(Opening Session; Keynote Address; Round Table…

• Opening session
• Keynote address
• Round Table 1: Balancing the opportunities and challenges of a changing labour market to ensure decent work for all     

Labour markets are undergoing unprecedented transformation, owing to factors such as technological advancement, global economic integration and the green transition. While rapid changes in the labour market can garner significant benefits, adaptation can be a difficult process.  

These global trends, together with institutional and policy changes, have benefited some sectors of the labour market while creating disruption in others particularly for the most vulnerable groups, including low-skilled workers and those in the informal sector.  

Gender gaps and barriers to women's full and equal participation in the world of work still persist and the growth of the informal sector has resulted in precarious employment and limited access to social protection.  

The changing nature of work calls for decisive action.

The Special Meeting of ECOSOC will serve as an opportunity to discuss policy recommendations to:

• Harness the opportunities that changes in the labour market bring and manage the challenges they pose to decent work;
• Explore the opportunities and limitations of technological advances and digitalization, including AI, and their impacts on the labour market while addressing the challenges of the digital divide;
• Identify policy options for advancing skills acquisition to build resilience and increase adaptation to labour transitions, with a view to accelerating progress on the SDGs; and
• Distill targeted efforts toward specific groups such as women, youth and migrants.

The outcome of the meeting will be a summary by the President of ECOSOC, which will aim to serve as an input to the 2024 Summit of the Future and potentially to the World Social Summit if convened in 2025.