of social protection and regulations;
! to improve the organization of informal sector producers and workers.
16. These goals are interrelated and should be pursued simultaneously. The first relates
primarily to activities that have the potential to create economic growth and employment.
The second would cover activities aimed at improving the employment and working
conditions of those engaged in precarious jobs. The two other goals cover activities
associated with the development of the institutional support required by informal sector
groups and their capacity to organize themselves.
17. Another important milestone in the work of the ILO on the urban informal sector has been
the interdepartmental project on the urban informal sector (INTERDEP), which was
launched in the 1994-95 biennium. Through this project the ILO catalysed interest and
efforts among the social partners, at the national and international levels, to carry out long-term
programmes for the urban informal sector using a multidisciplinary and integrated
approach. Furthermore, the INTERDEP project resulted in new, concrete programme
initiatives within the ILO, such as projects on social security and occupational safety and
health specifically directed at the informal sector.
18. The predominant approach in the ILO’s work on the urban informal sector has been to
emphasize the growing role of the informal sector as a source of employment and income
for significant numbers of workers. Emphasis is hence placed on protecting and enhancing
the income- and employment-generating potential of the informal sector, and making it
capable of offering better working conditions and protection for workers. These priority
issues have in fact been at the centre of the strategic policy options on poverty alleviation
developed as a result of the research and operational activities of the ILO’s World
Employment Programme (WEP).
19. Linked to the approach of enhancing the income- and employment-generating capacity of
the informal sector is the promotion of the sector’s productive potential. If the goal is to
create employment and raise incomes, strategies should seek to remove or reduce existing
constraints (access to credit, education, new technology, equipment and markets) in order
to increase productivity. One type of activity to pursue would be to actively support policy
and institutional reform aimed at improving access for informal sector workers to the
required inputs.
4 The dilemma of the informal sector, Report of the Director-General, International Labour
Conference, 78th Session, 1991.
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20. The ILO has also been substantially involved in the support of structural changes at the
national level in cooperation with local authorities. Extensive work has been done on
awareness raising, policy guidance, drafting legislation and capacity-building, etc.
However, it is widely recognized that not all informal sector activities have growth
potential, that the sector is highly heterogeneous, with different segments having different
possibilities for expansion, and that, in fact, the largest part of the sector consists in
precarious activities in pursuit of survival. Therefore, such strategies would only be
effective for a small proportion (estimated at some 20 per cent) of the informal sector
working population.
21. The ILO enterprise development programme on the informal sector recognizes this fact
and notes that a strategic choice must be made when defining objectives, actions and
instruments –
! to support survival activities whose potential for economic growth is very limited, but
on the other hand, their alleviating effects on poverty are indispensable;
! to enable a limited number of micro-enterprises to accumulate capital through
substantial productivity gains.
22. As regards the issue of non-compliance with business and labour laws in the informal
sector, the Director-General’s Report to the Conference in 1991 argues for the progressive
application of labour laws and standards, beginning with the most viable enterprises.
However, the fundamental requirement should be to ensure compliance with basic human
rights concerning freedom of association, freedom from forced labour and child labour and
freedom from discrimination.5
23. Workers’ protection as a goal has moved to the forefront of the ILO’s work on the urban
informal sector since the Director-General’s 1991 Report and the INTERDEP project. The
development of practical guides and innovative measures, instead of legal protection and
law enforcement, has been the preferred line of action to improve working and
employment conditions through enhanced occupational safety and health and social
security coverage.
24. Another approach to the employment issues in the informal sector looks outside the sector.
This is the promotion of employment-intensive infrastructure policies in urban areas. This
approach is, first, a job-creation response to rising urban poverty levels, declining
employment opportunities in the modern private and public sectors, and the phenomenal
expansion of the urban informal sector.
III. Past work
25. A detailed review of approaches to and strategies concerning the informal sector, within
the identified seven key areas of priority action, follows below.
5 The ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and its Follow-up, adopted
by the International Labour Conference at its 86th Session in 1998.
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1. Measuring the informal sector
26. Action on the urban informal sector requires knowledge of the scope and structure of the
informal sector, and therefore requires systematic data collection and analysis.
27. Most national statistics systems are designed in such a way that they could not adequately
capture or describe the economic or employment structure of the informal sector.
28. Within the framework of WEP-related activities, several pilot surveys of the informal
sector were carried out in various countries. Based on the outcome of this work, statistical
methodologies were later developed to redefine national accounts and to permit special
surveys. In 1987, following a request by the Fourteenth International Conference of
Labour Statisticians (ICLS), the ILO undertook to develop international guidelines on the
statistical measurement of the informal sector. The resolution concerning statistics of
employment in the informal sector was adopted by the 15th ICLS in 1993, providing the
first and so far the only internationally approved technical guidelines for the development
of statistics on the informal sector. The guidelines aimed at facilitating the task of national
statistical agencies in developing definitions, classifications and methods of data collection
on the informal sector suited to particular national conditions. The guidelines are also
designed to reduce unnecessary differences between the informal sector statistics of
different countries and thus improve international comparability.
29. The next logical step, after the development of the statistical guidelines, was to build
national capacity to apply those guidelines. In addition to a number of individual projects
aimed at national capacity-building, a module on informal statistics was developed and has
become a standard component of most training courses given by the ILO Bureau of
Statistics to labour statisticians.
30. ILO capacity-building projects have resulted in the use of an informal sector module
attached to the occupational household survey questionnaires in several countries. The
main idea is to identify informal sector units through the household survey, for which a
special informal sector questionnaire is subsequently applied within a separate “enterprise”
survey. The informal sector survey in Dar es Salaam in 1995-96 drew on experience and
lessons learnt and used the staff trained during the first United Republic of Tanzania
nationwide survey of the informal sector of 1990-91. The Addis Ababa Plan of Action for
Statistical Development in Africa in the 1990s included the informal sector among the
priority areas for future statistical programmes.
31. On the whole, more than 60 countries have already started to collect and publish data on
employment and other characteristics of the informal sector. The fact that many of these
surveys were launched after 1993 suggests that the institutionalization of the guidelines
can be attributed to the 15th ICLS resolution and the provision of technical guidance for
the development of informal sector statistics.
32. However, a review of experience in collecting statistical data on the informal sector has
revealed that there are problems with regard to the international comparability of data on
account of the substantial amount of flexibility that the 15th ICLS guidelines allow to
countries in defining and measuring the informal sector.
33. Important lessons learnt from the informal sector surveys carried out in 1995-96 in
Dar es Salaam, Manila and Bogotá under the umbrella of the INTERDEP project can be
summarized as follows:
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! mixed household and enterprise surveys methodology proved to have many
advantages over labour force surveys and establishment surveys, as labour force
surveys cannot provide information on productivity or income generation, while
establishment surveys tend to capture only the visible enterprises;
! due to the substantial seasonal variations in the level of activities, data collection
should be spread over a reasonably long period;
! intensive dissemination of information about the survey through informal sector
organizations could reduce the survey’s non-response rates among informal sector
operators and workers;
! hope for future assistance was a factor which motivated many informal sector
operators to answer survey questions;
! lack of proper follow-up action shatters the expectations raised: as a consequence,
non-response rates are likely to increase in future surveys;
! whenever possible, survey results should be used as a basis for the design and
implementation of support action programmes and technical cooperation projects.
34. The fact that the 15th ICLS resolution was endorsed by the UN Statistical Commission in
1993 and that the UN Economic and Social Council has adopted the revised System of
National Accounts (SNA, 1993), which includes the definition of the informal sector
adopted by the 15th ICLS, clearly demonstrates that the relevance of the ICLS guidelines
to areas beyond employment statistics.
35. In response to a request by the 15th ICLS, the ILO undertook to produce a manual that
would synthesize the lessons learnt from various informal sector surveys and provide more
detailed guidelines on methodological alternatives in different national contexts. A first
review of current practices in several member States was submitted by the Office to the
16th ICLS (October 1998).
2. Enhancing the micro-entrepreneur’s potential
36. The predominant approach in the ILO for small enterprise development focuses on
unleashing the latent potential of the informal sector to provide income and create jobs.
Inherent deficiencies in capital, management skills and technology, unequal access to
factor and product markets, as well as restrictive regulatory frameworks, have been cited as
the primary obstacles involved. In order to overcome these constraints, especially unequal
access to credit, many micro-entrepreneurs voluntarily choose to enter into various kinds
of subcontracting arrangements. This is often the case in particular with women, who
choose to operate out of their homes. This dependency enhances the vulnerability of those
in the sector, as the subcontracting relationships are in many cases not governed by any
regulations.
37. Targeted support strategies have therefore aimed at improving access to credit, technology,
training and marketing in order to strengthen the productive capacity of micro-entrepreneurs,
small producers and artisans. At the grass-roots level, the predominant
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strategy in this regard has been the creation of group-based self-reliance schemes.6 At the
national and regional level, the strategies of the 1980s and 1990s may be grouped as
follows:
! strengthening of national programmes and institutions to target support services more
effectively to the informal sector (at the national and regional levels);
! building and strengthening alliances and networks among small producers’ and
micro-entrepreneurs’ organizations at the national and regional levels and national
targeted programmes at the regional level.
(a) Setting-up an institutional framework of targeted
support
38. Strategies for building an institutional framework of targeted support consist in
strengthening the effectiveness of national programmes targeted at micro-enterprises and
informal sector units. This modality involves action at the national level and the design of
general policies and strategies for the development of the target sector.
39. As regards access to credit and finance, action at the macro-level aim at linking informal
group-based mutual credit schemes to the commercial banking system.
40. The effectiveness of such programmes strongly depends on their targeting mechanism, that
is, how the target group is defined and selected, and, in the end, actually reached by the
programmes. Given that the informal sector is highly heterogeneous, selective targeting is
even more critical and difficult in informal sector programmes than in other targeted
programmes.
41. The above can be illustrated with the examples of PRONAMYPE and PASI.7 An improved
targeting mechanism resulted in more loans to the poorer and more vulnerable segments of
the target sector. Project evaluations and special studies clearly show that the impact of
providing more loans to the most vulnerable groups resulted in tangible improvements in
incomes, productivity and employment. Around 80 per cent of the PASI beneficiaries
declared increased profits and incomes, sales went up by 10-50 per cent among the self-employed,
the number of hours worked per week increased and interruptions in production
due to lack of capital strongly declined, pointing to a general consolidation and
stabilization of jobs. Investments in fixed assets increased in 12 per cent of the cases.
Various forms of organizations among the beneficiaries were created along different lines
according to economic sector, occupation, geographical area, gender, etc. As regards
PRONAMYPE, a survey covering 33 per cent of the beneficiary micro-enterprises
observed positive economic changes. The survey specifically pointed to: (a) an increase in
the number of clients among 80 per cent of the enterprises; (b) an increase in incomes
among 81 per cent of beneficiaries; (c) an increase in production volume ranging from 83
to 100 per cent; and (d) a 13 per cent increase in the number of working hours, indicating
6 This strategy is described in more detail in the section concerning creation and capacity-building
of informal sector organizations.
7 ILO projects provided assistance to PRONAMYPE (Programa Nacional de Apoyo a la Micro y
Pequeña Empresa), a component of Costa Rica’s 1990-94 national development plan, “Sustained
Development with Social Justice” (Desarrollo Sostenido con Justicia Social), and to PASI
(Programa de Apoyo al Sector Informal), a component of Hon duras’ national social compensation
programme set up in 1990.
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better utilization of the capacity of workshops and resources. Furthermore, acquisition of
better equipment was noted in 44 per cent of the enterprises.
42. The sustainability of the economic benefits resulting from targeted programmes will partly
be determined by the effectiveness of the network of support institutions assisting the
target population and, equally importantly, by the successful implementation of specific
complementary national policies aimed at creating an improved environment to stimulate
the growth and expansion of micro-enterprises.
43. In order to assess the effectiveness of the network of support institutions, the criterion is
whether their technical capacity and performance improved as a result of the technical
assistance provided to them within the framework of the strategies adopted. Existing
information from evaluations of institutional capacity-building projects is however
inadequate and does not provide sufficiently solid evidence of the final outcome of
rendered assistance.
44. Most projects dealing with the informal sector are designed to promote and reorient long-term
national policies in favour of the informal sector. Two institutional factors facilitate
the policy reform process:
! alliances of micro- and small entrepreneurs at the national and regional level that
enhance their capacity to negotiate with policy-makers;
! the institutionalization of the programmes which began as temporary or emergency
social programmes.
45. The first factor is discussed in more detail below. With regard to the second, the concerns
to be taken into consideration are the legal framework that would be appropriate for the
permanent structure; its role in relation to other policy-making bodies and line ministries
dealing with the informal sector; and financial autonomy, since many programmes rely
heavily on external funding.
(b) Building networks and alliances
46. The second form of institutional support strategies that have emerged from ILO action are
concerned with setting up and developing networks and alliances among informal sector
producers and workers, and among governmental and non-governmental institutions
concerned with the informal sector. These strategies have been developed in response to
the following developments:
! the evolution and expansion of grass-roots organizations and their increasing need for
consolidation;
! the multiplicity of programmes, institutions and NGOs and the growing need for
coordination;
! the increasing demand for technical assistance to develop strategies and
methodologies.
47. The primary functions of such networks is often the exchange and dissemination of
information, the consolidation of experience, the harmonization of concepts, strategies and
methodologies, and coordinating activities.
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48. One example is PROMICRO.8 One component of this project aimed at the establishment
of national and regional committees of organizations of micro-entrepreneurs and a regional
forum for national programmes. PROMICRO played an important role in the creation of
national committees of micro-entrepreneurs in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras,
Nicaragua and Panama and in the establishment of the Committee of Micro-entrepreneurs
of Central America (COCEMI), which represents the six national committees of micro-entrepreneurs.
Another example is the subregional project to assist women homeworkers in
Asia9 which supported the creation of a national organization of homeworkers in the
Philippines, and a network of homeworkers in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
49. Evaluations of these projects found that the national organization of homeworkers in the
Philippines (PATAMABA) had, since its creation, been involved by the Philippine
Government in consultative mechanisms on policy issues concerning or affecting
homeworkers (such as social security). The homeworkers’ network in Chiang Mai
(HOMENET) channelled business, technical and financial services from formal
institutions to homeworkers’ groups more systematically. The COCEMI and six national
committees of micro-entrepreneurs in Central America have contributed to a process of
recognition of micro-entrepreneurs as social actors by governments and the formal private
sector in the region.
50. One possible issue regarding the creation of national and regional committees of micro-entrepreneurs
is the degree to which they represent the sector as a whole. The example of
COCEMI in Central America shows that the national associations of micro-entrepreneurs
only cover a very small percentage of the actual number of informal sector workers.
51. With more dynamic cross-fertilization of ideas and experience, facilitated by networks and
exchanges of experience and information, it is expected that strategies and policies for the
informal sector would also be improved, be more effective and sustainable.
IV. Creation and capacity-building of informal
sector organizations
52. The creation and strengthening of informal sector organizations is a strategy that consists
in creating and supporting group-based self-reliance schemes among informal sector
producers, traders and others economically active in the informal sector. This approach
comprises the following:
! the gradual mobilization of participants’ own financial, technical and human
resources to encourage autonomy;
! stimulating participants’ desire for improvement and to reaffirm their social identity;
! building and strengthening organizations of small producers and micro-entrepreneurs;
! institutional recognition and representation of participants at higher levels.
8 Subregional programme for the promotion of support organizations, structures and programmes
for micro-enterprises in Central America.
9 RAS/91/M14/DAN: “Women workers in the new putting-out system in Thailand, Indonesia and
the Philippines”.
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53. The participatory, organizational approach adopted by projects makes the project processes
and benefits more sustainable, since the target population are trained to undertake and
manage development initiatives by themselves. Thus, the level of self-management
capability possessed by the organizations created is a major factor determining their long-term
institutional stability. In the projects reviewed for this evaluation, small producers’
organizations showed increasing capacity to sustain credit schemes and common facility
workshops and to negotiate with other social actors as a result of the projects.
54. Another major issue affecting sustainability is the income-generating possibilities for the
business organizations created. Since many of them rely on external subsidies resulting
from local government or project support, they are not sustainable once such external
assistance is withdrawn. Alternative sources of income have proven difficult to find or
insufficient (membership fees, service fees, commercial ventures). This problem is further
aggravated by the fact that the business organizations created lack any links with formal
sector institutions, which is essential to ensure effective resource mobilization and
influence policy decisions.
55. Potential solutions are being tested by various projects at present, such as the participation
of associations in the provision of public or social services to their members (the latter
referring mainly to mutual health insurance schemes).
56. Lastly, organizational sustainability is influenced by the legal and institutional status of
such organizations. But the issue of which legal and institutional framework would be the
most enhancing has not yet been adequately analysed.
57. The likelihood that project processes and outcomes will be sustained after project
completion also depends on the wider economic and policy environment. This calls for
action at the macroeconomic, institutional and policy levels, so as to complement action at
the grass-roots level.
58. The ILO projects in Mali, Togo, Rwanda, Benin and Burkina Faso show that the success of
mutual savings and loan associations, facilitating access to financial resources, is linked to
a combination of social solidarity and economic efficiency (the quality of services, the
return on members’ savings and the control of costs). In the long term, in order to
consolidate and sustain the institutional position of mutual credit associations, relations
with the formal financial system have to be established. In Rwanda, for example, the
KORA confederation of craftsmen’s associations used their combined savings to set up a
bank connected with the People’s Banks in 1986. As demonstrated by the project in
Burkina Faso, members’ savings may be used as collateral (rather than direct finance) in
order to obtain access to resources from the formal financial system. However, banks are
generally reluctant to serve low-income users, even when they are organized. A parallel
reform of the banking systems to adapt them to the needs and circumstances of small poor
borrowers is necessary. At the end of the preparatory phase of the Burkina Faso project in
early 1995, the main problems faced by the credit scheme were the small loan amounts
granted by banks, long banking approval procedures, the very short period for
reimbursement, and the high fee for screening or assessing loan applications.
59. Another issue is the potential role of the ILO’s traditional partners – workers’ and
employers’ organizations – to work with informal sector organizations. This aspect has
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only recently been addressed. The “World Labour Report on industrial relations”10
specifically points out the necessity and the growing willingness of many workers’
organizations to cooperate with the growing number of informal sector workers.
1. Infrastructure, job creation and living conditions
60. The ILO has developed and promoted an employment-intensive, local resources-based
approach to infrastructure programmes for employment generation. Experience has
demonstrated that infrastructure works providing services to communities lend themselves
well to employment generation through labour-intensive methods. In addition to
employment creation, infrastructure works have a huge potential for improving the living
conditions and thereby the working conditions for informal sector workers.
61. The approach was extended for the first time to urban areas in the late 1980’s. Since 1989
the ILO has set up a subprogramme to pursue this modality of action. A combination of
means of action is being used:
! applied research and studies to explore and determine policy issues and opportunities
for developing the approach in actual country situations;
! pilot projects to further elaborate the modality of action, and show how the approach
works;
! technical cooperation projects, advisory services and seminars to replicate best
practice, build national capacities and assist in formulating employment-intensive
investment policies.
62. The employment-intensive approach for infrastructure works advocates the adoption of a
community-based strategy in minor works, whereby on-site infrastructure can be
community executed, partly on a self-help basis rather than by full payment of wages. The
strategy has enabled community initiatives to play an active role. The community, through
a community-based organization or committee, identifies local needs in terms of
infrastructure, mobilizes human and financial resources from the community, and
negotiates contracts for the execution of urban works with the appropriate public
authorities.
63. Experience from projects shows that construction works undertaken within this framework
are generally of good quality, productivity is high and construction methods are cost-effective.
Furthermore, it was found that infrastructure upgrading directly improves the
living and working environment by improving the physical and business environment and
welfare, while enhancing self-esteem and pride in one’s own achievements.
64. Despite the successful socio-economic results of the projects, the created infrastructure
was difficult to sustain after completion of the projects. Community participation in
construction – in terms of unpaid labour – had been effectively mobilized, but community
capacity was too low to ensure sustainability.
65. The projects also showed that the potential positive impact of infrastructure upgrading on
sales, through improved accessibility and visibility, was impeded by other more pressing
10 World Labour Report 1997-98: Industrial Relations, democracy and social stability, ILO,
Geneva, 1997.
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constraints faced by informal entrepreneurs such as lack of working capital, skills training
and limited access to markets. This calls for an integrated approach, where infrastructure
upgrading is complemented by action easing other supply constraints.
66. Lessons on technical issues can also be drawn from the projects. The assessment of a
community’s capacity to carry out the work is critical in determining the extent of
community participation and the need for external technical support. The socio-economic
context of the priority infrastructure initiative selected by a community could be critical to
the success of the project, and should therefore be examined carefully.
67. Research findings have identified the following problems affecting the use of labour in the
construction sector –
! training institutions equip specialists and technicians to use only capital-intensive
technology based on non-local resources;
! bidding and contracting procedures exclude small-scale and informal contractors, and
favour large capital-intensive contractors.
68. These findings underline the importance of action at the policy and institutional levels – in
parallel with pilot work on the ground – to promote the employment-intensive
infrastructure approach to job creation and the improvement of working and living
conditions in urban areas.
2. Reforming training policies and systems
69. Three major strategies used to address the training needs of the urban informal sector have
been explored and studied in greater depth:
! orienting existing training systems to provide small business and entrepreneurship
skills;
! development of new training methodologies more suitable to the sector (low-cost
training inputs, special instructional methods for those with low literacy levels);
! new training methodologies that build on existing means of acquisition and the
transfer of skills in the informal sector, such as the traditional apprenticeship system.
70. The following training issues and concerns pertaining to the informal sector have emerged
from the outcomes of studies of training policies and systems, policy review missions, and
technical advisory services:
! the heterogeneity of the informal sector requires the formulation of different training
responses in order to effectively meet the range of training needs within the sector;
! the occupational success and mobility of individuals, as well as the upgrading of
technical skills, are closely linked to the possession of basic formal education;
! gender discrimination in training systems is a major barrier to the development of
women’s employment and income-generating capacity;
! formal training systems are unable to address the needs of the informal sector because
of existing barriers such as –
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! entry requirements are too high;
! courses are inflexible and standardized;
! courses are mainly relevant for employment in the formal sector;
! training methods are suitable for the literate population only;
! fees are too high;
! time schedule and location of training are inappropriate to the heavy workload of
informal sector workers.
71. The traditional apprenticeship system has a good capacity to deliver training to the
informal sector. However, to maximize its potential the following issues should be kept in
mind and addressed:
! traditional apprenticeships are based on the technologies and ideas of previous
generations;
! as a result of the traditional division of labour, fewer training opportunities exist for
women;
! theoretical aspects are weak or absent on account of the nature of apprenticeships.
72. Reorienting training systems for the informal sector requires action at both the micro and
macro levels. Specific measures at the micro level are mainly concerned with the
development of methodologies to assess training needs, the delivery of training and the
adjustment of the skills of trainers and other actors in the training system, as well as access
to sources of financing. Macroeconomic measures are aimed at sensitizing national
training authorities to the training needs of the informal sector, training those authorities in
assessing the training needs of the informal sector, and adapting national training policies
to reflect the prevailing needs of the sector.
73. As regards action at the microeconomic level, one method to make formal and non-formal
training systems accessible and responsive to the informal sector is the “training-cum-production”
method. This method uses actual production activities in structured vocational
training programmes. Trainees earn while they learn; and part of the training costs are
offset by income from sales. The training experience is supposed to cover a total
production and business cycle, from design to sales and accounting. Experience from
several projects shows that this training method is particularly effective in the transfer of
skills involving new technology and modern equipment, and also when training low-income
individuals who cannot afford to forego income for any appreciable period.
74. Another innovative training method is the extension of technical advice by mobile teams,
usually the field extension staff of government departments and NGOs. They provide
training in immediate work needs and assist individuals and small groups on-site at the
workplace.
75. The community-based training approach requires participatory instruments and
methodologies to assess training needs and opportunities. Training content, curricula and
training materials are trainee-centred, and hence not standardized, requiring instructors to
design and adapt training content on an ad hoc basis.
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76. As regards traditional apprenticeship schemes, the following strategies to improve the
quality of training have been identified and developed:
! complementary training for apprentices, covering theoretical aspects of trade,
management, technology, and occupational safety and health;
! the extension of advisory services before, during and after apprenticeships, such as
vocational guidance, information on apprenticeship conditions and available master
craftsmen, and assistance in resolving complaints and disputes;
! providing support to master craftsmen in the improvement of apprenticeship methods,
productivity at the workplace, improved products, training materials and exchanges
with other master craftsmen.
77. Improvements in training activities at the micro level can only be effective and sustained if
they are integrated into a national training policy framework. It is also crucial to ensure
that training projects are not designed in isolation from other inputs necessary to the
informal sector, such as access to credit, infrastructure and legislative or policy support,
which are required for the successful utilization of the acquired skills.
3. Enhancing workers’ social protection
78. Two policy areas for enhancing workers’ social protection in the informal sector were
identified by the Report of the Director-General to the Conference in 1991, namely
occupational safety and health and social security.
(a) Occupational safety and health (OSH)
79. The problem of poor working environment in the informal sector has been commonly
raised by researchers and surveys. As the bulk of urban informal sector workers live in
poor areas, vulnerability to disease and poor health result from a combination of
undesirable living and working conditions. To address the problem, ILO projects such as
the INTERDEP project in Dar es Salaam, Manila and Bogotá and the subregional project
for homeworkers in Asia, have through pilot projects experimented with group- and area-based
strategies involving –
! the extension of OSH services by the public health care system;
! training individuals within the target group to identify OSH problems;
! emphasis on low-cost improvements in working conditions.
80. The implemented projects highlight several issues and directions for future action. The
following are significant.
! The creation of new structures can be avoided. Within the community, there are
resources and structures that can be used to carry out promotional, educational and
preventive services (public health care centres, NGOs and the informal sector
operators themselves). OSH training must hence be simple and practical.
! The public primary health care system at the community level has certain advantages
over conventional labour inspection machinery, in particular its presence at local
levels. Moreover, it is institutionalized, and operates nationwide. However, the
inadequacy of public resources for basic social services is a real constraint, and it is
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therefore uncertain whether promotional and educational health services will have a
guaranteed place in the scheme of social services delivery.
! Use of the public health care system is only sustainable with the support of an
appropriate national policy. There is also a need to ensure institutionalized training
programmes for health workers that integrate OSH concerns, a clearer mandate for
primary care units to deal with OSH, and effective collaboration between labour
ministries and health ministries.
! Working and living conditions are inseparable for most informal sector workers. Poor
infrastructure and lack of basic services result in poor working conditions. Lasting
improvements in working conditions can be achieved primarily through better
infrastructure and better basic services in poor urban areas. The role of local
government agencies, which are responsible for investment in infrastructure and the
delivery of basic services, is crucial here. Facilitating dialogue between local
authorities, public health workers, NGOs concerned with health issues, and informal
sector units and workers could help identify and promote priority improvements.
! Organization among informal sector workers helps to address problems concerning
their working conditions, since they are able to take self-help initiatives, and the
organization provides a link between the workers and the institutional structure that
provides services.
(b) Social security
81. The limitations faced in seeking to extend formal social security systems to workers and
their families outside the formal sector are well documented. Informal sector workers
cannot join formal national social security systems on a voluntary basis. Most are in
categories of work that are excluded from formal systems. It is estimated that 75 per cent
of all countries exclude workers in these categories. Many systems also exclude enterprises
below a certain size, or exclude workers with earnings below a certain level.
82. Existing ILO Conventions and Recommendations11 provide concepts and standards for the
formulation of social security policies. For the purpose of developing new approaches to
social security and protection, a broader definition of social security has been adopted by
the ILO’s social security programme. The definition stipulates that households and
individuals should be provided with benefits through public or collective arrangements so
as to protect against low or declining living standards resulting from a number of basic
risks and needs.
83. Four major strategies have been identified by which social security can be extended to
informal sector workers and their dependants. These involve –
! specially designed insurance schemes;
! social assistance (health, nutrition and education services);
! the extension and reform of formal sector social insurance;
! innovative social security schemes.
11 The Income Security Recommendation, 1944 (No. 67), the Medical Care Recommendation, 1994
(No. 69), and the Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102).
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84. The difficulty with the first strategy is that to expand coverage generally requires many
years and substantial financial resources. The weakness of the second strategy is that a
sophisticated administration is required to effectively identify, screen and reach the target
groups.
85. Extensive research has been undertaken within the ILO on the extension and reform of
formal sector social insurance. However, country case studies have shown that it is
impossible to effectively reach out to the informal sector as a whole through the extension
of formal sector insurance schemes. It has been estimated that only about 50 per cent of the
target group can be reached with existing schemes.
86. An alternative way of extending social security to the informal sector is through so-called
innovative social security schemes. Most of these are group- and community-based or
micro-insurance schemes aimed at providing or securing the basic needs of their members,
including child care, mutual health funds, death benefit funds, and thrift savings schemes
for emergencies. In some cases, groups or communities conclude a social contract with the
public service: if the groups are providing improvements to local infrastructure, the public
services provide social security to the group in question. In most cases, however, the
groups seek the services of a local service provider for which they pay the costs out of the
mutual contributions.
87. Until 1996, only sporadic pilot projects were implemented in this field. Since then, and in
particular since the establishment of the STEP12 programme, the concept of micro-insurance
is now being promoted and its potential is being demonstrated, mostly in Central
and West Africa.
88. The creation of group-based schemes has proven successful. But it should be noted that the
schemes vary in the scope and magnitude of benefits and in the level of organization and
management.
89. Several studies have highlighted the following issues regarding the effectiveness of micro-insurance
schemes established in Africa:
! in order to be successful, micro-insurance schemes must fulfil three conditions: they
must be simple, affordable and located close to their members. In addition to their
low cost, it is important for the schemes to be flexible enough to enable their affiliates
to pay when they can on account of their fluctuating income;
! it is important to base micro-insurance schemes on the specific priority needs of
would-be beneficiaries and not on comprehensive packages;
! micro-insurance schemes could improve their effectiveness by including waiting
periods for new members, social controls to avoid abuses, co-payments or ceilings on
the amounts of coverage, and some level of obligatory membership at the family,
association or target-group level;
! given the only recent appearance of such schemes however, their long-term
sustainability could not be assessed;
! the examples of medical aid societies created in South Africa and Zimbabwe can
illustrate how micro-insurance schemes might grow in the future and scale up to
12 Strategies and Tools against Social Exclusion and Poverty.
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become larger organizations, and even, eventually, how they might participate in or
coordinate their activities with compulsory social health insurance schemes.
However, only little experience has been gathered in general about the replication of
the schemes and the possibility of their aggregation into larger organizations.
4. Reforming legal frameworks
90. If the productive potential of the urban informal sector is to be unleashed and workers’
protection improved, an enabling and supportive legal and policy environment must exist.
91. One issue arising in this context is non-compliance with laws and regulations governing
business and employment in the informal sector. This is a problem for national and local
governments, many of which are now caught between helping the sector to promote
employment or alleviate poverty, and enforcing the law. How should this problem of non-compliance
with the law be dealt with – by deregulation or by stricter enforcement?
92. Much of the ILO’s work in this field has been based on research. An approach based on
this research suggests that regulations that protect the general interests of society or
safeguard the absolute needs of the more vulnerable groups must be distinguished from
laws, regulations and procedures that constitute a heavy administrative, bureaucratic and
financial burden. The research has also pointed out that there is some overlap between
informal, non-permanent forms of labour utilization and informal production units,
because some small enterprises may have been created exclusively to increase labour
flexibility and reduce labour costs, and are therefore dependent on parent firms for
survival. In this case, new forms of regulation are called for because existing legal
provisions are not applicable. For wage workers in the informal sector, however, the entire
range of labour standards should in principle be applicable. This approach was reinforced
in the Director-General’s Report to the Conference of 1991, which advocated the
progressive implementation of labour standards and laws in the informal sector, but
without compromising standards concerning basic human rights and exploitative forms of
employment.
93. On the practical side, dialogue has been encouraged and organized by the ILO in order to
enable the social partners and other institutional actors to identify the specific measures
and reforms that may be adopted to address legal and regulatory constraints. With regard to
the promotion of labour legislation, studies in general have shown that a prerequisite for
the application of labour law is the existence of clearly defined employer-employee
relations. Hence, labour law is not applicable in most segments of the informal sector,
where self-employment and family labour prevail. To increase the chances for the
application of labour legislation in the informal sector, the studies undertaken point to the
following needs –
! to define and disaggregate the informal sector more precisely by activity, productivity
level and employment status;
! to improve understanding of the temporary nature of employment relations;
! to examine the definition and role of family labour;
! to make the necessary revisions of labour legislation in line with conditions in the
informal sector.
94. Regarding the regulations governing the establishment and operation of informal sector
enterprises, studies and experience from projects have revealed that, alongside the low
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degree of awareness of legal requirements and compliance, there is a strong positive
correlation between the degree of legality and business performance. However, the
obstacles are the tedious process of registration and the high cost of operating on a legal
basis. Rules and regulations concerning the registration of enterprises and taxation should
hence be streamlined, simplified and relaxed by the authorities to facilitate the growth and
transformation of informal sector enterprises. Furthermore, one should avoid setting
minimum requirements for incentives, such as advantageous duty rates on the import of
equipment, export facilities and subsidies, or the possibility of tendering for government
contracts.
95. There is also an urgent need to sensitize governments to the need to promote and enforce
regulations governing subcontracting relationships between formal sector enterprises and
informal sector operators. In recent years the number of subcontracting arrangements has
increased, and their non-regulation has considerably increased the vulnerability of informal
sector operators, particularly women.
96. Experience from projects also reveals that the provision of business sites, premises and
infrastructure facilitates compliance with rules and regulations.
97. The ILO’s direct experience in assisting governments to reform their legal and regulatory
frameworks highlights one major feature: the process is long and complex. Many actors
and institutions at national and local levels are involved. Some reforms have to be
launched at the local level, others at higher levels. Social dialogue is necessary, and the
informal sector itself must have a voice in the dialogue.
5. Assessing macroeconomic policies
98. The general conclusion drawn from the ILO’s extensive research is that the main
macroeconomic policies adopted by many countries in the framework of stabilization or
structural adjustment programmes frequently intensified the informalization of the
economy, with the informal sector becoming a safety valve rather than a productive sector.
99. An initial suggestion is hence to assess the impact on the level and structure of
employment from a macroeconomic point of view. Secondly, the impact on labour
markets – which also adjust during the process of transformation and restructuring – must
be assessed. Thirdly, the analysis must also determine how specific population groups will
be affected, particularly the most vulnerable.
100. The results of such analysis will enable policy-makers to anticipate any possible adverse
social effects and should therefore be used in the design of macroeconomic policy
packages for future structural adjustment programmes. The social costs of such
programmes could be minimized, and the compensatory measures after implementation
would not go beyond the normal social security or social welfare provisions. The main
findings from ILO research can be summarized as follows.
101. It is widely acknowledged that most developing countries have created a bias in their
policy framework in favour of the formal sector. Structural adjustment policies seem to
have a negative effect on the informal sector to the extent that labour flows to the informal
sector increase without any expansion in its productive capacity. Measures to reorient the
production structure or influence the demand structure through fiscal or income
distribution policies in favour of the formal sector should therefore be avoided, and the
policy framework should at least be made neutral in its approach to the formal and
informal sectors.
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102. There is a need to promote macroeconomic policies that stimulate growth in the urban
economy as a whole. In the absence of such a balanced policy package the formal sector
will be the main source of growth, leaving the informal sector as a mere safety valve.
103. In growing economies one can expect, in the long term, that the real incomes of
households will rise, and hence the demand for informal sector products and services will
diminish. In these circumstances informal sector units will typically react by transforming
their production capacity and moving closer to the formal sector. The policy goal should in
this case be to accelerate this transformation process so that the sector can respond
effectively to new opportunities arising out of socio-economic development.
104. It seems equally important to forge complementary links between informal and formal
sector firms through appropriate government policies. In pursuing these policies due
attention needs to be paid to their unequal bargaining strength. Consequently, suitable
provision must be made to ensure that contractual arrangements between them are fair,
including subcontracting. This implies strengthening organizations of micro-enterprises
and supporting them through appropriate legislation and regulations and their enforcement.
V. Future programme priorities and policy
orientations
105. The conclusions and recommendations for the key areas of concern identified and
discussed in this paper are summarized below.
1. Measurement of the informal sector
106. Major progress in the field of measurement of the informal sector has been achieved with
the adoption of the 15th ICLS guidelines. It can be concluded that the guidelines have been
effective in facilitating the tasks of national statistical agencies in carrying out informal
sector surveys and thereby in the institutionalization of the guidelines. However, some
problems still exist with regard to the international comparability of data.
107. Careful monitoring and assessment is therefore needed in ongoing and future work on –
! operationalizing the guidelines for informal sector statistics in country-specific
situations;
! integrating the ICLS guidelines into national statistical systems;
! strengthening national capacity for the collection and analysis of statistics on the
urban informal sector;
! improving the international comparability of informal sector statistics – one area
requiring special attention is the analysis of data in terms of gender concerns.
108. Lack of proper follow-up action on informal sector surveys is likely to reduce response
rates in future surveys. Therefore, whenever possible, survey results should be utilized as a
basis for the design and implementation of support action programmes and technical
cooperation projects.
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2. Enhancing the productive potential of informal
sector entrepreneurs
109. As regards national targeted programmes, one might conclude that the capacity of national
structures to reach the target groups and deliver services is critical in determining the
effectiveness of the programmes. Two critical issues faced by national targeted
programmes are financial viability and institutional sustainability. Another issue is whether
and how these programmes are able to influence mainstream national policies and
institutions so that they provide durable support to urban informal sector units.
110. When a national targeted programme is implemented, special attention should hence be
placed on –
! identifying and involving the target group;
! assessing to what extent the target group has been reached by the programmes;
! assessing the effectiveness of the programmes in terms of their impact on the target
group;
! ensuring that the institutional framework is sustainable;
! ensuring that a national targeted programme is combined with measures aimed at
influencing national policies for the creation of a stimulating environment for the
growth and expansion of micro-enterprises.
111. In order to tackle the issues facing the urban informal sector, the ILO must, in partnership
with its constitutions, deal and collaborate with all the key actors concerned, such as local
government authorities, public health departments, community-based organizations and
other NGOs etc. At the same time, the strategies developed so far have hardly explored the
potential role of trade unions and employers’ organizations in enhancing the productive
potential of the urban informal sector. The potential role of workers’ and employers’
organizations in addressing the problems pertaining to the informal sector should therefore
be examined in greater depth.
112. With regard to the building of networks and alliances, future work should examine how to
expand the membership base of national and regional committees of micro-entrepreneurs
so as to ensure that they remain representative of the sector as a whole.
3. Creation of informal sector organizations and
capacity-building
113. Group-based, self-help strategies for the provision of training, marketing, technological
and financial services were found appropriate in situations where formal institutions that
normally provide such services were either non-existent or weak, or simply unprepared or
unwilling to deal with economic units in the urban informal sector. While recognizing the
relevance and effectiveness of group-based, self-help strategies, a few points must be
noted. The effectiveness and sustainability of informal sector organizations is the end
result of a large number of factors, both internal and external to projects. These include
organizational processes, which build up group solidarity – self-management capability is
critical. At the same time, the political and economic environment affects the
organizational processes and the groups’ productive activities. There are also limits to what
self-help schemes can achieve on their own. Moreover, self-help schemes are rarely
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financially self-reliant when projects end, requiring further support from institutions within
the local and national community.
114. All future projects should therefore ensure that –
! adequate efforts and resources are utilized to strengthen the self-management
capability of self-help reliance groups;
! links with external institutions are established in order to enable small producers and
micro-entrepreneurs to expand resources and assets, obtain new or better technologies
and secure access to services;
! national and local institutions and governments are committed to providing support to
the self-help schemes after the actual end of the project;
! alternative income sources have been found for the organizations created in order to
ensure their sustainability after the withdrawal of external assistance.
115. It is equally important to ensure that an assessment of group-based self-help strategies
include their potential for creating more active, socially aware and relatively independent
groups and alliances within the community and the urban informal sector. In this respect
two organizational issues should be examined in greater depth:
! the choice of a legal and institutional framework for informal sector organizations,
and how this determines their effectiveness and sustainability;
! the heterogeneity of the informal sector and, consequently, of their organizations, and
how this affects organizational processes and the allocation of benefits among
members.
4. Job creation and improvement of conditions in
the informal sector through infrastructure
116. The ultimate success of the employment-intensive infrastructure programmes depends on
the integration of employment-intensive policies into the mainstream infrastructure and
investment policies of a country from local to national levels, so that job creation can occur
on a large scale and be substantial. In addition to generating jobs, the potential of the
employment-intensive infrastructure works approach to improving living and working
conditions in the urban informal sector has been clearly demonstrated. As pointed out,
living and working conditions are inseparable: significant and lasting improvements in
working conditions are not possible without upgrading the physical environment of poor
urban settlements.
117. However, in order to enhance the sustainability of activities to upgrade infrastructure, the
possibilities for applying an integrated programme approach in such projects should be
studied in greater depth, combining infrastructure upgrading with the easing of other
supply constraints, such as lack of access to skills training, credit and markets.
5. Training
118. The ILO has made substantial efforts to examine training policy issues with regard to the
urban informal sector. It has also developed innovative training methodologies for the
informal sector.
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119. Experience from projects points to the fact that training activities at the micro level need to
be integrated into a national training policy framework if they are to be effective and
sustainable. It is also important to ensure that training projects are not designed in isolation
from other inputs necessary for viable informal sector units, such as access to credit,
infrastructure and legislative or policy support, which are required for the successful
utilization of the skills transferred.
6. Workers’ protection
120. Pilot projects on improving OSH through group- and area-based strategies have
demonstrated their potential. Project experience shows that the creation of new structures
can be avoided, since existing structures lend themselves well to carrying out promotional,
educational and preventive services, and they are present at the local level. One constraint,
however, is the inadequacy of public resources for basic social services, and it is therefore
uncertain whether promotional and educational health services will have a guaranteed
place in the scheme of social services delivery. The organization of informal sector
workers has proved effective in helping address problems concerning their working
conditions.
121. The number of actual initiatives undertaken in the area of OSH is limited, and more
practical experience of promoting OSH should therefore be generated and evaluated
through group-based schemes and existing structures (NGOs, public health care centres
and informal sector workers themselves).
122. With regard to social security, the establishment of group-based micro-insurance schemes
has proven successful, although experience in projects shows that the schemes vary in the
scope and magnitude of benefits and in the level of organization and management. Key
factors for the success of micro-insurance schemes are simplicity, affordability and the
location of the scheme close to its members. Since such schemes have mostly been created
only recently, information on their long-term sustainability is insufficient. Future work
should therefore examine under which conditions such structures can be sustained and
replicated, as well as aggregated into larger organizations.
7. Reforming legal frameworks
123. Several studies have pointed out that, in order to successfully promote the extension of
labour legislation to the informal sector, a better understanding is needed of the overall
structure of the sector, identifying the different units comprising it and its functioning.
124. More pilot projects should therefore be undertaken on the application of existing
legislation with a view to collecting and analysing the information forming the basis for
the effective promotion of labour legislation for the informal sector.
125. As regards subcontracting arrangements between formal sector enterprises and informal
sector operators, work should be initiated to identify the best form of regulations to govern
subcontracting relationships. At the same time, governments should be sensitized to the
need to identify informal activities in which existing rules and regulations cannot be
applied, and which hence require specific customized provisions, as well as informal
activities in which existing rules and regulations could be applied progressively. All
projects in this field should give high priority to gender aspects, as women are most
vulnerable for exploitation.
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8. Assessing macroeconomic policies
126. Substantial research has been carried out within the ILO to examine the processes that
underline the surge of the urban informal sector (urbanization, rural-urban migration,
capital-intensive industries, modernization of the public sector, globalization, etc.). At the
same time, most of the ILO’s work on the urban informal sector has been directed towards
the end-result of the processes and not the processes themselves. The various aspects of the
globalization process and, in particular, its consequences for the informal sector, should
therefore be examined in order to explore and define the scope for ILO action.
127. In view of the large share of the informal sector in many economies, growth policies
should include the informal sector as a potential source of economic expansion. Growth-oriented
macroeconomic policy packages should hence strike a balance between formal
sector and informal sector policies.
128. With regards to macroeconomic policies in general, and structural adjustment policies in
particular, research on the impact of such policies on the informal sector should be
continued in order to assess their adverse social consequences and minimize their potential
negative impact. Capacity-building projects at the macro level should also be initiated
aimed at sensitizing governments to the consequences of macroeconomic policy
intervention for the informal sector.
VI. Concluding remarks
129. Initially, enhancing the productive and employment potential of the urban informal sector
seems to have been the dominant concern of governments, the social partners,
development institutions and international organizations. More recently, however, social
protection issues in the informal sector have become the focus of attention in the current
debate on the reform of social security schemes. The role of employers’ and workers
organizations in support of the informal sector has also begun to be examined in much
greater depth.
130. The ILO’s International Symposium on Trade Unions and the Informal Sector (Geneva,
18-22 October 1999),13 is an excellent example of such initiatives aimed at defining the
way forward and the scope for ILO action. The focus of the meeting was on trade union
strategies to organize informal sector workers, particularly women and young people, and
better represent their interests. It was concluded that unions must do more to accommodate
the needs of informal sector workers through specially tailored activities. It was therefore
suggested that national trade union centres and affiliated organizations urgently review
their own priorities, internal structures and resource allocation to determine whether
sufficient attention is being devoted to the informal sector.
131. Furthermore, the symposium recommended that the ILO’s InFocus Programme on
Promoting the Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work should include
activities specifically designed to remove obstacles to trade union organization in the
informal sector and to extend the implementation of the other fundamental Conventions to
this sector. Another suggestion was that the InFocus Programme on Skills, Knowledge and
Employability should promote policies that reflect the specific needs of workers in
informal sector activities. It may be noted that several recommendations made by the
13 GB.277/STM/5.
24 GB277-2000-02-0294-1-EN.Doc

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symposium are consistent with the conclusions of this thematic evaluation report. One
example is the symposium’s recommendation that the extension of social protection to
informal sector workers should be a major objective for the ILO.
132. The strategies developed and tested in the ILO’s work on the urban informal sector
demonstrate that no single line of action is sufficient because the problems are multiple
and multifaceted. Moreover, the use of a multidisciplinary approach to address the
problems and the policy options in the informal sector has proven valid. It has become
clear that, within the ILO, multidisciplinary collaboration and concerted action must
continue and be further encouraged.
133. Although the policy implications outlined in this paper are first and foremost of direct
interest to the Office, ILO constituents and other partners in development will also find
them relevant to their own action.
Geneva, 18 February 2000.
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Appendix
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